Movies we love to look at: the production designers

The Art Director's Guild has a nice long list of Production Design nominees. They guild has three categories of production design: Period, Fantasy and Contemporary. This really is one of my favorite of the crafts. In fact I've a secret longing to do the job myself. Not a production designer but a set decorator perhaps. No time to wax poetically about what might have been ... it's 1:30 am and I'm exhausted ... so I'll be brief. Below is the list of nominees; I've included the poster for my current favorites in each category.  Since I love this category so much I may dig around for sketches etc for a few of these. I'm fascinated with seeing the design stage and then the finished product.  It's pure magic making!

Period Film

                                                                                    

Anna Karenina                Sarah Greenwood

Argo                                Sharon Seymour

Django Unchained           J.Michael Riva

Les Miserables               Eve Stewart

Lincoln                           Rick Carter

I think everything about Les Miz is spectacular but I had to call out Sarah Greenwood. Creating the ever changing theater was a fantastic feat.

Fantasy Film
The Hobbit                      Dan Hennah
Cloud Atlas                     Uli Hanisch, Hugh Bateup

Life of Pi                         David Gropman

Prometheus                      Arthur Max

The Dark Knight Rises    Nathan Crowley,
                                        Kevin Kavanaugh

Because it's the shire!

Contemporary Film

The Impossible              Eugenio Caballero
Flight                              Nelson Coates

Skyfall                            Dennis Gassner

The Best Exotic              Alan MacDonald

   Marigold Hotel

Zero Dark Thirty            Jeremy Hindle

I just wanted to share that this film is a wild ride; terrifying, exhilirating, disturbing and draining. I watched a screener at home...I can't imagine seeing it in a theater on a big screen. It must be overwhelming!