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These are the hand-painted models that brought Blade Runner to life

These are the hand-painted models that brought Blade Runner to life

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The best science fiction is often about building fully-realized worlds — futuristic cities full of details that are strangely familiar. For some sci-fi classics though, this isn't just a metaphor, these worlds were actually built. This fantastic Imgur gallery of behind the scene photos from Ridley Scott's Blade Runner demonstrates this perfectly, showing off the miniatures used to film the 1982 neo-noir classic.

We're not sure of exactly where these images came from, but the uploader minicity claims they're scans of slides taken of production artists behind the scenes. There are models and illustrations of vehicles used in the film, and shots of the exterior of the Tyrell Corporation's gigantic headquarters being built. Oh, and there's more than a few great '80s mustaches in there too.

We have to remember that when Blade Runner was made, digital effects just weren't commonly used. Everything you see in the film — every flying car and skyscraper — was made by hand. In the famous opening shot, for example, the camera is panning over Los Angeles in the year 2019. However, the apparently endless sprawl of the city is actually a set just 12 feet across while the seemingly gigantic bursts of flame are inches high.