A CHARACTER OF ITS OWN: PRODUCTION DESIGN AND IDENTITY

Production designers are in charge of a film’s art department and the overall visual look of a film; their role within the film is to remain unnoticed in order to add to the sense of realism created within a fictional world. It is because of this invisibility that their work often goes unrecognized. The production designer is the creative mind that inspires and fuels the director’s vision. The set design within a film is a useful tool used to portray identity. The film’s setting often becomes a reflection of the production designer’s identity, which is seen through their stylistic choices. I explore the creative styles of two production designers and their works in relation to how they use setting as a character to portray their identities and fuel their craft. I will analyze the works of Rick Carter, a white male production designer, who identifies as a “collage artist,” through his films Forrest Gump (1994), and Avatar (2009). I also analyze the works of Hannah Beachler, a Black female production designer, who identifies as a “cinematic architect,” through her films Moonlight (2015), and Black Panther (2018). In this essay, I argue that a production designer turns the setting of a film into a character of its own that reflects the identities of its creators. This is shown through the “collage artist” versus the “cinematic architect” design styles of Rick Carter and Hannah Beachler.

For more information: rsflynn@eckerd.edu

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