IN FOCUS Matis Mäesalu

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Matis Mäesalu is a renowned production designer, who is known for his ability to create extraordinary time-spaces with immaculate details and sense of atmosphere. Mäesalu is an artist who studied painting and scenography, and works together with his creative team on both Estonian and international projects, moving from set to set like a band on tour.

By Maria Ulfsak Photo by Viktor Koshkin

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This Spring, two big Estonian feature films were completed, with Matis and his team involved in the production. The first part of Elmo Nüganen’s historical Melchior trilogy was domestically released in April. Triin Ruumet’s Estonian-French co-production Dark Paradise, an unusual and unnerving story of a young woman’s soul searching, will be released later this year.

Matis, let’s start with Melchior. A medieval crime story that encompasses three films and a TV series is huge work for a production designer. How did the process work? I don’t think I’ve had a project of this magnitude before. Actually – Rainer Sarnet’s November wasn’t too far behind if you take the amount of shooting days. It’s just that with Melchior, three films were shot simultaneously, and it took about 10-15 more days altogether. Time was seriously condensed during that period. For me, the offer to come and make this medieval story happen was irresistible. Most of the projects I’ve done have been set in the past. The Middle Ages is a period that I hadn’t visited but wanted to. One film or seven – in my case there’s no difference. The work is the same in a way.

There were two deciding factors – first, the period, and second, Tallinn. How to discover the city in a way that would make a place instantly recognizable in a certain era? What materials to use? How to make a historical film or television drama in a way that people on the other side of the world would also feel intrigued by the place? It was indeed a great challenge.

I don’t work as a solo artist. Our team is like a band – all those people that make up the art department and who travel with me from film to film. It was a big opportunity for us. In the case of a period from such a distant past, we had to make basically everything from scratch. Scouting was exciting – you are aware of some ruins or a suitably old-looking room, but the question is, how to sew it all together into one universe.

It was not an easy task to create Medieval Tallinn for the Melchior trilogy.

Not quite from scratch, because Tallinn is a Medieval town, right? Couldn’t you make use of that? It is a common mistake to assume. When the producers called and said, “We have the Old Town right there – let’s get on it!”, then I had to tell them with great sadness that Tallinn old town is not Medieval Tallinn. It took a long time for them to realize that we had to come

Matis Mäesalu

was born in 1987 in Haapsalu. He studied painting at the University of Tartu and scenography at the Estonian Academy of Arts.

His filmography includes: 2022-2023 Apothecary Melchior trilogy (dir. Elmo Nüganen), production designer 2020 Goodbye Soviet Union (dir. Lauri Randla), set decorator 2020 Rain (dir. Janno Jürgens), production designer 2020 Erna at War (dir. Henrik Ruben Genz), art director 2019 Truth or Justice (dir. Tanel Toom), set decorator 2018 Phantom Owl Forest (dir. Anu Aun), production designer 2018 The Riddle of Jaan Niemand (dir. Kaur Kokk), production designer 2017 November (dir. Rainer Sarnet), production designer (with Jaagup Roomet) 2016 The Days that Confused (dir. Triin Ruumet), production designer

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was founded by two brothers, Matis and Meinar Mäesalu. Matis is the artistic director, production and set designer, Meinar is the technical director. With their professional team, they offer set design and building.

up with something else. Yes, there are stones, walls, statues we could use, but if you go into an old churchyard, for example, and there’s nothing there, you have got to fill it with something. But the Estonian National Heritage Board won’t allow that! You cannot dig or build anything, there’s a lot of rules.

For example, there is an episode in the Melchior script, where a large wall collapses in a churchyard. Reading this, I was wondering how we could possibly do that. The only suitable monastery in a thousand-mile radius is the St. Catherine’s Monastery in Tallinn. It’s evident that it has to happen there – but how to pull it off without collapsing the old monastery? When starting to think about solutions to these problems, one has to use all the tricks – from building and drawing skills, to painting and creating small details. In case you need an altar, there’s nothing left to do but build it. There were plenty of such challenges.

What was your foundation for creating the world of Melchior? Paintings of that period? Some Medieval scriptures? 19th Century painting is the latest relatively reliable and clear insight into Medieval Tallinn, so I was relying on that a lot. I was also guided by my work on previous films. Sort of my personal perception of history, formed through my film works. Every film adds an era or a segment, and different bits rely partly on each other. For example, I take a film like The Riddle of Jaan Niemand, and rewind back a bit. In November, farmhouses have windows, in The Riddle, not. All these small details form a sort of peculiar system in my head. A film is always a co-operation with others. Next to my perception, there is the director’s vision, the work of the actors, etc. No vision of mine makes it to the screen completely untouched.

The historical films and television dramas that I’ve seen play a big part too. I’ve watched so many, that something has probably stuck.

What are the absolute peaks among the films you have professionally admired? Everything about The Lord of the Rings (2001-2003, the trilogy was directed by Peter Jackson - ed.) is just jaw-dropping. When making Melchior, I was greatly influenced by the historical war film The King (2019, directed by David Michôd – ed.), for example.

In the case of a period from such a distant past as The Middle Ages, the art department of the film has to create basically everything from scratch.

Most of the films you have made have been period pieces in one way or another. Triin Ruumet’s The Days that Confused (2016) takes place in the 1990s, Rainer Sarnet’s November (2017) sometime in the 19th Century, Kaur Kokk’s The Riddle of Jaan Niemand (2018) after the Northern War. Even Janno Jürgens’ Rain (2020) or Anu Aun’s Phantom Own Forest (2018) are not contemporary, but in some altered time and space. Is this a coincidence that you have so far been largely able to avoid our modern times? A complete coincidence. The script of Rain was initially set in the 1980s, but we chose a more intriguing way to

twist time. Phantom Own Forest has the same game going on, only it’s more concealed – for example, the grandfather of the protagonist is still somewhat dwelling in Soviet times. Why do I go to so much trouble with a children’s film? I think it’s an interesting game, twisting time and space.

Please tell us about Triin Ruumet’s new feature, Dark Paradise. It’s your second film together with this director. How did the shooting go? This time, the starting point was that Triin was to have complete creative freedom to realize her vision, and it was up to us to support that. We arrived at some weird understanding. We were in a hurry. I finished the decorations, and they were satisfied. There was no time to re-do or change anything. When the group started filming, I did not interfere, and let them work in peace. A completely unique experience – you shouldn’t get used to this. It happens very rarely.

We did discuss things a lot with Triin, but neither of us had to follow our progress to the letter, we had a bond of total mutual trust. A production designer is a bit like a storyteller – I had a chance to join with her world. I created my own world, and she created hers – these were able to exist together. We are different people, and at times grasp thing differently, but together it all becomes a modern fairy-tale in content and form. It can be interpreted in various ways, it’s a layered and intriguing universe, where a lot remains a mystery. For me too.

Examples of great interiors created by Matis and his team. From the top: The Riddle of Jaan Niemand, November and Dark Paradise. How do you pick the projects you work on? It depends. I am quite bad at saying “no”. I usually give it a go, but if I see I am not really needed, I will propose not to continue. It is good to understand as early as possible that you are not needed. Sometimes I get invited out of habit or custom.

I am a very bad and impatient cinemagoer. When I am reading a script and it occurs to me that I wouldn’t go and see it at the cinema in a million years, then I have no desire to work on the project. The joy of doing things together actually outweighs everything else. My friend Janno (Janno Jürgens – ed.) explained why we make movies at all: films are made in order for someone to hear you out. As long as my team knows what we did, and that we did it well, I am satisfied.

You have a very thankless job. The audience doesn’t have a clue how much the artistic team contributes, and how much work is done. People think that the team goes to a location, everything necessary is waiting there, and the film is shot. How hard can it be to pick the right coloured tablecloth, and arrange chairs around the table correctly, right? Most of the team thinks the same way. At first, you

think that everyone understands the scope of our work, but then some boom guy arrives to the set and is surprised: “Oh wow, how did you find such a cool place, you don’t need to do anything here!” Even when everything around us is artificially created and even the walls are brought in!

It’s often the case that you try not to disclose that something is shot in the studio instead of a flat, not to ruin the illusion for the audience. You need to keep secrets. For example, we can say only now that Rain was not shot in an apartment, for example, but in the studio.

You have a very stable, professional team. You, your brother Meinar Mäesalu, and the rest of the “band”. What’s the perfect rhythm for you? How many projects can you take on in a year? For us, the prefect pace would be one film a year. I have discovered that two films a year is good as well – but only if the shooting periods overlap. Most of the filming is just waiting and hanging around. In case that starts again, you can always say that you are needed on the other set. That way, you can spend time only on substantial things.

In the case of Melchior, we basically had to do three films in one year – then there was no time for anything else. It is quite easy to burn out, the workload can become too much. On the other hand, you need to keep a normal pace, so that the whole crew keeps in shape and stays professional. Our current props team has worked together for more than five years.

What are you currently working on? I know you have also worked as an art director on Henrik Ruben Ganz’s Erna at War (2020), do you have any other international projects happening? I am the art director on another Danish project shot in Estonia, a TV series. It’s called Family and it’s based on a true story about the complicated world of Danish biker gangs at the end of the 70s and beginning of the 80s. The war affects our work too – a lot of projects were planned for the summer, but it’s all become a bit unclear at the moment. Estonia doesn’t have a professional pavilion yet, but we can offer all kinds of set building and such with our team. The interest in that is quite high.

What would you like to do in the future? Is there a genre or an era that you’d still like to try out? I don’t like to watch horror movies myself, but I would participate in the making of one gladly. For me as an artist, it would offer a wide variety of options. It would be an interesting thing to do, so I just hope for a good story. EF

Elmo Nüganen, director of Apothecary Melchior:

“Cooperation with Matis Mäesalu was terrific and based on the wonderful synergy of his characteristic traits and professionalism. He’s an artist, although not selfish or self-imposing. With no doubt he has the ego of an artist, but it doesn’t conflict with the egos of others. He’s willing to cooperate. He can pitch ideas himself, and also develop the ideas of other people. The same relaxed atmosphere applies to working with his team. Every time I encountered one of them, I felt a peaceful but solid work rhythm and good atmosphere. I knew how much they had to do, with very little time; I was well-aware there could always be more resources. Matis picks the right people for his team and creates a good vibe for working. He has a great sense of period and Elmo Nüganen style, good taste, and knowledge of the material. He can be the leader of the artistic team, or act as an artist himself. What is most valuable: he can envision a world, make an accurate drawing, and then create it with his own hands. Like a real demiurge. There are not many artists like this around.

Matis has another characteristic I admire. Estonians have a phrase for it – peasant wisdom. It’s the mix of a practical mind and inventiveness, and it emerges when there’s not enough time, money, or resources. He doesn’t lose contact with the ground, no matter how high he flies. Or, to paraphrase: try to spread your wings and fly, however hard you are being pushed to the ground.

Matis’ contribution is substantial. Both in the pre-production phase – with location scouting and preparation, all the big decisions about the pavilion, or possibly building a large set – and the shooting period. You can say the whole visual side is the work of the teams of Matis and the cinematographer Mihkel Soe. For example, the principle of lighting the film: warm light coming from one side (flame, candles, a fireplace, a torch) and cold light from the other (natural light, a window, a door).”