Visual Dynamics (The Films of Wes Anderson)

Curtis Reeve

CONTENTS 4-5 6-23

INTRODUCTION CHAPTER ONE Visual Dynamics

24-43

CHAPTER TWO Composition of Visuals & Visual Language

44-67

CHAPTER THREE Building Worlds

69

CONCLUSION

70-71

BIBLIOGRAPHY

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INTRODUCTION

Born in Houston, Texas, Wesley Wales Anderson is a Film Director, Writer and Producer and has directed nine full-length motion pictures. His films generally consist of a dysfunctional family or group of people and always include a quirky and humorous tone through his use of awkward and sad comedy.

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In this dissertation, I will be uncovering the ins and outs of the filmmaking style of Wes Anderson from a visual perspective. The use of visual dynamics in his films are abundant; from his distinctive cinematography of whip pans, tracking shots - with the help of his go-to Director of Photography, Robert Yeoman; to his meticulous process of visualisation that gravitates to flat plains, symmetrical shots and the artistic framing of tableaux. This piece will also focus on the graphical fidelity of the props and other visuals found in his films.

Although the majority of his films go under the radar in terms of mainstream audiences, his work has gathered a certain cult following and his unique directorial style gives them their own distinct vision.

Wes Anderson has been known for his universal involvement within the overall filmmaking process, from the score, the cinematography and most importantly for my dissertation, the design process. Annie Atkins, the lead designer on The Grand Budapest Hotel, stated in a talk at AIGA Design that “because of the way Wes Anderson shoots his movies, he really puts graphics at the centre and at the forefront of the film� (Atkins, 2017).

I will be peeling back the layers, piece by piece, in each chapter, from the overall style of his filmmaking aesthetic before delving deeper into the visual composition in his films.

I will showcase the graphical, world-building pieces under the microscope to uncover why fantastical authenticity lies at the heart of his films that then breathe life into these Anderson-esque worlds.

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Figure 1: Theatrical Poster, Moonrise Kingdom, Design by P+A / Mojo, Illustration by Michael Gaskell, 2012

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Wes Anderson’s filmmaking style provides a refreshing and distinct visual outcome. This chapter will delve into the depths of the technical side of his directorial vision. This will explore the visual style in terms of the overarching cinematography that makes his films so distinct, from his use of whip pans, overhead shots, the meticulous nature of symmetrical framing, the use of the centre frame and his use of tracking (dolly) shots.

These are considered trademarks of Anderson’s directorial style (IMDb, 2018) and help move the narrative in a visually compelling way. This chapter shows how where the visual storytelling brings the whole film together.

An insight into this trademark style is in the introduction to his film Moonrise Kingdom (2012). This film is one of his most critically acclaimed and respected films, placing ninety-fifth in BBC’s ‘The 21st Century’s 100 Greatest Films’ (BBC, 2016) and demonstrates his style and how it affects storytelling through visual dynamics.

The introduction begins with the titles appearing on screen before quickly cutting to the picture, as soon as the sound of thunder rings out on screen. It then moves with a dolly shot from left to right to show more of the interior of the house.

The dolly shot is used prominently in the introduction and is a key component in Wes Anderson’s direction in a variety of his films. The shots in the introduction have a poetic charm to them and consist of the following actions:

Dolly shot pan

Camera stops

Actor(s)/Actress(es) perform an action

Dolly shot continues

Figure 2: Editing Actions

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Figure 3:

This helps provide a fluidity to the scene and a certain tempo and allows the audience to first take in the surroundings before being drawn to the actor’s action. A pan follows to a room surrounded by low cabinets and filled with records and board game boxes. The room feels clean, symmetrical yet lived in; with the sloping walls, the records and the lamps being placed in a meticulously symmetrical way, the further out the frame goes the less symmetrical it ultimately becomes. This technique could help the audience focus on the centre of the shot before having their eyes drawn to the circular rug on the floor, like a target for the eye. The young boy ultimately sits on the rug allowing for a certain flow to occur and providing a focal point within the twenty-second shot, allowing the audience to take in the environment before noting the action. We then begin to hear the record playing; a young boy provides context of the different parts of an orchestra that make up a composition – representing the introduction to the characters and the film as a whole through the four distinct instrument groups – these can be associated with the pacing of the film.

Film Stills, Moonrise Kingdom, Introduction Section, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2012

A whip pan follows, showing further symmetry, with identical paintings, light fittings and door frames before the action is performed. Another whip pan is used showing Suzy picking up her binoculars before cutting to a medium shot of her sitting on the window sill that was seen previously. It then cuts to a close-up shot of her reading her book ‘Shelly and the Secret Universe’ providing context that she likes to read and prefers her own company as the three boys sit together. In an interview with Film4, Anderson discussed the character of Suzy and the importance of her books:

“..and as I was working on it I ended up sort of having something happen where I decided this girl in the story would be a big reader and in fact she’s travelling with a suitcase full of fantasy books, and somewhere along the way I started thinking more and more that the movie should really be one of her books, kind of, and that really ought to be our form that the movie is the sort of story that the two characters in it would want to read.” (Anderson, 2015)

She then opens the curtain and the music is brought up to full volume, representing the break from inside the house to outside. Here the shot uses symmetrical composition to keep the eye drawn to the centre of the screen. As the camera moves out it allows the audience to see their house in context to the location as the title ‘Moonrise Kingdom’ fills the gloomy grey sky with colour, fluctuating in colour in time with the music.

This is the first part of the introduction; the use of the title being here allows for the long opening sequence to have more of a flow and breaks up the long scene into two manageable chunks.

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Figure 4: Film Still, Moonrise Kingdom, Introduction Section, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2012

We then cut back to inside the house, again with the dolly shot, action, dolly shot, action. Further symmetrical compositions are used to help the audience focus on the importance of the characters whilst looking pleasing to the eye. We see the centralisation of the two parent characters side by side but in separate rooms, establishing their dysfunctional and eroding

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relationship before a single word is uttered; Christopher Orr’s review for The Atlantic summed up the parents’ relationship perfectly “This is the warmweather abode of Walt and Laura Bishop (Bill Murray and Frances McDormand), two attorneys who have been drifting apart, their marital estrangement signified by the name of the property: Summer’s End.” (Orr, 2012) This use of storytelling by having the name of the house relate to their relationship could be missed upon initial viewing of film. These scenes have a poetic flow to them however after the first part of the introduction a new line is added, with Suzy being

shown looking through her binoculars in the centre of the frame, signifying the end loop of the poetic structure before it starts again. This happens throughout the rest of the introduction giving further context to the parents’ dysfunctional relationship, the brotherly bond of the three boys and the isolative nature of Suzy before the final scene where it cuts to an outside shot - the weather

has changed to showcase the passage of time and the start of the new day.

Suzy then collects the mail out of the letterbox and we are shown a one second close up of the letter in question. This provides a level of context and minute details that might be missed by first-time watchers or the larger audience, yet is still important to Anderson.

We see the handwriting of a young boy, with a stamp and original address stamped on.

These two pieces are small

Figure 5: Film Still, Moonrise Kingdom, Introduction Section, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2012

details but again provide some information later shown in the film. Firstly, in the top left corner there is a stamp noting ‘Sam Shakusky, In care of: Billingsley Boys’ Home’.

This is the main character and establishes to the unknowing audience that he is in fact an orphan. The stamps shown also inform us of the date the film is set (August 1965) and the stamp is the leader of the Khaki Scouts - this character is later introduced in the third act of the film.

The camera follows Suzy as she sits down on the bench, panning up as she opens the letter before she stares directly into the camera’s lens, communicating a change and gives a feeling of mischief or secrecy.

Figure 6 & 7: Film Still, Moonrise Kingdom, Introduction Section, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2012

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I want to dissect some of the artistic tropes of Wes Anderson’s film individually, spanning across the majority of his films. In his Film4 interview, discussing his directorial style, Anderson stated:

“I think it’s unfortunately some hard wiring that I’m not really able to reconfigure. I don’t mind, terribly, links between my films because you know I like the idea of sort of building up a collection of these different pieces that are linked together but I would love not to have someone say well that’s just like what you did before” (Anderson, 2015)

This is important to note as all of Anderson’s films echo a collective, visual style but each project always brings something new to the table, whether from a story, tonal or medium perspective.

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Figure 8: Film Still, Moonrise Kingdom, Introduction Section, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2012

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THE GEOMETRIC PERFECTION This is one of Anderson’s most perfected traits. The symmetrical nature of his shots has propelled him to the forefront of this visual style (Kelly, 2014) and has been documented by a variety of publications, journals and websites (Souppouris, 2014) (Aldredge, 2017) (Crow, 2014) (The Guardian, 2018) . This is a characteristic that echoes such films from Stanley Kubrick such as 2001: A Space Odyssey and The Shining, where the natural parallel lines of the set, actors and/or props create an equilibrium of aesthetic to the viewers eye. The use of symmetry has a biological/ psychological effectiveness when it comes to the viewer (Shutterstock, 2014). In the article ‘The Science Behind Why We Love Wes Anderson Movies’ they mention “Research has shown that human beings can be obsessive about symmetry in general. This desire plays a big role in what or who we find attractive.” (Brodey, 2014) (Scheib, et al., 1999).

Figure 9: Film Still, The Shining, Dir. Stanley Kubrick, 1980

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Figure 10: Film Still, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Dir. Stanley Kubrick, 1968

Figure 11: Geometric Film Stills, The Royal Tenenbaums (2001), The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004), Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009), Moonrise Kingdom (2012) The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), Isle of Dogs (2018), Dir. Wes Anderson

This meticulous nature of these shots could sometimes be seen as overused and beyond necessity, however the power they portray in aiding visual dynamics is two-fold. It provides a visually inviting experience when watching his films and shows the thought process of what he wants to perceive in his films. It aids the narrative and allows for his sometimes awkward and quirky dialogue and gentle pacing to breath and provide some visual aid for the viewer.

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THE CREATION OF LINES This artistic medium goes hand in hand with the use of symmetry, as it aids the frame to look as symmetrical as possible by using the parallel lines that have been created

by Anderson and his crew. (Aldredge, 2017) These also help to generate compositions and create a series of tableaux throughout all of his films, discussed further in Chapter Two. With these lines at the helm of the director’s vision, this helps Anderson aid his visual quirks and style of filmmaking.

Figure 12: Film Still, Moonrise Kingdom, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2012

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Figure 13: Film Still, Isle of Dogs, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2018

Tracking shots and whip pans gain a certain fluidity with the parallel lines in the film. This visually aids the audience as the opportunity of a jarring image is heavily reduced and there is a coherency that follows a parallel line. Whether the camera is moving and tracking a person and/or object, or when a whip pan occurs, and the end shot reflects the lines of before the pan began. Although these lines are created or discovered for his films, it is important to note that these occur more heavily in his animated features (Fantastic Mr. Fox, 2009) (Isle of Dogs, 2018) due to the ability to generate sets and props for these lines to occur. In his real-world films, these are harder to find and are generally negated to when filmed on a set or when found in nature and the use of the horizon as a graphical, parallel line.

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THE ART OF THE OVERHEAD SHOT The overhead (or bird’s eye view) shot is defined as “A shot in which the camera photographs a scene from directly overhead.” (Rice University, 2001). This is a trademark of Wes Anderson films; its purpose can be used to communicate a variety of different visual outcomes. This shot could be used to make a dramatic comment in a scene. Using this shot is somewhat disorienting because it is rarely the way audience themselves see the world (Pacific Cinémathèque, 2012). It is also used to bring the audience to see through the characters eyes and to provide context to what they are looking down at. With Anderson, the overhead shot allows to break up a scene and provides a contextual and focal point for what is trying to be explored in the film medium. I believe that one of the main reasons the overhead shot works so effectively in Anderson’s films is its ability to showcase his distinct use of flat compositions and symmetrical shots through a new perspective. Anderson and his go-to cinematographer, Robert Yeoman, continuously and meticulously try to frame shots to be as horizontally composed as possible through shooting with the organic lines of the set. As these are horizontal lines, and these shots are used heavily in his films, the use of the overhead shot breaks up the ‘monotony’ by creating horizontal, symmetrical shots from a vertical perspective, allowing for a new medium to be used that does not feel out of place. This adds diversity, breadth and effectiveness of visually communicating the story.

Figure 14: Overhead Film Stills, The Royal Tenenbaums (2001), The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004), The Darjeeling Limited (2007), Moonrise Kingdom (2012) The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), Isle of Dogs (2018), Dir. Wes Anderson

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“The idea of changing aspect ratios from one time period to another was something Wes came up with. I was very excited about it, and I think it brought a lot to the film” - Robert Yeoman

FURTHER EXAMPLES OF VISUAL DYNAMICS In his critically acclaimed, Oscar winning film (The Grand Budapest Hotel, 2014) (The Guardian, 2015), Yeoman and Anderson employ the aspect ratio to communicate time periods. This is an effective use of visual dynamics aiding the story. Cinematographer Robert Yeoman, Seitz & Yeoman discuss the use of this; “The idea of changing aspect ratios from one time period to another was something Wes came up with. I was very excited about it, and I think it brought a lot to the film” (Seitz, 2015). At the start of the film, during the present day, the film is in a 1:85 aspect ratio. The film is then transported to 1985, where a slightly tighter ratio is used, a minimal effect yet it provides the effect of going back in time, easing the audience into the impending aspect ratio changes.

The film evolves into using a 2:40 aspect ratio when cutting to 1968, this further helps the audience understand the passage of time through visuals alone. Finally, when transported back to 1932, the movie is then filmed in 1:37 aspect ratio, the ‘Academy ratio’. This use of filming in different aspect ratios provides the film a sense of layering, with the story being a story within a story, as if the we delving deeper into the minds of another storyteller.

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Figure 15: Film Stills, Aspect Ratios, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2014

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CHAPTER TWO

(Composition of Visuals & Visual Language)

Composition is another important aspect of visual communication in Anderson’s works, including his choice of colour palettes, typography, the art of creating tableaux and the overall generation of compositions that are meticulously worked towards in order to create a visually stunning image.

Visual language refers to how the visualisation of an image can help aid the audience in understanding the story, or provoke an emotional response that could be triggered through nostalgia or through references emitted in pop culture.

Examples include the large portraiture of Mayor Kobayashi towering over the crowd during his speech in Isle of Dogs, harking back to the famous shot in Citizen Kane (Wilford & Stevenson, 2018); to the more minimal resemblance of Herman Blume sinking to the bottom of the pool in Rushmore and the scene found in The Graduate. (Seitz, 2013)

Figure 16 & 17: Film Still, Isle of Dogs (2018), Dir. Wes Anderson & Citizen Kane (1941), Dir. Orson Welles

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Figure 18 & 19: Film Still, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004), Dir. Wes Anderson & Chariots of Fire (1981) Dir. Hugh Hudson

Figure 20 & 21: Film Still, Rushmore (1998), Dir. Wes Anderson & The Graduate (1967) Dir. Mike Nicholls

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One film that really evokes the use of visual language is Anderson’s oceanic adventure film, (The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, 2004) and is symbiotic of the life of Jacques Cousteau (Mueller, 2005), with himself being a worldrenowned ocean explorer who brought environmental issues to the publics attention as well as aiding further underwater exploration by helping develop the scuba with engineer Emile Gagnan (The Cousteau Society, 2004). There are numerous references to Cousteau that are reflected in the character of Steve Zissou. These are mainly visual and can be seen throughout the film, through the costume design, locations and props. These evoke a nostalgic feeling towards audience members who knew of Cousteau and help ease the sense of reality of the world Anderson has created, by using realworld imagery and references. A notable design choice by Anderson was the red beanies worn by the crew; “the red caps are from Cousteau. The rest we kind of made up, we wanted (the costume design) to look like costumes you’d see on a TV show that would have aired in about 1968” (Seitz & Chabon, 2013).

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Figure 22: Photograph, Jacques Cousteau, The Cousteau Society, Date Unknown

Figure 23: Film Still, The Life Aquatic with Steven Zissou, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2004

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This nostalgia and authenticity is further reiterated by the visual composition and language when talking about the film grain and colour filters used in the film. The effect of using a faster stock means that the overall aesthetic of the film has a grainy overlay and is compensated by the stock having brighter, saturated colours (Ngoma, 2012). This stock effect retrogrades the entire film and further influences the documentarian tone that the film sets itself. During the documentary segments, the grain and saturation is further amplified, mimicking homecamera footage from the sixties and seventies; the colours are beautifully saturated with their skin emitting an orange

glow and the ocean being set in deep, vivid blue hues. A similar stock effect is also used in another of Anderson’s films (Moonrise Kingdom, 2012), where the grainy and eyepopping colours illustrate the 1960’s time period in which the film is set.

These colours seen in the film, especially in the costumes, were inspired by the aesthetic of old TV shows such as Star Trek (Star Trek: The Original Series, 1966) (Lightowler, 2017).

In fact, the costumes were made out of the same material that was used in the show (Seitz & Chabon, 2013).

Figure 24: Film Still, The Life Aquatic with Steven Zissou, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2004

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Figure 25: Promotional Material, Star Trek: The Original Series, 1969

Figure 26 & 27: Film Stills, The Life Aquatic with Steven Zissou, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2004

Colour composition is prevalent throughout Anderson’s film, with each film containing its own distinct palette (Vreeland, 2015). They can be used as a symbolic purpose, or to convey a sense of time or location or just to visually stimulate and/or aid the audience upon viewing.

We are able to directly extract the colours used in each of his films, each individually identifiable. Although a number of them may cross over, such as the use of yellow and red, each colour is used in its own distinct way.

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RUSHMORE

THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS

THE LIFE AQUATIC WITH STEVE ZISSOU

THE DARJEELING LIMITED

Figure 28: Colour palettes from Wes Anderson films

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FANTASTIC MR. FOX

MOONRISE KINGDOM

THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL

ISLE OF DOGS

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These colours have helped develop his distinct aesthetic style (Vreeland, 2015), the large portion of colours hold an underlying connection to the story, characters, time period etc. they are also used in a way that is rooted in colour theory. A great example of this is in The Life Aquatic (The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, 2004) where the use of Futura, a typeface beloved by Anderson (MSLK, 2008), has been flooded with an orange kissed mustard yellow. This is done to create a juxtaposition between the oceanic blues and the warm yellow type. As Futura was used for the subtitles, they needed to be somewhat legible, this could have been achieved with black or white however Anderson’s idea to use blue’s complementary colour contributes to a visually stunning piece of design in film.

This colour use is further justified by the numerous props in the film that also contain this yellow tone, from the submarine, their safe and the breathing apparatus used during their underwater excursions. This visual use of colour between the typography and props helps to tie the physical with the intangible into a coherent piece of work, that is not jarring and allows the audience to delve into the films story.

Figure 29: Film Still, The Life Aquatic with Steven Zissou, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2004

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Figure 30: Film Stills Showcasing Typography Examples, The Life Aquatic with Steven Zissou, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2004

Other films that showcase colour as part of visual language can be seen in The Grand Budapest Hotel (The Grand Budapest Hotel, 2014). Due to the multiple time periods seen in the film, these all have distinctive colour palettes to reflect the eras of when they are set. Anderson discussed his choice of colours for the film:

“(Discussing the Communist period of the film) I don’t know why I think communism is olive green and orange but that must be how I see it. Then we go to the thirties period... that is more like wedding cake colours, that was kind of the idea I think.” (Anderson, 2015) In the same interview, Anderson states that he saw so much of the communist period during his travels and really helped inspire him to justify these uses of colours during the sixties portion of the film. The contrast compared to the 1930’s portion really helps create opposing time periods. Described

by Anderson as ‘wedding cake colours’, these emit a sense of decadence and upper class of the esteemed hotel.

Figure 31: Film Stills, Colour Palettes, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2014

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Figure 32: Film Stills, Moonrise Kingdom, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2012

Bridging the gap between colour, visual language and composition, we can see a great example of all of these components in the first shot of Moonrise Kingdom (Moonrise Kingdom, 2012). In this opening scene, we are shown a painting of a red house, some scissors on a hook and a tartan travel bag. All of these items have a prominent shade of red that is accentuated by the dull yellow colour of the walls. The red tone can signify the themes seen throughout the film; love, danger and anger (Treski, 2017) (Brody, 2012). The scissors and the bag could also signify how Suzy will ‘cut ties' with her family and run away from her home that is shown in between the two objects. Upon re-watching the film, viewers will realise that these objects are seen throughout, with the scissors playing a part in the story.

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THE ART OF TABLEAU “a picturesque grouping of persons or objects; a striking scene.”

(Dictionary.com, 2019)

Figure 33: Film Stills, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2014

Anderson’s directorial style allows him to garner series of tableaux throughout all of his films. These tableau shots are meticulously thought through (Xiao, 2016), the reward is framing executed so well you would want to hang it on your wall. Tableaux originated from plays and theatre productions and through its evolution, they have crossed the boundary to the film medium. In an article by

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Kartina Richardson for The New Inquiry, she sums up Anderson’s perfected art of tableau: “His films look like a stage plays: Sets look like sets, the frame becomes the proscenium arch (with a symmetry in the set that exaggerates and enhances the frame’s boundaries), and the action is kept in the center

of the frame, usually directed out toward the audience in mainly medium or wide shots.”

(Richardson, 2012) These tableau shots visually allow the audience to maintain focus on the centre of the frame whilst the boundaries are used to fill the frame with further contextual visuals. This blended with Anderson’s use of symmetry and horizontal lines amalgamate into a visually

stunning composition, one where it allows the audience to delve into his films head first in an aesthetically inviting format - without hindering on the story or the film itself.

Figure 34: Film Stills, Tableau Shots, Rushmore (1998), The Royal Tenenbaums (2001), The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004), The Darjeeling Limited (2007), Moonrise Kingdom (2012), The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), Isle of Dogs (2018), Dir. Wes Anderson

Figure 35: Film Stills, Composition, The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), Dir. Wes Anderson

TELLING A STORY THROUGH COMPOSITION. The use of visual language and composition is also used in Anderson’s films to communicate a feeling or tone, or to provide context for the story. A great example of this in action is in one of Anderson’s most critically acclaimed films, The Grand Budapest Hotel, released in 2014, which won four Academy Awards, two being in costume and in production design (Guardian, 2015). In the first fifteen minutes of the film we are able to see the use a style of parallel storytelling through the use of composition and visual language.

The Grand Budapest Hotel has an underlying tone of holding onto the past within each of the three initial timeframes we see in the introduction. Firstly, we see the nose of a 1970s Volkswagen Type 2 on the far right with a punk leaning on the lamp post. This visually allows for a timestamp to be estimated within the first scene of somewhere in the mid to late 70s, when the Volkswagen Type 2 was in production and the rise of the punk began (Cerón, 2016).

However, due to the indication in the second time period being 1985 this means that this has to be incorrect, as the first scene is set in the present day and as discussed in Richard Brody’s article for The New Yorker; “he leapfrogs back from the present day to 1985, 1968, and, ultimately, to 1932...” (Brody, 2014). My theory of the theme of holding onto the past can be seen as correct, as the present day feels like the 1970s and the décor in the scenes from 1985 are very reminiscent of the late 60s, with curtains printed with the funky geometric patterns amplified with the use of warm orange, yellow and brown tones; echoing the works of various fabric designers such as Peter Hall (Mid Century, 2018) and living rooms of the time (House & Garden, 2016).

This again is reaffirmed in the

1968 part of the film with Jude Law and F. Murray Abraham, where the once ‘grand’ Grand Budapest Hotel is now turning into a decaying – yet “enchanting” – ruin. Sitting in the Arabian baths Mr Moustafa (Abraham) states “They were, in their first condition.

It couldn’t be maintained, of course. Too decadent for current tastes - but I love it all, just the same. This enchanting, old ruin.”

(Anderson & Abraham, 2014). This tells us that Mr Moustafa latches onto the past and revels in a form of nostalgia, this also occurs with the ‘Young Writer’ (Jude Law) and his older self ‘The Author’ (Tom Wilkinson) who has a study in the 1985 portion that echoes the colour tones and styles of the hotel seen in 1968.

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Figure 36: Film Stills, Time Period Comparison, The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), Dir. Wes Anderson

The use of visual dynamics is highlighted further when comparing scenes from the hotel seen in 1968 compared to its providence in 1932. The 1960s version seems very sterile and automotive in its design. The garish, out-dated colours of yellow and brown tones stand out to the audience and the use of machine-made, typeset signs evokes a lack of caring and without a bespoke flair of care and affection. This can be seen further in the shot of the man using the vending machines, highlighting the absence of personal duty provided by the hotel staff. The hotel has dismissed its passion of attention towards the guests and reduced it to an automotive machine-like state – this is further acknowledged with the use of a visual sign in the vending area; “Management will not reimburse for broken machines”.

In contrast when we go back to 1932, we see a bustling hotel floor with staff seen in every frame and awaiting to be of service towards the guests. The room is littered with beautiful carpentry, marble columns and decadent furniture. The whole lobby also feels much larger compared to its later counterpart and it’s very important to note that there is not a sign in sight. Through the use of visual dynamics, we can compare the two layouts of the hotel and the how the standards have since toppled - this can be seen when comparing stills from the film.

As you can see, there is a great contrast between the hotel in the two different time periods, all told through visual means and small quirks, from the magnificent hanging light ornaments in the

hallways being replaced with flat, square lights, reminiscent of an office block. In the book, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Wes Anderson and Matt Zoller Seitz discuss the thematic change in visuals between the two time periods. Anderson states:

“In the 1930s part of the movie, we tried to show the way these grand hotels were back when people would go there… (the hotel) was just a completely different sort of experience” and in the 1960s part he states “…in the Jude Law-Murray Abraham part of the story that’s supposed to be set during Communism, we see that the hotel has been changed in a way that goes along with the change in ideology… (we made) an effort to figure out how we were going to bring our story to life”. (Seitz & Anderson, 2015) We can therefore see briefly how these visual elements can bring a story to life with the help of everyone working on the film, including the actors, cinematographers, costume designers and the rest of the production team. In just the first fifteen minutes of this film, the use of visual dynamics lifts the movie out of mundane storytelling into a motion picture that breathes depth, detail and experience within the fictional world. As Matt Zoller Seitz says in his interview “In the Grand Budapest Hotel, (Anderson) created an entire world. It’s not just a building or an imaginary country. It goes beyond that. It’s very detailed... there is a sense of reality, historical and geographical reality, that somehow seeps through.” (Seitz & Anderson, 2015).

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第 三 章 CHAPTER THREE 彼 ら は 詳 細 に

満 ち て い

る 触 知 可 能 な 本 当 の

状 況 を 伝 え る フ

ィ ル ム で 見 る こ と が で

き る 有 形 の も

の と 世 界 の ラ イ ン

を 歩 き ま す 。

建の 物世 界

部ス タ 長イ ル

(Building Worlds)

ア ン ダ ー ソ ン

One of the most important and relevant workings of Anderson’s directorial style is his ability to build worlds.

They have a fantasia quality whilst grounded in a real-world format through the use of pre-existing references to provide an authentic tone and garnering an integrity of vision. They walk the line of something tangible and worlds that can only be seen in film that communicate a palpable ‘real’ situation that is full of detail. This is no easy feat; however, Anderson’s meticulous theatrical style aids the story-telling and viewing experience. From props, costumes, sets and character development, Anderson’s worlds are developed to the breadth of what we see inside, and outside, of the frame. Sophie Monks Kaufman writes: “Wes is more interested in building worlds than in laying bare his own one” (Kaufman, 2018). I will explore the depths of this worldbuilding exercise in Anderson’s films and to try and lay out the underlying thought process and cultural relevance of the things seen in his worlds.

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Figure 37: Film Still, The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), Dir. Wes Anderson

Figure 38: Film Still, The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), Dir. Wes Anderson

I will start by looking at various films from Anderson’s collection. One of his most critically acclaimed films (The Grand Budapest Hotel, 2014) showcases the building of worlds as I feel it has a great mix of fantastical and real-world. The film is filled to the brim with cultural references, both substantial and minute, that all help shape the world that Anderson is trying to portray.

The film begins with a black screen before the audience is introduced to a title, setting the scene. “On the farthest eastern boundary of the European continent: The former Republic of Zubrowka. Once the seat of an Empire” setting the scene for where the film is based. Anderson is known for ‘using the right fonts’ in his films and this first piece of the film is an example of the mindset of setting a scene in a minimal yet powerful way. The typeface shown provides an underlying context of the time period and the geographical location of the film. The use of this slab serif typeface began to grow in popularity in Central Europe by typesetters such as Hans Wagner (Fonts in Use, 2016) and can be seen in a variety of publications in the 1930s/40s (Sluiter, 2018) (Marée & Kemp, n.d.)

(Florian, 2018);d similar slab-serif

Figure 39: Document, Z.G.45 — “Eine Minute die Dir das Leben retten kann”, (HMSO), 1944

typefaces can also be seen during this time and in the same geographical location (Pederson, 2017). This style of typeface also harks back to the militarist style movements seen in the first half of the 20th century - a notable part that is explored in the film - and also is expressed in Stefan Zweig’s autobiography (one of the inspirators for the film), The World of Yesterday;

“Here it jumped out at me, naked, towering and unashamed, the lie of the war! No, it was not the promenaders, the careless, the carefree, who were to blame, but those alone who drove the war on with their words. But we too were guilty if we did not do our part against them.” (Zweig, 1943) The last part of this quote from this book is interesting and ties together the whole side theme of The Grand Budapest Hotel, of both people who aid the militaristic government and the people who rebel or flee.

Figure 40: Book Cover, Piep De Muis, Piet Marée & Henk Kemp, 1933

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Figure 41: Film Still, Isle of Dogs, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2018

Another interesting example of contextual, world-building typography is in Anderson’s stopmotion film set in Japan (Isle of Dogs, 2018). Erica Dorn, the lead graphic designer on the film, mentions the influences of the design seen throughout the film by Japanese cinema from the fifties and sixties as well as building an archive of graphics, posters and packaging from the second half of the Showa period (Wilford & Stevenson, 2018). The typefaces used also hark back to this era, from the mix of heavier weighted, blocky Japanese characters and the juxtaposition of the use of more calligraphic styles. This variety of typographic styles are seen throughout the film, from the subtitles, signage and props (such as packaging, print and clothing).

A distinct aspect of this film is bridging the gap between the native Japanese tongue to

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of the dogs, and with minimal amounts of subtitles, audio is conveyed through a variety of means, from interpreters to teleprompters. Physical, visual pieces are shown through the bracket form.

Figure 42: Film Still, Typography, Isle of Dogs, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2018

a Western, English-speaking audience. This is achieved through the use of English being incorporated in the film through the use of brackets to add connotation to the Japanese words. This is also presented throughout the film in a variety of visual or auditory ways, as the majority of it is spoken in Japanese. With the exception

“Wes wanted to use lots of different lettering styles for the Japanese text and keep the English constant.

It made sense because in a real city you have lots of different fonts living together. The English text played more of a supporting role.” (Dorn, 2018) The English subtitles also have a subtle charm that harks back to traditional Japanese methods, Anderson decided at the end of post-production that “well all the Japanese is hand-drawn, let’s do the English by hand then.” (Dorn & Anderson, 2018). This then generated a bespoke, ‘signature’ font that was used for all the subtitles in the film (Dorn, 2018).

We also have an eclectic variety of typefaces in terms of the Japanese letterforms, these were mostly all generated by hand, due to the limited number of Japanese fonts available compared to its English counterparts.

This allowed Dorn and her team to create a large variety of Japanese handletterings that are all bespoke to the film. This allows the film to evoke a breadth of styles, from more futuristic, blocky typefaces (fitting for a film set in an ambiguous future) to more traditional gothic print styles (Wilford & Stevenson, 2018).

Figure 43: Film Stills, Use of Typography, Isle of Dogs, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2018

Cultural relevance is an important aspect to the world building in Anderson’s films, as Dorn mentioned in an interview with Creative Review: “it’s closer to forgery than creating something from scratch – you’re always imitating a reference or something from a particular time period” (Dorn, 2018). Dorn also discusses this further and Anderson’s thought process in his world-building exercises:

“Anderson is a director that cares a lot about the authenticity of the details in his films, even though it might seem like sometimes his films are set in almost ‘fantasy’ versions of themselves, the details are always based in some kind of reality” (Dorn, 2018).

Examples that follow this process can be seen throughout his films, from the Sake and Beer labels echoing the Yamato-e artwork produced by the Tang dynasty (Dorn, 2018), providing a traditional and antique aesthetic that could represent the cultural heritage of these fictional brands. This also can be seen in the Doggy Chop brand in the film and also, more importantly, Puppy Snaps. This brand is at the heart of an emotional moment in the story and its handmade finish to the packaging helps echo a sense of the brand being a human, friendly family brand that is interconnected between a dog and its owner, itself a substantial theme throughout the film.

(Dorn, 2018) Other films also reflect a sign of visual communication using real-world influences to fulfil a sense of reality in a fantastical world, such as the Steve Zissou movie posters seen in the film resembling the composition and design style of Jacques Cousteau’s real-world counterparts (Seitz & Chabon, 2013) (British Film Institute, 2017). The books in Moonrise Kingdom hark back to the fantastical book covers that were illustrated in the fifties and sixties, as well as being influenced by the typographic styles of the time.

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Figure 44 & 45:

Film Props, Isle of Dogs, 2018 & Artwork, “The Great Wave off Kanagawa”, Katsushika Hokusai, 1829-33

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Figure 46: Film Prop, “Shadow Creatures of the Lurisia Archipelago” Poster, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2004

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Figure 47: Film Poster, “Le Monde Sans Soleil” Poster, Jacques-Yves Cousteau, Dir. Wes Anderson, 1964

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Figure 48: Film Props, Book Covers, Moonrise Kingdom, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2012

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Figure 49: Vintage Book Covers, Various Artists

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“you have to create an atmosphere and a world for the actors to work their magic in.”

- Annie Atkins

These kinds of pieces give both a visual and expressive purpose to the film. Items such as the menu are barely seen within the motion picture but have been fully designed to turn a fictitious menu into something more. We see these briefly for about four seconds but when closer examined like an artefact, they have been meticulously thought out to be authentic. With the menu being designed to fit the branding of the hotel, all the starters, mains and desserts the hotel offers and even the dining hours can be seen noted at the bottom of the menu. We can analyse these parts further and try to figure out why certain parts were produced. The actual menu list has been glued onto the thicker card, with the menu being handwritten and decorated with stamps of items.

In my opinion, this indicates that the menu is ever-changing, depending on what ingredients are at hand and is a popular occurrence in fine dining restaurants. However, the menu appears worn, with the edges crimpled, aged and the copy somewhat relieved from excessive contact. This could further indicate that a once changing menu has been stuck in time and is becoming ever outdated.

These objects also have a practical use, although some may say these are far too over developed for something barely seen; they provide the actors with something believable to interact and work with helping them get into the role and provide a more authentic, compelling performance. Annie Atkins, in Creative Review discusses a conversation with Ralph Fiennes, who played Gustave in the film;

“(Ralph) particularly liked the personalised notebook we’d made for his character to keep in his pocket. When we were developing it, he had asked that the pages be lined, rather than blank, as he felt that was more in keeping with Gustave’s style. It’s that kind of small detail that the camera is just never going to pick up on directly, but goes some small way in helping the scene...” (Atkins, 2014).

In the same interview, Atkins also mentions the overall impact of design within film: “You’re not always designing for the camera: much of this work will never be seen by a cinema audience, but still you have to create an atmosphere and a world for the actors to work their magic in.” (Atkins, 2014).

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Figure 50: Film Prop, The Grand Budapest Hotel Menu, Designed by Annie Atkins, 2014

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Figure 51: Film Still, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2014

Anderson is notorious for his involvement within the design making process, working closely with the team to meet his vision in its entirety. In an interview with Dazed Magazine about her involvement with The Grand Budapest Hotel, Annie Atkins discussed about Anderson’s involvement with her team, stating:

“He is such an auteur director. He pays attention to every little thing… It was fascinating.” With an eye on every last detail, Anderson even designed the news stories that – he knew – would never be read. “Because it’s a fictitious country you have to create the Trans Alpine Yodel, which was the main daily newspaper, but then Wes also used other newspapers to tell other parts of the story – it was like an entire national press. He wrote the articles, and he wrote some lovely newspaper titles like Continental Drift and The Daily Fact.” (Dazed; Kane, Ashleigh; Atkins, Annie;, 2015) This trademark of highly thought out, detailed items are part of what makes Anderson’s films so effective when discussing visual dynamics and the true artistry of his filmmaking. Unlike many directors, Anderson is grounded in this world-building exercise, “(Wes) loves the idea that he can really create every bit of image that’s on screen” (Kaufman, 2018).

Figure 52: Film Still, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2014

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Figure 53: Film Prop, Trans-Alpine Yodel Newspaper, Designed by Annie Atkins, 2014

Figure 54: Film Prop, Daily Fact Newspaper, Designed by Annie Atkins, 2014

Figure 55: Film Prop, The Continental Drift Newspaper, Designed by Annie Atkins, 2014

These newspapers are also an example of visual dynamics within film. Although Anderson wrote all of the copy for complete authenticity, this is somewhat irrelevant in the grander scheme of the movie experience with the audience. This however is counteracted with the typography used and the layout of the publication that highlights how visuals can capture an essence of tone and contextual relevance to the audience members. This is predominantly achieved through the use of typography and two distinct papers; the Trans-Alpine Yodel and the Daily Fact give

us a visual context of the timeperiod and location in the world of The Grand Budapest Hotel.

The 1960s paper, the Daily Fact, has a communist aesthetic that echoes the rise of Russian communism in the 1920s.

Propaganda newspapers such as Pravda (East View Information Services, 2010) (Simes, 1987) can be seen as influential within the design of the Daily Fact, with the bespoke typeface being born out of the headline typeface of Pravda.

The logomark emblem also gravitates towards a visual communication towards Kremlin, Soviet and Communist design, with the star surrounded by the crescent of wheat, a staple in the emblems created during the Soviet era (Egorov, 2017) (Struk, 1993) (Wikipedia, 2018) (Flags Of The World, 2014) (Tate, 2017).

Figure 57: Russian & Soviet Logomarks (1920 & 1956)

Figure 56: Publications, Pravda, 1912 & 1933

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Figure 58: Film Prop, Trans-Alpine Yodel, Designed by Annie Atkins, 2014

The Trans-Alpine Yodel, a fitting name for a paper published in the mountains of Western Europe, has been typeset with a kind of Blackletter typeface, a style that is engrained in the history of the printing press and Germany, with its inventor Johannes Gutenberg creating the Gutenberg Bible in 1455 (The British Library, 2015).

This typeface remained favourable in Germany and is mostwidely associated now with its link to the Nazi party, who began to use it in the 1930s, Hitler even declared “Fraktur (a family of Blackletter) to be “Volk”, i.e. the people’s font.”

(Farley, 2009) This style of typeface can be seen in Nazi publications of the time, such as Der Stürmer, an antiSemitism magazine founded in 1923 (Calvin College, 2019).

These idiosyncratic choices really aid in helping to delve deeper into the world of The Grand Budapest Hotel, with the use of visual dynamics through newspaper headlines simply aiding the movement of the story and provides exposition. This however is only achieved fully by giving the papers context echoing the time period.

Figure 59: Publication, Der Stürmer, Nazi Party, December 1927

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Other graphic props are scattered throughout the film that share visual traits with fascist regimes such as the Nazi party. The film’s fascist army, known only by “ZZ” emulates the Nazi party’s stylistic approach during their reign of power in the 1930s and 40s. The easiest visual resemblance is their insignia with the “SS”, In an interview with Jennifer Vineyard at Vulture about the theme of Nazis, War and the time period, Anderson states:

“...the war is more of the backdrop... because our country is a made-up country, and sort of a pastiche of different countries, it’s a little more of an impressionist version of the war. But I think it’s pretty clear what historical things we’re referring to” (Anderson, 2014) We can also see this in the uniforms the costume department created, as these are also reminiscent of the political satire comedy-drama (The Great Dictator, 1940)

by Charlie Chaplin, where the insignia of the Nazis has been swapped with an “XX” insignia.

The “ZZ” insignia is plastered over everything, from banners to martini stirrers to key rings. Through visual dynamics, this makes it obvious to the audience that this group is in power and have a domineering approach to how they show it, similar to the banners and memorabilia the Nazis produced in the 1940s. One fascinating example that really shows the depth in which authenticity is achieved is the business card for the character J.G. Jopling (played

by Willem Defoe). This business card was an amalgamation of real-life fascists calling cards from the 1930s and1940s.

In her talk at Here London 2015, Annie Atkins discussed how she made the card for the film;

“every single prop we design, even if it’s a very small prop, we always look to real references for inspiration… you start everything looking at a real reference from the time, because often those references are more surprising.”

(It’s Nice That, 2015)

Figure 60: Film Still, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2014 Figure 61: Photograph, Unknown Soldier, 33rd Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS Charlemagne (1st French), 1941 Figure 62: Film Prop, “ZZ” Patch, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Designed by Annie Atkins, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2014 Figure 63: “SS” Patch, Nazi Party, 1939 Figure 64: Film Still, The Great Dictator, Dir. Charlie Chaplin, 1940

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Figure 65: Film Prop, J. G. Jopling, Esq. Calling Card, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Designed by Annie Atkins, Dir. Wes Anderson, 2014

Figure 66: Photographs, Adolf Hitler, Eva Braun & Heinrich Himmler Calling Cards, 1940 - 1945

CONCLUSION The use of visual dynamics in Anderson’s filmography is effective. Whether the strenuous task of striving for authenticity is something that Anderson needs. It may not be appreciated by the audience but the thought process seen in his films is definitely admirable.

Anderson is one of the most distinctive filmmakers of the 21st century, and each of his films gathers its own merit in terms of story, characters and production design. These movies are all tied to the whimsical Anderson aesthetic, that allows for themes of torn-families, war, young love and oppression to be lifted into a fantastical – yet grounded – Valhalla for movie-goers to escape to. Although his films are not always a commercial success, and some critics feel his overuse of visual quirks is unnecessary window-dressing, it is hard to disagree that his films are born from a love of visual storytelling and a gateway to escapism in a film landscape that is filled with action blockbusters, novel biographicals and the never-ending throwaways of reboots and remakes that hit our theatre screens on a yearly basis.

In conducting my research, it was interesting to see how Anderson’s films have evolved after each instalment. From his humble beginnings of directing his short film Bottle Rocket before it being picked up and produced as a feature-length film, to his most critically acclaimed, and box-office hit, The Grand Budapest Hotel. Upon viewing each of his films chronologically, we are able to see how Anderson’s use of visual dynamics has been further refined and meticulously perfected. Each instalment is more and more Andersonesque, with a heavier, and more effective, use of whip-pans, tracking shots, tableaux, symmetrical perfection and more prolific use of graphical elements. Viewers surely feel the child that are his films are growing, learning and developing through the years of hardship that amalgamate after each project has been completed.

The analysis of Anderson’s films is fascinating for me.

I have loved film from an early age and continues to be a passion of mine. It was interesting and rewarding to dissect his scene-making and visual style, especially when referring back to a graphical perspective. Although I have never been thwarted in analysing movies in-depth, I surprised myself with how much can be critiqued and uncovered. It has made me respect Anderson’s filmmaking style and how everything has been done for a reason, whether it is story driven or simply to aid the visual narrative seen on screen.

Although all of his films are beautifully crafted, I believe that his best work occurred after Fantastic Mr Fox. It’s possible to really see how his emphasis on world-building within his films starts to gather, from the design of the embroidery badges for the Khaki Scouts and the artwork generated for the book covers in Moonrise Kingdom to the heavily visually, pastel kissed The Grand Budapest Hotel. These films are easier to understand and follow compared to his previous works; the story is greatly refined, with a more concise storyline from beginning to end. This lifts the barrier in what can be done with Anderson’s use of visual dynamics and works in unison instead of being solely an artistic overlay over something that may not work on its own. These visual notes bring life and breadth to the film without ever hindering the storytelling dynamic.

These visual dynamics bring a sense of authenticity, and this is what I wanted to uncover in my research. This is highlighted in The Grand Budapest Hotel, as nothing was designed ad hoc or without an initial historical, or pop-culture reference as a starting point. None of the props or other world-building items ever feel out of place in this film, and allows the audience to be invited into the world without having to ask questions or have an understanding of his previous films. The use of authentic references helps bridge the gap from reality to fantasy and to build worlds that could exist somewhere in real-life; the majority of the Western World has been taught about the war-torn era of the mid 20th century and therefore has a preconception of the visual components of this period. Anderson exploits this; the typography, clothing and architecture allows for a picture to be painted before it ever has to be seen.

Anderson is a filmmaker who I will forever admire as he goes against the modern-day conventions of the industry and holds a free-reign in his filmmaking style. Although sometimes deemed a bit of a niche Director, there is a place for him in the history books for giving viewers a refreshing take on what it means to have a movie viewing experience, breaking the shackles of the mundane and giving us a visually stunning spectacle that still works perfectly in ever the most dire, saddening themes found in a number of his films.

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