Author: Charlotte Neilson | ArchDaily

Through the Lens: When Hollywood Designs Prisons

Charlotte Neilson — Mon, 09 Feb 2015 00:00:00 +0000

The architecture of containment is a fascinating area. The spartan utilitarian spaces of prisons are among the most highly considered, sophisticated and expensive there are. It’s unusual for designers to create spaces for people who experience it against their will (well, mostly) and it is a tricky balance between creating sensitive, positive places for rehabilitation and community expectations about what punishment should look like. There are different approaches around the world: the US take a particular stance; the Norwegians have another. Hollywood, of course, has its own interpretation. And it is not concerned by such trivialities as the Geneva Convention.

Through the Lens: The Social Implications of Green Roofs in Film

Charlotte Neilson — Wed, 14 Jan 2015 00:00:00 +0000

Film often makes a mockery of architectural features. Glass facades are obliterated by gunfire, grisly murders are set against a white modernist palette, deconstructed stairs are the cause of nasty accidents or ludicrous slapstick, and you just know a tensile fabric roof will be shredded by the time 007 is finished with it.

A Conversation with Academy Award Winning Set Designer Catherine Martin

Charlotte Neilson — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 00:00:00 +0000

The work of a Production Designer has many parallels with that of an Architect. Both are tasked with bringing to life a conceptual environment, keeping true to that concept through budgets, time pressures, logistics and regulations. Both share a similar creative process, developing the ideas and then collaborating and coordinating with a team of professionals to give those ideas physical form. However, Production Designers are concerned with creating environments to be captured on film only for a matter of moments. Not something a standard Client is likely to request from an Architect.

Through the Lens: Why High-Rises Need A Hero

Charlotte Neilson — Mon, 13 May 2013 00:00:00 +0000

Since the emergence of the modern multi-storey building in the late 19th century, screenwriters and art directors have embraced the high-rise building as both backdrop and prop in the drama of feature films. It’s easy to understand the fascination. The precarious nature of a skyscraper – their height, their reliance on competent engineering and emergency systems, and their all-controlling security – provide abundant opportunities for action and disaster. And all with a built-in view.

Through the Lens: Sci-Fi & Architecture

Charlotte Neilson — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 00:00:00 +0000

You would think that of all film genres, Science Fiction would be the one least likely to feature real buildings. It stands to reason that production designers would want to avoid connections with things so grounded in reality. But in fact, there is somewhat of a tradition of using modern architecture as a foundation for the creation of fictional film worlds.

Through the Lens: Art Deco's debt to Agatha Christie

Charlotte Neilson — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 00:00:00 +0000

This article comes courtesy of Charlotte Neilson, the author of the fascinating design blog Casting Architecture. Her column, Through the Lens, will look at architecture and production design in TV and film.

Final Preservation: What Cinema Has That Architecture Doesn't

Charlotte Neilson — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 00:00:00 +0000

This article comes courtesy of our friend and cenephile Charlotte Neilson, the author of the fascinating design blog Casting Architecture, which discusses architecture and production design.

From Psychopath Lairs to Superhero Mansions: How Cinema and Modernist Architecture Called A Truce

Charlotte Neilson — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 00:00:00 +0000

This article comes courtesy of ArchDaily friend Charlotte Neilson, the author of the fascinating design blog Casting Architecture, which discusses architecture and production design. Charlotte is not only a dedicated cinephile but also an honours graduate of the University of Newcastle, Australia.