On Craigslist and eBay, with items from prop shops and pickers, they are setting the scene.

On a laptop, at the fabric store, in discussions that float around this corner of the cavernous floor, they are building a character.

Meet the award-winning set decorator Debra Schutt ’77 and her team. This is the behind-the-scenes cast of the aspiring HBO series “The Corrections.” It’s a cast that won’t be talked about in the Hollywood rags or blogs, but their work is just as important to the success of the show.

Panning a rectangle of folding tables with laptops and coffee cups: Val is on the phone haggling over test tubes, Sammy is researching science projects as if they are on display in 1968 and Fanny is scouring the Internet for samples of erotic art.

Tina is managing the cash for the operation, Karen is mulling over set specs; and the production designer, David, is voting finds, samples and ideas up or down between conversations and emails with the show’s directors and producers.

And then there’s Debra, whose desk is nearly eclipsed by stacks of carpet, fabric, wallpaper and linoleum samples.

A poster board full of old family photos rests on the edge of her wobbly Ikea table. It’s a collection provided by Jonathan Franzen, the author of the book that inspired the show.

A rectangle of black foam core board on the wall behind Debra is labeled “Chip’s apartment” and has a sketch of a bright red chaise belonging to one of the main characters.

That bright red chaise is currently orange and sitting in a nearby room with a collection of other furnishings found on the Web or from middleman “pickers” who comb estate sales, storage lockers and the like for various objects.

“Lipstick red,” Debra says to herself while thumbing through some samples of upholstery fabric. She calls over to David for a second opinion.

Debra Schutt ’77 won an Emmy in 2011 for her work on the “Boardwalk Empire” pilot episode. Here, she recalls what went into the set decoration for these three scenes. “The first and last photos are scenes from the Lolly’s Casino. When I took the job I was very worried about where I was going to find the period tables. Luckily, I walked into an antiques shop in southern New Jersey called the Red Barn and there was the roulette table and it was from Atlantic City. “The middle photo is of Chalky White is on a set built at Steiner Studios in Brooklyn. The floor is painted marble and the fireplace, etc. is scenery.”

Later, Schutt will visit the fabric store in search of the specific color as well as a pattern that would fit with a couch in a suburban living room in the late 1990s, when the book takes place.

To create “The Corrections,” the set will need the right red, the most accurate fabric, the top props. Every conceivable detail down to how shiny the basement floor will be is mulled at this stage.

But, wait. Even in the age of high definition, who’s looking at this stuff?

“If you don’t notice, it means we did our job,” chimes Fanny.

Schutt slaps down a slab of 1960s basement-looking linoleum to gauge its authenticity.

“You don’t want people to notice,” she says in agreement without looking up. “You just want it to be right.”

For more than 30 years, Schutt has been doing it right as a set decorator, with a résumé that includes an Oscar nomination for “Revolutionary Road,” an Emmy win for the pilot of HBO’s “Boardwalk Empire” and memorable sets from films like “Fried Green Tomatoes” and “A Bronx Tale.”

MORE: See Debra’s resume

Schutt sees herself in the role of building a character.

All the furniture, flooring, drapery, wall coverings and appliances you see on the screen come from the minds, phone calls and clicks of the set decorator and her team. It takes months of long days to make a movie — or in this case, a pilot episode for a television show.

This pilot will determine whether HBO adds “The Corrections” to its stable of award-winning cinematic series.

At the heart of the plot for “The Corrections,” three 30-something siblings gather with their parents for one last Christmas in their childhood home. Reminiscing ensues.

That’s why Sammy needs to perfect a set of 1960s science projects and Schutt is inspecting a piece of wood to determine whether it will match the grain and thickness of the folding table a project like that would sit on in 1968.

Val needs those test tubes to finish off an amateur laboratory in the basement of the “Corrections” house and Fanny needs the racy artwork to cover the main character’s wall for a scene.

Debra Schutt ’77 was nominated for an Oscar in 2009 for her work on “Revolutionary Road” starring Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio. Here, she recalls what went into the set decoration in these scenes. “The director, Sam Mendes, wanted a pair of matching 5-foot sofas for the living room. We finally had them made new but when they arrived they were over-stuffed, so we had to have an upholsterer unstuff the pair the day before we shot the scene. “In the kitchen scene, there were five chairs in the set. At one point in the film, Leonardo breaks a chair and we had only one extra. The construction department made several extras out of balsa wood but luckily Leonardo did it in one take using the one extra real chair.”

“I love the picture that develops,” Debra says. “I love that I get the opportunity to create these visuals.

“There’s never a ‘no.’ You can do anything,” she says.

Her career in set curating has firm roots in Oswego, where she was a member of Pi Delta Chi and earned a degree in education. As an upperclassman, she was drawn to the technical side of theatre and found mentors in department staff like Ken Stone ’68 and Jon Vermilye ’66.

“Debra was one of our exceptional students,” Vermilye remembers. “A very dependable and resourceful prop master, if she was doing the show, you were assured that the job would get done and the quality would be excellent.”

Her experience in Waterman Theatre, and her friend Alice Maguire ’76, helped Schutt get her first professional gigs in theater. She made the transition to film in the mid-1980s as a set decorator, a title she’s maintained her entire career.

Like many jobs in the film industry, it’s a tough gig. There are the long hours and logistical challenges that come with each project — Debra routinely works 12-hour days and once had to scramble for office desk tchotchkes at 7 a.m. … 30 minutes before shooting.

Job security is determined by skill. The work comes project to project, typically through networking.

Even if “The Corrections” is picked up and becomes a series, Debra may not be its set decorator for the duration. The “Boardwalk Empire” pilot was a one-off job as well.

She continues to do movies — the much-buzzed-about Sacha Baron Cohen film “The Dictator” is one recent project.

Perhaps the greatest influence on her career, though, is her apple farm upbringing outside of Rochester. The long days at her family-owned and -operated Schutt’s Apple Mill gave her the frame of mind to make it on a film crew.

“I am a worker,” she says. “I will just sink my teeth in and work until I drop … I’m obsessed.”

Most of that work goes unnoticed, but that’s the point. If the fixtures, fabrics and furnishings are spot on, you’re watching the movie.

Christine Estabrook ’73, whose acting résumé includes spots on “Desperate Housewives” and the new “American Horror Story” series on FX, visited with several theatre classes as part of the Oswego Alumni Association Alumni-In-Residence program in November.

Brian Ronan ’84 with his award for “Best Sound Design in a Musical” at the Tony Awards in June. He won for “The Book of Mormon” and was also nominated for “Anything Goes” in the same category.

“The Tony for sound design is relatively new and it’s a real honor to be singled out among so many talented designers,” he said. “In my formative years following my time at Oswego, I was inspired by many great designers prior to Tony eligibility, one of whom is Oswego graduate Tom Morse ’74. [He] is one of the designers who really pulled Broadway sound into the 21st century.”

Some of Ronan’s most valuable collegiate experience came from his time with Campus Lighting, an independent, student-run entity that gave him a feel for the business side of performance. He then made some of his first Broadway connections as an intern at Masque Sound.

“I think every show has a voice of its own,” Ronan said previously, “Part of my job is to find that sound and bring it forward to the audience.”

Ronan considers a Broadway house “just an empty room” until sound and light crews enhance it. He and his crew set up the sound and communications systems for each performance: everything from the mixing board to the backstage headsets.

Current projects include “Anything Goes” on Broadway and “Rent” off-Broadway as well as “American Idiot” and “Bring It On,” both touring nationally. He is also working on “Nice Work if You Can Get It,” starring Matthew Broderick and a musical adaption of the novel Giant.

Elias Gutierrez '09 and model Elodie debut the spring 2012 line at Fashion Coterie in New York City.

He designs a high-profile line of dresses in the Garment District of New York City. He freelances for Kleinfeld Bridal, made famous by TLC’s “Say Yes to the Dress” television series. As an intern, he created the jerseys worn by the big-headed presidential mascots who entertain during Washington Nationals baseball games.

“It’s [all] theatre. It’s something different every day,” says Elias, whose résumé bullet points for designing and creating far outnumber his years of professional experience. “It’s not every day you get to make a giant fruit for a commercial.”

Or the bobblehead likeness of controversial Iran President Mahmud Ahmajinedad — that one landed him on the cover of the New York Times.

The graphic design major produces a line of dresses for Mon Cheri Bridals in his main gig as associate designer. A costume design minor, Elias cut his teeth cutting cloth in the theatre department.

Today, he dreams up and sketches dress designs inspired by trendy pieces with ultra-expensive price tags out of reach for most.

“It’s not by any means a knockoff,” Elias says. “The goal is to make a luxury item that doesn’t break the bank.”

Elias studies hundreds of photos and hours of footage to come up with a design for, say, a wedding dress based on the threads Kate Middleton wore to her royal nuptials with Prince William.

Those specs are sent to China where cloth mockups called “muslins” are created and mass produced after tweaking.

Elias says his success has firm roots in Oswego’s theatre program, where professors Kitty Macey and Judy McCabe nurtured his talents.

“I had really close relationships with my professors,” he says. “That’s the kind of [program] they’ve set up: The Theatre Department is like a family.”

So it’s no wonder that a group of Los Angeles-area alumni banded together to create a scholarship to help a current student.

They held cabaret performances, titled “The L.A.ker Effect,” which featured a variety of formats, ranging from short films written, performed and directed by Oswego alumni to sketch comedy, readings and musicals.

“I was able to attend the event each year and the connections they all make with each other — with their Oswego years as a common bond — are impressive,” said Theatre Professor Mark Cole ’73. “The events were very successful, not only in providing a reunion venue but also in raising significant funds for the scholarship.”

This year, the endowed scholarship was awarded to its first recipient: Nicholas Pike ’13.

“He is an excellent example of the type of major this scholarship celebrates: a versatile student, who has honed his performance skills and worked crews in several areas, someone who has demonstrated dedication and accomplishment and drive,” said Cole.

Pike is a theatre major with a concentration in acting and directing. A member of Blackfriars, he is also a member of the Oswego State diving team. After graduation, he hopes to go on to earn a master of fine arts in acting and stage management. He dreams of a career as a stage manager for a major entertainment event or for professional theatre.

“The SUNY Oswego theatre department has helped me grow as a performer, establish an understanding of most technical aspects of theatre, discover new passions as well as remembering old ones,” wrote Pike in thanking the committee for the scholarship.

“I am very lucky to be receiving this award and to be able to go to Oswego to learn more about what I love to do. One day I hope to lead by your example and return the favor to the program,” he added.

“We know of the long hours and tremendous dedication it takes to have an active part in theatre [at Oswego],” said Natascha Corrigan Aldridge ’96, one of the organizers of the effort. “Maybe with the help of the scholarship, a student who would have a part-time job to pay for books, might be able to perform [instead] and gain that priceless experience.”

Irwin, president and CEO of Dolphin Research Center in Grassy Key, Fla., has made a living out of researching and teaching the public about dolphins. Featuring 20 bottlenose dolphins as well as California sea lions, the center hosts narrated behavior sessions, educational presentations and interactive programs for the public.

Rita Irwin ’77 is president and CEO of the Dolphin Research Center in Florida.

It is also the southernmost manatee rescue operation in the country. As president, Irwin is responsible for taking care of the marine mammals, as well as maintaining the direction and mission of the entire center and its 83 employees.

Despite the stark differences, Irwin still finds a way to see parallels between the paradise-like city she resides in now and the notoriously chilly Port City, especially when looking out into the water.

“We used to look out onto the lake and see the snowstorms coming,” Irwin said. “Now I’m in the Florida Keys looking at the Gulf of Mexico. It’s very similar to being on campus and looking at the lake, but instead of snowstorms, it’s rain storms.”

Born and raised in New York City, Irwin’s first taste of small-town living came when she arrived at Oswego for college. It was an experience she says she still cherishes, and one that helped her make the decision to move to Florida, where she met her husband, Dan Gallagher.

“When I came to the Keys, I was so attracted to the research center and Oswego helped me realize I could move out of a big city. I like the small town experience and Oswego was the only small town I lived in before I came to the Keys.”

Outside of the job, Irwin has also found time to be active in the community, especially in the theatre scene. She recently co-wrote a musical and it is set to debut in March. Titled “Act Now,” the production is about an audition at a community theatre and the lives and decisions of the people at the theatre. A theatre major while at Oswego, she credits her time working on productions at college for her latest accomplishment.

“[Writing and directing a musical was] a lifelong dream of mine. All of the hours I spent in the Oswego theatre have paid off.”

— Kyle C. Gargan ’11

SUNY Oswego’s new interdisciplinary minor in audio design and production aims to meet student and industry demand while broadening opportunities for students.

The minor will create a production-centered learning environment to provide hands-on experience that accompanies audio theory.

Music majors Ken Bardin ’11, left, and Brad Gorham ’11 work with a recording by a local performer in the Tyler Hall recording studio.

The program, based in SUNY Oswego’s School of Communication, Media and the Arts, includes courses in broadcasting, music and theatre in its core, plus a large sampling of electives — such as multimedia courses through the art department.

The minor connects radio production courses, theatre sound classes and recording courses in music.

Audio moving into digital and software- driven formats, with greater dissemination via the web, has increased demand for graduates and even current students with the requisite skills, noted Daniel Wood, a former professional recording engineer who now teaches students the tricks of the trade in the music department.

The formation of the School of Communication, Media and the Arts last year — bringing together art, communication studies, music and theatre — provided the final impetus in creating the minor.

“When we formed the new school, we really created avenues for people to work with each other across disciplines,” said Fritz Messere ’71, M ’76, dean of the School of Communication, Media and the Arts. “The minor strengthens all of the existing programs while creating new opportunities for our students.” l

— Tim Nekritz M ’05