Art Directing 'Virtual Reality'

Don's film mostly takes place in the main characters room.  I decided that this was the most important place to start when it came to art direction.


For Amanda's room I started out by looking at the mood board I was given by Don. The main elements here are the warm lighting from the table lamps and string lights and the use of images and set decor to enhance the character.

Don's Mood Board

I think when designing a bedroom that the most important consideration is the character and how their personality is reflected in the contents of the room.  Of course you want things to look great- and this is where things like the lamps and lights come in but a bedroom is an opportunity to gain a glimpse into a character.

I spoke with Don about Amanda's character but was told to speak with the actress playing her for more insight into her characterization.  These are the insights I gained from my conversations with both of them and also my own deductions from the script.

Amanda:

• Architecture Student- creative but technical.  She would have an eye for aesthetics but probably not overly crafty.
• Interested in martial arts- but from a sporting angle.  Enjoyment of a karate doesn't necessarily translate into a fascination about Chinese culture.  
• She has some talent as a martial artist, having worn medals- which discipline is never indicated.    
• Probably procrastinates then works long nights to get things done- her assignment is due the next day and she hasn't started.  Caffeine tablets are a quite extreme measure.
• Has a close friendship with Tamara but not likely many other close friends.    
• She doesn't reach out to any of her friends about the hacker.  So she isn't that close to them. Possibly feels the need to be seen as strong and in control.  Independent.
• Many acquaintances. There are a large number of people at the party.
• Wears bracelets, rings, nail polish.  Things on her hands and wrists.  Her style is loosely inspired by emo fashion (this has come from the director).
• I see this taking a more casual effect on her fashion sense due to her sporty nature- emo fashion is often involves lots of co-ordination of outfits and makeup.  Her personality suggests to me that she would be a bit more casual and dress with comfort in mind.  In my previous designs I looked at casual punk fashion.  Casual but a little edgy.
• Emo and punk fashion is usually connected with music- which might influence her decorating choices.
• Likes to listen to music while she works   

I wanted to look at ways to show aspects of her character but subtly.  Add too many things to indicate an interest and suddenly your character has an obsession.  Add too many different things to a room and your character is fickle, indecisive, or you are hitting your audience over the head with insights into the character.  This corner shows she likes cats, this wall is because she enjoys music, here's a photo of her at the beach when she was five because she likes swimming... and so on and so forth.   That's just getting way out of hand!

Research:

 

I managed to source a number of images to use as posters for Amanda's walls.  Here's one I created myself:

I also spent a bit of time bargain hunting and found some great stuff!

A couple of Audio students also came on board to help out and they did a great job providing other things like clothing and toiletries for Amanda's table.

I spent a bit of time experimenting in Photoshop with the layout of the room. 

Since we were going to be filming day-for-night I had the idea to black out the windows using rubbish bags- which worked really well.  After setting up I asked the art department assistants to photograph the area as a reference:
 

 

For the party scene I found some vector letters and manipulated them to match the colour scheme that I had decided on.  Some balloons and streamers and our party scene was also sorted.

My initial party scene research

This film also required me to make up a few fake liquids :p Wine and blood both play a prominent role.

Since we would be filming in a borrowed home and pouring fake blood on the floor I mixed up a recipe using laundry detergent, food colouring (red and blue), coffee, glucose syrup and flour.  This obviously makes a non-edible blood but cleans up easier. 

For the wine I mixed up some blackcurrant tea with a touch of colouring and had tonic water on standby for bubbles.  And for beer I went with root beer- which didn't work out quite at well as I had hoped since it didn't foam well.  Since the foam didn't work out it may have been better to go with apple juice for the colour.

Finally Caffeine tablets were panadol with a custom label: