Assembly Studios is the largest purpose-built film and television campus in Georgia, built by Gray Media on the 135-acre site of the former General Motors assembly plant in Doraville. Where the state’s film industry has largely operated behind closed doors, this tour opens the gates for a walk through a working studio, the kind of place most people only see on screen.
The scale is the story. Smith Dalia Architects led the design of eight studio buildings holding 19 soundstages, close to a million square feet of stage and support space, alongside a wet stage the size of a football field for water filming. The backlots run full streetscapes built in real brick and ironwork, standing in for New York, New Orleans, Europe, and Chicago, all under the Georgia sun. A 140-foot LED tower, the tallest of its kind in the US, marks the centre of the site off I-285.
HGOR’s landscape and public-realm design is what sets Assembly apart from a conventional studio lot. The plan splits the site: a secure studio operation on one side, and around 90 acres of public park, trails, and open space on the other, so a working film campus and a community park share the same ground. It is placemaking on an industrial site, not just a production facility.
The route takes in the Gray areas, the park and filmable façades, and, subject to availability on the day, the costume department or signage shop. The tour ends in the Jewel Box, an events space designed by Hendrick as a nod to classic Hollywood: dark wood, jewel tones, and plush finishes. There, Sam Baum, Gray Media’s Executive Director of Strategic Brand Activation, hosts a 30-minute Q&A on the future vision for Assembly and its tenants. Bottled water and soft drinks provided.