It is especially noted for its gold-tiled cylindrical section that faces the intersection of Wilshire Boulevard at Fairfax Avenue, of which it occupies the northeast corner.

[9] In 2012,[10] the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences CEO Dawn Hudson asked Pritzker Prize-winning architect Renzo Piano to design the 300,000-square-foot campus consisting of the former May Company Building and a spherical addition attached by three glass bridges.

[11] The museum's design plan called for the renovation of the original structure, which included a full restoration of the exterior—most notably its cylindrical façade.

Fidler used an English technique called helifix anchor that allowed them to cut away at the spoiled and broken stone and remove the corroding metal fundamentally restoring the exterior of the building.

[14][11] The 130-foot-tall sphere building is home to the 1,000-seat David Geffen Theater and is topped by the glass-domed Dolby Family Terrace which offers guests a panoramic view of the city and the Hollywood sign.