You will surely have heard many times in your life about the scenography of a film. But do you actually have any idea what it is? The work of the set designer is undoubtedly a very complex profession full of pitfalls: a minimum inattention is enough to frustrate a job that could seem painstaking and well done. This figure has to carry out a very complex and fundamental activity for the success of a film.
For example, he must carefully read the entire script , in order to choose the most suitable places for the representation of the scenes : this regardless of whether you are dealing with a science fiction story or not. The places must be embellished and furnished in such a way that everything is consistent with the story. If the scenes to be recorded are planned in the studio, then the set designer will have to design the environment from scratch, and then supervise the work of the employees.
Yes, because the set designer does not work alone, but accompanied by a series of fundamental helpers. It goes without saying that the reference points always remain the director and the producer.
Preparation
Only after a precise and intense work linked to the reading of the screenplay, and after a continuous conversation with the director and producer, will the scenographer be able to start setting up the dedicated environments. This will have to consider the operation to be implemented even in real places, so that the whole location is flawless. For example, the details of a street that distinguish a certain era, rather than another; or maybe the embellishment of some rooms based on the time of year: for example, Christmas trees during the Christmas holidays and so on.
Everything must be created and thought out with the utmost care: imagine how little credible a scene that does not take these details into account can be. What the experts in the sector also know is that it can often be more complex to set up the interiors of the exteriors ; this is because every single detail of the furniture must be thought of in the interiors. We think of floors, furniture and so on.
Also for this reason, the set designer will have to ask for the help of a very large staff: trained collaborators who are able to carry out all the indications in the best possible way. Generally, when it comes to setting up interiors, specialized interior designers are called, but also designers. We remind you that everything must always be performed taking into account the needs of the director .
Scenographer: ancient and very important work
The set designer is an ancient and absolutely fundamental profession for the making of a film. The beauty of the same is precisely that of working in synergy with other people, with whom you can share ideas and projects. You are able to bring your art and creativity into play in an original way. On the other hand, the greatest set designers in business are able to give a touch of uniqueness to their works, which become unmistakable.
And it is an absolutely decisive job for the film to succeed at its best. Through the right scenography, the viewer is able to identify himself better with the story. As mentioned, it is a work that has a very ancient origin: just think of the fact that it has undergone a series of very significant evolutions over the centuries.
Already in ancient Greece there are direct testimonies of ” skene “, or the decorated background that was used to reproduce settings such as exteriors or whatever. We recall that at the time the theaters were open-air.
And probably, however, with the birth of the theater as we know it today, in the fifteenth century, it will be possible to see a refinement of the techniques of setting up the environments: machinery will be used, useful precisely to increase the illusionistic power of the stage.
