Key contributors to the film’s aesthetic, which grounds fantasy in a palpable reality, were costume designer Jenny Beavan, a multiple Oscar nominee and two-time winner, and production designer Guy Hendrix Dyas, a two-time nominee.
Friday, November 09, 2018
Costume, Production Designers on ‘Nutcracker and the Four Realms’
Key contributors to the film’s aesthetic, which grounds fantasy in a palpable reality, were costume designer Jenny Beavan, a multiple Oscar nominee and two-time winner, and production designer Guy Hendrix Dyas, a two-time nominee.
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The design for this show really reminds me of the way the costumes were designed for films like Alice in Wonderland and Maleficent. Like these other films, This new Nutcracker film is trying to establish a world that does not exist, but feels just real enough to us that it could exist. I think that these designs really achieve that. The way the designer used texture serves the same purpose a baby mobile does: to draw you in and catch your eye. This entire film is visually stunning, between the vibrant colors and the cinematography, all of the elements come together to bring back that child like wonder, and bring even the most skeptical adult into their world. I've always enjoyed bright colored films like this, because in a way the plot really doesn't matter, because they're so visually beautiful that they stand out as art on their own. There's something about the bright colors and the brightness in general that makes you wish for the brighter, more colorful version of life. Our world is beautiful, but without the controlled editing and lighting, it can never be that beautiful, so costumes and cinematography like this really pull the viewer in.
the amount of detail that this article was able to describe in such a short article really tells the story of how much attention the designers paid to the detail of every single aspect. It is cool to hear that the came for an angle as simple as color and made it an important story telling aspect. It is interesting to think that as audience members, our image of the art we are seeing is manipulated in so many ways that we don't realize but these ways are affecting how we see and feel about what we are watching. I also like how the article mentioned the different methods of the designers and attention to realism as well as bending that to make the audience feel a certain way or emphasize a certain thing. It's cool to hear how things as simple as color and bottle caps were methods that made such a eye catching production.
The Nutcracker is such a beautiful ballet and I’m so glad that they are recreating it for the screen. I hope that it works out well because it is such a classic that it would be a shame if they screwed it up. What I find the most interesting, is how they are transferring a classic ballet into a movie. Will there be dancing? I’m sure that being made digitally will help with the special effects. For instance, transitions and snow storms will be much easier with computer technology instead of a snow drop. I’m also curious how they chose the costumes and overall theme of this Nutcracker. From the few pictures that are currently out, it seems to whimsical and dreamlike. I love the idea that the Nutcracker is all a dream because that’s what we’re left with questioning at the end of the show. I can’t wait to see it and be walked down memory lane.
Ugh this article makes me so mad, if only the writer and director put as much thought into the script maybe we would get a better, less bland film. Visually it is amazing, it really does sparkle but I wish it sparkled in a different way. I have very set images of what these characters look like and the fact that they do not bothers me. But this is really just my time to vent about my loathing of this film. Much like the God awful Alice in Wonderland they take a perfectly good story and instead of finding creative ways to embellish and intensify the existing story they throw it out for some “chosen one” plot point and DEAD PARENTS. The Stahlbaums are model parents, why is the dad an ass and the mother DEAD, Disney stop killing the parents, it is annoying at this point. Also it is called NUTCRACKER and there is not even a damn nutcracker it is more about that stupid key. I’m glad it stinks, hopefully Disney learns story is more important over eye candy. I’ll go back to enjoying the classic ballet thank you very much.
If I’m being honest, I probably was not going to see this movie before reading this article. I have seen way too many versions of The Nutcracker since I was little, and the Barbie movie has and always will be my favorite. I have no reason to challenge its place in my heart. Now, after reading about the development process of the movie, I am more inclined to watch it. I love the idea of creating a world of “fantasy in a palpable reality.” This aesthetic is something I have recently taken a lot of interest in, and I think it reflects the story of The Nutcracker very well. I love that they decided to blend old-fashioned effects with newer, more tech based ones (specifically the one with the bottle caps) to create an environment for the characters. I think it speaks to the idea of this movie “revival” of a classic tale in a modern age. While this film will likely never be able to dethrone my favorite version of The Nutcracker, I am interested in seeing how it plays out on screen.
I think this is such a difficult film to design, because The Nutcracker is such a well known ballet and a well known story that has been done over and over and over again. Because of that, every person going to see this film will walk in with a basic expectation of what they know and enjoy about the productions they have seen. I think the balance of fantasy and reality is fascinating in this design. I liked how the article described how there is only one light bulb seen in the movie, and it is in Drosselmeyer's workshop. That light bulb grounds Clara's world in reality, while everything else in the film is a fantasy. This idea is exemplified again in Clara's costuming, since her colors are more muted at certain points in the story. I am very excited to see this movie when it comes out, since I have seen The Nutcracker with my mother every Christmas for as long as I can remember, and this will be a fun addition to that tradition.
It is so moving to me seeing a designer dived into the usage of color this deep. The color is not only working on our eyes but also effect our brain in a way that is beyond our perception. For instance, the absence of red will cause bizarre sensibility. This kind of tricks has a long history to go. I have done some research on this topic and found that the certain civilization just didn't have access to certain kind of color due to technical limitations on paint materials, such as purple in Europe. European have no real mass production ability on purple paint until the end of 18 century when chemical method was finally found to artificially produce purple dye on fabrics. Thus, a person who born before 18 century must have a pretty different sensibility towards purple comparing to us nowadays. In the same fashion, the digital generated colors carries the same impact to us today. In our generation the shift between hand-painting to printing is enormous and almost complete. To our eyes that a vintage objects often means both the color crafting and physical fabrication are easily differentiated. Technic of Juggling these visual makes not only illusions but real impact to the audience delicately.
I think that this is really interesting because I've only ever seen this show as a ballet. When I was younger, I used to perform in it and our costumes were the same every year with absolutely no variation from year to year. When we got new costumes it was a miracle. I think that doing it as a movie will be interesting because for me so much of the emotion comes from the dancing. I am excited to see how the designers of the movie will bring all their aspects together to create a world that reflects the emotions of the movie. From the photos I've seen of the costumes, they are beautiful and intricate and I think that the designer has done a phenomenal job, especially with the slightly otherworldy characters. The story is more that of the original show, so it is not set in candyland so the costumes are not that. I think that what the designer did is amazing with her use of color and texture and I can't wait to see the movie.
For some reason, and I’m not entirely sure why, The Nutcracker has always been my favorite ballet and classic christmas show. I’m not sure if it’s the music or the dance or just the happiness it seems to radiate, but i’ve seen it many times over the years and plan to see it more. Despite this, I wasn’t feeling super enthused about the upcoming movie until now. It seems to be following in the style of Alice in Wonderland or A Wrinkle in Time in terms of how it addresses bringing a fantasy world to life, and changing the story to make it a more exciting on-screen adventure. But this article made clear how much of that design was a deliberate choice, which I think is very interesting. It seems like every design decision has reasoning behind it, especially regarding color and what it represents in the movie. This article was intriguing enough that I’ll probably end up going to see the movie just to see how these designs turn out, and if they come across as easily to the viewer as they do to the designers.
Through this article you can see how much work the design team of this movie put into their world building. They clearly wanted to focus on distinguishing each of the characters through their distinct costume colors and patterns, and tried to make sure that they were loyal to the character. I found it funny that they even mentioned something that we have to deal with in the theatre world: working with glitter. They said that “'We were doing a lot of glue and sprinkling glitter,'” she says. “'In fact, I had glitter all over my clothes for weeks after we finished ‘The Nutcracker.’ I think we all sparkled.'” This once again shows how much detail oriented work was put into creating these movies and characters. I still am not sure if I'm going to go out to see this movie as it reminds me a lot of the Alice in Wonderland reboot I didn't really like, but it's refreshing to see such a commercial movie pay so much attention to the design world they created.
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