OUGD501 - Study Task 04 - Relevant Text Triangulation

Postmodernism has played an important role on the effect of prop and set design within film. Not only has specific style played a part in the film world, but it has affected design that demonstrates both design and a realistic image of the past. Although Jameson believes that postmodernism has had a negative effect on art and design, some would argue that postmodernism is reusing techniques in celebration of previous, successful disciplines.

When discussing the history of British film design in British Film Design: A History, Laurie N. Ede discusses Hollywood’s design ethos influencing British production design in the past 30 years, particularly with Star Wars, Superman and Alien. Although these films had no massive impact on British film culture, it had a business impact allowing the expansion and popularity of Pinewood studios. However, of these three productions, the prop and set design creates an entire new, fictional world within their respective films. John Barry discusses his role in both Star Wars and Superman as production designer.

“I like doing science fiction and fantasy films. You can let yourself go. I prefer designing surrealist things. I find it much easier too because you’re free to choose. When you’re in a jam, you can simply change the rules.” Barry, 2010, 169

With fantasy, the design is no longer real world and it is hard to differentiate between real world and fictional design. Often in film, when props and sets are in use, they are lending on current trends in design to recreate an accurate image of a past or modern day location. Compared to certain science fiction films, such as 2001: A Space Odyssey, released in 1968 a few years prior to the collapse of modernism and can be considered modernist in both its story and visuals, its production design was new and innovative. Other films however, after the collapse of modernism, lend to the postmodernist approach of borrowing old and previously used design structures.

An example of this is Gemma Jackson’s production design of 1997’s The Borrowers. Jackson’s work is an example of ‘New British Cinema’.

“Cleverly, she [Jackson] disrupted the scene of period by using old props (long gone domestic brands, numerous Morris Minor Cars) and a brown/green palette that evoked the Britain of the austerity years.” Ede, 2010, 186.

This is not to say that Jackson’s work is completely ‘unoriginal’ using existing products to build her style, but it is an example of the postmodern technique of borrowing from previous forms and relying on them to create a new concept. Jackson’s work comments on the British austerity years by using iconography from this time which in turn, creates Hutcheon’s postmodern parody.

In Notes on Set Design and Cinema, Brian Henderson discusses the previous forms of design, more in set and its architectural theory, as structures. Postmodernism, draws on examples of design of previous years as more a celebration. He states:

“We necessarily draw our examples, not to mention our principles – conformist or antinomian – from, or in regard to, such structures [auteuristic work from the likes of Alfred Hitchcock].” Henderson, 1988, 17

This is arguing that Jackson’s technique of borrowing old products is celebrating design from this period and shouldn’t be recognized as a negative but more as a human approach. Henderson believes that we are naturally looking to a role model example of an auteur to achieve success in our work.

Both Ede and Henderson discuss postmodernism as human nature and believe that we only borrow from our predecessors because we look up to them and are nostalgically holding onto the ideals of modernism which supports Jameson’s argument of nostalgia film.

Ede, L. N. (2010) British Film Design: a History, London: I.B.Tauris & co Ltd

Henderson, B (1988) Film Quarterly, Vol. 42, No. 1, Berkeley: University of California Press