Dissertation - Vanessa Huolohan

Dwellings of Dystopia : A study of post-war western architecture in filmed Interiors.

Vanessa Chantelle Huolohan

Bachelor of Interior Architecture Final Year Dissertation — INTA2411 UNSW Built Environment University of New South Wales, Australia 2019

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CONTENTS

Abstract

Acknowledgements

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Introduction

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Chapter 1 / Interior Architecture in Dystopian Cinema: Theoretical Study of Genre, Cinematic Interiors and Audience Experience

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Chapter 2 / Mid-Century Modern in Dystopias: Interiors in Cinematography as Iconographic of Social Unrest

Chapter 3 / Cinematic Interiors Case Study: Historicism in Cinematography from the 1980’s to 2010’s

Conclusion

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References

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CONTENTS

ABSTRACT Exploring the interiors of the dwelling typology from 1980s to 2010s western dystopian cinematography, this dissertation investigates the phenomenon of historicism in filmed interiors and in particular, the impact of American post-war architecture. Establishing the individual’s emotional connection to dwelling spaces and how set producers convey that in filmed interiors, this dissertation examines how post-war architecture is integrated into filmed dwellings to epitomise the social anxieties of the era portrayed— as well as how interior elements such as thresholds, furnishing and materiality are utilised to convey these concepts. Minimal extant research on the contribution of American dystopian films to the societal perception of the mid-century modern period exists, with some texts placing mid-century modern spaces in film alongside plot lines aiming to communicate debauchery and unease.

This dissertation seeks to unpack the existing history of cinematography and dwelling interiors, and in the dystopian genre, how the two integrate to formulate new spaces which communicate an original story, whilst featuring an aspect of familiarity from contemporary societies recent post-war past. Utilising architecture curator Joseph Rosa’s Tearing Down the House: Modern Homes in the Movies (2000) theory on representations of architecture in film it becomes a precursor to understanding societies perception of the mid-century modern post-war architecture as the illicit space that is conveyed negatively in cinematography. Three cinematography case studies from the late twentieth century and early twenty-first century will be dissected in relation to the protagonists’ dwelling spaces. The analysis will unpack the relationships between interiority and exteriority, and how these intersecting spaces utilise cultural and embodied symbols from war and post-war periods to communicate the political thematic of the dystopian films, thus communicating an atmosphere of unease.

An exploration of the existing commentary on filmed interiors, as well as the effect of collective memory in audience consumption of space, frames the analysis of dwellings in Ridley Scotts Blade Runner, Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games and Charlie Brookers Black Mirror episode Nosedive. Thus, this dissertation aims to show that dwelling interiors formulated in western dystopian cinematography are in fact predisposed by the architecture which emerged during war and post war periods, in particular the midcentury modern movement; and that cinematography has substantially influenced the way in which society consumes the interiors of these periods and continues to influence contemporary interior architecture.

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ABSTRACT

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to thank Belinda Dunstan for her encouragement, advice and mentorship throughout the writing of this dissertation.

I would also like to acknowledge the incredulous support of my parents throughout the four years of this course, and to extend my gratitude to Akio Tumbaga for reviewing this work.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

INTRODUCTION Period-specific interiors in cinematography (ranging from television and box-office cinema to online streaming services) has substantially impacted the way in which the public consumes interior architecture as well as the approach architects have towards design practice (Lamster 2000 : 2). The interaction between cinema and architecture is one that is often observed and only recently being uncovered in literature, in particular connecting their shared notion of concepts— themes enacted by characters and in turn enriched by the architectural imagination (Erk 2009 : 8). This dissertation explores the unique relationship between the cinema space and interiors, recognising their codependence in formulating the context and symbolism to cinematic imagined worlds and characters (Lamster 2000 : 1). In particular, it recognises the significance of the contemporary dystopian film genre as an experimental ground for set producers to formulate a link to how dwelling interiors can contextualise political dystopic narratives through historic reference.

Throughout the three chapters the dissertation will provide an argument to how interiors in film rely on architectural historicism from pivotal milieus of unrest to convey an atmosphere of unease to audiences— explored through the vehicle of dystopian cinematography. For the purposes of this dissertation the term cinematography is recognised as the process in which the film/ video content is produced by camerawork, and is referred to in grouping video produced for television, online streaming services and box office film (Simpson 2019). This dissertation will explore the dystopian genre as it is one of the most prominent genres which implants modern American war and post-war periods of architecture in order to purvey an atmosphere of unease to audiences. As a result of periods of mass devastation to humanity, an upheaval in architecture occurred so much so that ‘…what used to be called traditional architecture is dead….’ (Hitchcock 1952 : 11), marking this period as significant to Americas social and architectural history.

The first chapter of the dissertation, Interior Architecture in Dystopian Cinema: Theoretical study of dystopian genre, cinematic interiors and audience experience, evaluates three key elements identified in dystopian film, the ocular bias of cinema in conveying architectural spaces and how the dwelling typology and the anxieties over safety are linked to the audience and utilised by set producers. The first section examines Claeys’ (2017) and Harris’ (2011) contemporary definitions of dystopia as totalitarian and procrustean, in consideration of those provided by Greene (2011) and Tafuri (1973), which observe the dystopian relative to the domination of individuals through spatial design. In cinematic space the architecture of American war and post4

INTRODUCTION

war periods is recognised as a concurrent theme in filmed portrayals of an unsavoury society and dystopian worlds (Rosa 2000 : 159). Therefore to understand this phenomena the medium of cinematography is observed through Pallasmaa’s (1996) discussion of ocularcentrism in society, which is linked to Winton’s (2018) discussion of how production designers mediate the spatial experience of film to communicate a message through interiors to audiences. As production designers increasingly integrate historic reference into contemporary film, as observed through the sets of The Hunger Games (2012), film theorists such as Erk (2009), examine the different types of time that transcend filmed interiors and the discrepancies of history and memory. After establishing period contexts of film, the dissertation unpacks Troutman (1997)and Ellin’s (1997) exploration of the emotional contexts of interiors, in particular dwelling spaces.

The discussion of fear portrayed through the filmed environment is differentiated from the archetypal fear of horror films, and instead becomes an experience of unease communicated through the architecture and storytelling. Following this the chapter concludes by providing a framework in which to explore the connection between midcentury modern architecture and the interiors of western dystopian film.

The second chapter, Mid-Century Modern in Dystopias: Interiors in Cinematography as Iconographic of Social Unrest, extrapolates modern periods of war following architecture curator Joseph Rosa’s Tearing Down the House: Modern Homes in the Movies (2000), and his observations on modernism and mid-century modernism in American film being represented negatively. The chapter explores collective memory of American history and architecture and how the interiors formulated in the cold war era are often associated with the anxious socio-political climate of the epoch. Through plethora of examples between the built interiors of Oscar Niemeyer and the film sets produced for Roger Cormans Day the World Ended and Jo Wrights Nosedive episode from Black Mirror, this dissertation sets out to connect the two worlds [cinematography and built architecture] and their conceptual commonalities. Finally, the chapter integrates filmed characters and their interior dwellings with the communication of unease to audiences. In particular observing Winton and Antoniades (1990) arguments on historicism and symbolism, with Winton (2018) following how cinematography utilises these symbols to portray the characters’ experience (Winton 2018 : 108), and Antoniades exploring these embodied symbols as elements taken from precedence’s of a historical style to replicate that architectural form or aesthetic (Antoniades 1990 : 147).

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INTRODUCTION

The final chapter of the dissertation, entitled Cinematic Interiors Case Study: Historicism in films from the 1980s to 2000s, provides three cinematic interior case studies which aims to extrapolate upon the dwelling interiors of dystopian cinematography. The first case study, Ridley Scott’s 1982 film Blade Runner, considers the relationship between the interior dwelling and the external city-scape and how this relationship is communicated through the blurring of thresholds. The analysis between interior and exterior is important to understanding the historic references within the two spaces, and how the dystopian world connects monumentalism and the individual dwelling to communicate a totalitarian message to audiences. Likewise, the second case study, Suzanne Collins’ 2012 The Hunger Games, reaffirms this by observing a similar connection between exteriority as the oppressive realm and the interior dwelling as the violated space. Finally, the third case study, Black Mirrors 2016 Nosedive, provides a counter-example in which historicism is reduced to aestheticism, generalising the cultural and embodied symbols of an architectural period, communicating a message of inauthenticity to the interior space. Whilst it is effective in the story telling of the episode, for the purposes of this dissertation it forms an example where historic reference in cinematography can be superficial. Lastly, the final chapter will place the theory of historicism, in particular the use of the mid-century modern period, alongside the dystopian film genres goal to communicate an unease to audiences in story-telling.

Thus, allowing readers to make a connection between the two, which has been rarely explored in architectural research to date.

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INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER 1

Interior Architecture in Dystopian Cinema: Theoretical study of genre, cinematic interiors and audience experience.

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Chapter 1 examines the way in which filmed interiors of the dystopian genre are dependent on their reference to architectural styles in contemporary milieus of unrest, demanding inquiry into three key areas of research. These areas include an understanding of the dystopian genre in the contemporary film and television setting, an understanding of how interiors are perceived in cinematography through the primary sense of vision, and finally an understanding of the research into responses of fear and architecture in order to greater understand how production designers manipulate these modes to portray a message of unease to audiences.

1.1 Defining Dystopia Visions of dystopia are often tantalised in the realm of fiction and reveal themselves through multiple versions and definitions. With so many incarnations how do we define dystopia; is it the failed utopia of Totalitarian society? As literary theorist Gregory Claeys in his book Dystopia: A Natural History (2017 : 6)explores; does the dystopian linger within utopia itself— as the underbelly of society and product of group anxiety? Or is it the utopia ‘gone wrong’ as the product of suffocated independence of the individual and loss of privacy in spaces of dwelling? (Tafuri 1973 : 73). Despite the first piece of dystopian fiction emerging in 1921 with Russian authors Yevgeni Zamyatin’s Totalitarian novel We, Claeys argues that the presence of dystopia has existed in society from biblical and mythological stories. Claeys, among other theorists such as Vivien Greene (2011), Manfredo Tafuri (1973) and Dianne Harris (2011), offers a contemporary definition which this dissertation will focus on due to the genre’s ties to twentieth and twenty-first century cinema. The definition follows that dystopia is perceived as the ‘…failed Utopia of twentieth-century totalitarianism…’ (Claeys 2017 : 5). Paramount to this definition is where Claeys highlights dystopia as the antithesis to utopia and locates it within the socio-political frame. Dystopia framed as anti-utopia is implicative of the opposite of the perfect society which Claeys refers to as ‘fearful futures where chaos and ruin prevail’ (Claeys 2017 : 5).

The utopia is inextricably linked to the dystopia and in the political utopia of peace there-in lies the war against and suppression of the other to maintain this (Claeys 2017 : 6). Dystopia is thus a symptom of society’s search for perfection, where society acts in the mentality of the group and is driven by the groups fear, which spatially becomes the individuals ‘docile submission to structures of domination’ (Tafuri 1973 : 73) which this dissertation recognises in the architecture of war and post-war societies.

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A further understanding of dystopia comes from the theory of group psychology, and how the group exposes the primitive type of humanity (Claeys 2017 : 27). Harris (2011 : 18) argues that dystopia exists as a ‘mass-cultural and ideological phenomenon’ rather than as anti-utopias, as Harris recognises the relevance of time and context to form a framework for the dystopia. The ideological phenomenon that Harris refers to is not ubiquitously substantiated by context alone, as Claeys expands upon this proposing that the individual fears the group which ‘is procrustean: they [the group] cut us to size… by way of suppressing our individuality’ (Claeys 2017 : 37). What both Claeys and Harris exemplify in their research is the strong affiliation of the dystopian psychology of sociopolitical anxiety (fear of nationalism) and thus fear of the group. The suppression of the individual is considered as the rise to the pathological group embodying dystopia, however the psychology of dystopia is also manifested in the mind of the individual (Claeys 2017 : 16)— and the fear of suppression, which as Greene states, utopian ideals retaliate (Greene 2011 : 2) . Pertinent to communicating the anxieties and fears of society, which the genre itself is defined by, is the portrayal of space in cinematography as a vehicle whereby interiors have become images removed from an entire sensorial experience of physicality (Pallasmaa 1996 : 19).This notion, explored in depth in part two of the chapter, gives rise to the need for historical architectural reference to frame the audiences understanding of the interiors through a familiar form and aesthetic.

1.2 Biased Representations of Architecture in Cinematography This section of chapter 1 will explore the experience of architecture in film, firstly through architectural theorist Juhani Pallasmaa’s discussion of ocularcentrism— the sensory bias towards vision— influencing the perception of space and secondly through film theorist Gul Kacmaz Erk’s exploration of the relationship between memory, history and time in addressing architecture in cinematography. Finally, examination is given to Joseph Rosa’s argument of the modernist style and Hollywood’s ‘stereotyping and stigmatizing’ (Lamster 2000 : 5) of modern interiors as the vilified space and the reliance on a particular audience and society’s collective memory of architecture to achieve this.

An understanding of the influences on architectural space represented in the cinematic realm further enhances the discussion of how interiors in film rely on historic periods of change and the viewers pre-existing knowledge of historic architectural periods, experienced through cinematography. This is further emphasised in a study of fear and space in part three of this chapter.

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‘An interior designer must take into consideration the senses in one’s work, including not only how a space looks but also how it feels and how it sounds to the human body, whereas a production designer needs to communicate those things within the mediated space of a film screen’ (Winton 2018 : 108 ) In cinematography viewers are challenged to keep pace with a large quantity of information conveyed at a fast pace. Pallasmaa recognises that sight and sound are the dominant sensory modes engaged in contemporary society and in the age of film it is the ‘…only sense that is fast enough to keep pace with the astounding increase of speed in the technological world’ (Pallasmaa 1996 : 13). Due to this, contemporary society has arguably become ocularcentric, and for the field of architecture in the cinematic space it is interesting to note that we are still able to acknowledge experiences of the haptic, smell and taste through the visual. For example, in Quentin Tarentinos 1994 film Pulp Fiction, a scene featuring the big Kahuna burger (Figure 1), utilises visual imagery to evoke the other senses, as such audiences are encouraged to metaphorically taste the dripping ketchup and soft bun purely from visual and auditory communication.

Pallasmaa states that ‘The sense of sight may incorporate, and even reinforce, other sense modalities; the unconscious tactile ingredient to vision is particularly important’ (Pallasmaa 1996 : 16).

Figure 1: Big Kahuna burger from Pulp Fiction, 1994, Quentin Tarentino, United States of America, Miramax Films

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As such in the film the visual representation of the burgers characteristics is able to revive the archaic senses unconscious to the viewer: We know the taste of the sauce or the texture of the lettuce without having to eat it or touch it. Pallasmaa attributes this phenomenon to the visual hegemony of contemporary communication, however, and especially in the realm of architecture, Gul Kacmaz Erk believes it is the makeup of memory, history and time that inform the visual experience of the interior in cinema.

Erk (2009 : 17) acknowledges architecture as addressing the five senses, yet in the space of cinematography only two remain as it ‘perceives and records only images and sounds’. In order to provide an emotional context and setting for the storytelling required in cinema architecture forms a backdrop. Erk (2009 : 21) sees this emotional context as the makeup of either a connection to viewers memory or a connection to architectural history, which although these architectural periods may not be experienced by viewers physically, this history is understood through virtually propagated knowledge— cinematography. When defining the experience of memory Erk states that ‘Both cinema and memory shift between different times back and forth. They move in time from present to future from future to past… They reconstruct the past, and construct the future’ (Erk 2009 : 21). In this statement Erk addresses how memory is that which exists innately in the individuals past yet is integral to how the individual experiences their future— memories which can be temporal and collectively shared. For example in Gavriel Rosenfeld’s Munich and Memory (Rosenfeld 2000 : 1-5), the national collective memory of Germany’s recent Nazi past is embedded in its citizens as much so as it is integral to the urban landscape which held prominent signs of the Third Reich’s disfigurement of German cities after 1945 (as seen in the contrasting images of Munichs architecture before and after the war in Figures 2.1 and 2.2). This concept of collective memory, is relative to the representation of history in cinematography and in the dystopian genre drawing from the resonance of acts of mass devastation to a society.

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Figure 2 Comparison of Munich Before War and After

Figure 2.1: Munichâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Old Town Street Photograph, LHM photography, 1980 <https://www.muenchen.de/rathaus/Stadtverwaltung/Referat-fuer-Stadtplanung-und-Bauordnung/Stadtentwicklung/stadt-bau-plan/city-building-plan/cbp_phase_5.html> Accessed: 5th of May 2019

Figure 2.2: Facade of Hause Der Kunst, Paul Ludwig Troost, 1937, Historical Archives <https://hausderkunst.de/en/history/chronical> Accessed 5th of May 2019

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A sense of time in film can refer to either the period setting of the story, the time the film was produced or the time in which it is experienced by the viewer (Erk 2009 : 28). This dissertation takes interest in the time of the story’s setting and the references to the history of architecture used in these stories. Erk (Erk 2009: 21-22) explores the connection between history and architecture, whereas unlike memory which is fluid, history becomes the static embodiment of the past. Similarly, Rosenfeld claims that memory is the ‘socially constructed views of the past’ (Rosenfeld 2000 : 5) and the architecture forms the legacy of that past which becomes memory. In filmed interiors it becomes complex whereas in a future dystopian setting, such as the 2012 dystopian film The Hunger Games architecture from the 1920s Art Deco period is referenced in the future setting of 2087 (as seen in comparison of figure 3.1 and 3.2). Chronological continuity is established by transporting the socio-cultural history associated with the 1920s art deco interiors from the past into the alternate and fictional world of the dystopian film, allowing the contemporary audience to recognise the theme of opulence portrayed through this reference. Ultimately, the spaces occupied by a society in turn reflect the values (for instance of wealth or luxury) of the occupants, and in essence formulate how the architecture of space is remembered post-occupation (Smith 2015 : 171).

Figure 3 Art Deco to Film Comparison

Figure 3.2: Foyer of the Film Centre Building, Figure 3.1: Capitol Train Interior 00:21:20, Philip Messina, 2012, The Hunger Games, Gary Ely Kahn, 1928-29 New York, John Baldwin, Ross, United States of America, Lionsgate Films 2016 <https://www.theclio.com/web/entry?id=22902> Accessed: 1st May 2019 13

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Finally, Joseph Rosa argues that in film architectural styles are relied upon in orchestrating an emotional context for the film, in particular observing the relationship between modernist interiors and more traditional spaces. Rosa observes that contemporary films often use modernist architecture as the setting of unsavoury acts and he attributes it to the fact that ‘…modern design is simply anathema to the American way of living… [and] that those who contest and violate American values are associated with it’ (Rosa 2000 : 159). With Modernism viewed as departing from all that represents the American traditional, in cinematography modernist interiors are portrayed as opposing the traditional, in particular family oriented and ornamental households (Rosa 2000 : 159). As a result these spaces have a sense of memory attached to them— yearning for ‘a past domestic ideal… to define the good character for the audience’ (Rosa 2000 : 166). Rosa argues that our emotional reaction to space is defined by these references to history, but it can only be understood through a memory of spaces not experienced in real life, but only through a prior exposure to them in media.

These factors are what leads to the effectiveness of film, as the visually hegemonic medium, in evoking powerful emotional responses to spaces the viewer has never truly experienced directly.

1.3 Theory on Architecture and Fear The final section of this chapter explores Anne Troutmen and Nan Ellin’s theories of fear and interiority and how fear, which is the emotional context related to the warning nature of dystopic film, is experienced in space. Troutmen explores the intimate connection between the individual and the spaces of dwelling, ‘Unlike actual dangers, which are identified as being outside the self, this anxiety lies within the self- and by extension, awaits us inside the dwelling.’ (Troutmen 1997 : 149). Here Troutman recognises fear as formulated by the individual, but its presence is provoked by space— and in this instance Troutman focuses on the dwelling as the intimate space to the individual with hidden and dark spaces that feel ‘empty or endless’ (Troutmen 1997 : 154). This theory of fear it is very much related to the individual and memory, in particular a memory of dwelling. From this Troutmen defines the archetypes of fear, which she theorises as a familiar experience for most of growing up in some form of dwelling and leaving that dwelling as an adult- relating it to a space of transition that holds anxieties of loss (Troutmen 1997 : 149). These Archetypal spaces of unsease include ‘…the endless room, the empty room, the dark ascending or descending stair, tight spaces (between walls, up the chimneys, etc.), the door that should not be opened,

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sounding walls of unknown thickness, or uncomfortable proportion…’ (Troutmen 1997 : 151). It is these spaces, that are not defined by any particular history, but simply by their involvement with the primal notion of occupation. The initial dwelling of walls, floors, ceilings, stairs that are co-existent with transition and change, and in-of themselves gain that sense of emptiness, hollowness that becomes ‘archetypically horrifying’ (Troutmen 1997 : 151) when related with transition and loss.

Where Troutmen explores the experiences of the individual’s relationship to dwelling as the host of anxiety to space, Ellin (1997 : 13) theorises that there is a greater societal fear that occurs during periods of immense transition and change— which similarly to Troutmen relates the notion of change to the anxieties of the individual. Ellin states that ‘While these changes permitted a certain freedom and control over one’s life that did not previously exist, they also created a new kind of insecurity because they introduced the notion of change itself’ (Ellin 1997 : 14). Insecurity of change can be what leads to socio-political anxieties, many of which become the subject of dystopian cinematography, and are expressed through interior architecture. Ellin expands upon this by exploring the yearning of societies going through mass change- such as during the contemporary period of mass-globalization and cultural exchange- to have a sense of nostalgia and ‘roots’. Ellin describes this as a search for ‘cultural distinctions...or ‘retribalization’’ (Ellin 1997 : 26) in order to overcome the anxiety of loss of culture and loss of ones ‘individuality’ through having a unique culture. Similarly there is ‘nostalgia, a desire to return to an apocryphal rosy past in reaction to high modernism’s clean break from the past’ (Ellin 1997 : 26). This can be understood in two modes; a nostalgia for periods of stability and hope and the unwanted nostalgia of periods of oppression and the anxieties of rapid change, which is in line with Rosa’s earlier exploration of the referencing of periods (such as modernism) to evoke a collective memory. Thus, fear may be manifest both within the individual and by the society, existing in private dwelling and public city, yet at its core is the anxiety of change and a resultant loss and innate need for nurture and nostalgia that drives the sensation of fear, which is used by set producers to convey a dystopic message.

Investigating the contemporary definitions of dystopia has uncovered the genres strong correlation to post- war contexts, encapsulating the socio-political fears of the periods during and following mass devastation. As cinematography, being the visually hegemonic medium, becomes the space of consumption of interiority for audiences, it becomes pertinent to understand the way in which architecture is represented.

Writings on memory and history allowed film and architectural theorists such as Gul Kacmaz Erk and Joseph Rosa to explore how the architectural space is presented in film, and recognize history as the static communicative form and memory as the social and

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emotional interpretation of occupied spaces that is transitional. The theoretical lens of this chapter will inform the following chapters in this dissertation, which keeps in mind the tropes of dystopias and their post-war contextual connection and the significance of historical representation in interior spaces, in particular in dwelling spaces, further established in subsequent chapters.

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CHAPTER 2

Mid-Century Modern in Dystopias:

Interiors in Cinematography as Iconographic of Social Unrest

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MID-CENTURY MODERN IN DYSTOPIAS

This chapter will explore contemporary society’s perception, and thus collective memory, of mid-century modern architecture and the Cold War context in which it emerged. Utilising the theoretical framework of chapter 1, this dissertation looks at Alexa Winton’s (2018) ideology of embodied symbols in interiors, and how these are utilised in the filmed space, and Anthony Antoniades’ (1990) application of historicism— history observed through architectural form— in the representation of dwelling spaces in dystopian cinematography. This chapter aims to critically discuss the dystopian genres connection to mid-century modernism and draw conclusions on the set producers’ utilisation of this connection to portray the unease of the post-war epoch.

2.1 Collective Memory of Modern Post-War Periods and Meaning Making in filmed Interiors This section of chapter 2 explores the contextual philosophy of contemporary dystopian western cinema and how that can inform the interior realm of filmed space. A common thematic reference for western dystopian cinematography and their interiors, described in greater depth in the chapter 3 case studies, is the reference to the architecture that developed around war and post-war contexts. Harris (2011 : 18) claims that ‘dystopia…is a term only recently coined, a product—tellingly—of the Cold War era…’. Henceforth this dissertation takes interest in the architecture that evolved around the 1950-60’s Cold War era, as it marks a period of anxiety in contemporary western history which manifests itself as collective memory through film. In particular in the architectural field in the USA, the mid-century modern movement— evolving from the International and Bauhaus movements— reflected the ‘push-button’ age and the obfuscation of American values away from protestant ideals into the consumerist era (Boyer 1985 : 135).

Part of this consumerist age was the centralisation of society and production, which as Boyer states, was perceived as the threat of ‘enhanced governmental power… [in which] this expansion of authority would diminish the individual.’ (Boyer 1985 : 143).

Boyers observations on the Cold War era psychology in the United States of America draws many parallels to Claeys’ theory of representations of dystopia as the fear of the group and nationalism whereby the individuals loss of control to the group is consuming and intimidating, resulting in ‘an ethos of subordination’ (Claeys 2017 : 45). As such the social ramifications of this period— fear of lost individuality and the consumerist society— are inherently linked to the development of the mid-century modern interiors which aimed to bring Modernism to Americas post-war suburbs.

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Austrian-American architect Richard Neutra (1892- 1970) and Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer (1907-2012) were influential architects of this period. Their mid-century modern interiors were defined by large glass windows, post and beam construction, concrete materiality and the championing of open and flexible layouts (Longstreth 2015 : 55). As seen in Niemeyer’s interior of the Communist Party headquarters in Paris (figure 4 and figure 5 in plan), these spaces featured expansive open floor plans and curved feature walls as seen in figure 5, as well as starkly non-traditional furnishings that lacked ornamentation and featured sleek lines, robust materials and bold colour selection.

The mid-century modern style, for the purposes of this dissertation, is referenced as a pivotal architectural style representative of the atomic ages’ (1950’s) social pessimism, which comes to define how this style is utilised in contemporary dystopian film.

Figure 4: Communist Part Headquaters Paris Lounge, Oscar Niemeyar, 1965, France, Team Yellowtrace, 2014 <https://www.yellowtrace.com. au/brazilian-architect-oscar-niemeyer/> Accessed: 28th April 2019

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Open floor plan Curved Partitions throughout space

Figure 5: First Floor Plan of Comunist Party Head Quaters with additions by author, Oscar Niemeyar, 1965, France, Foster Associates Ltd, 2019 < https://www.northernarchitecture. us/housing-project/oscar-niemeyer-office-communist-party-headquarters.html > Accessed: 28th April 2019 As explored in chapter 1, Erk theorises that the audience’s emotional response to a filmed interior is derived from a consistent exposure in the media to historical events that audiences have not experienced. Specifically, within the dystopian genre as a modern film phenomenon, this includes the exposure to mid-century modern architecture and its relationship to crime, debauchery and the unsavoury. What is interesting about Rosa’s findings on the negative connotations of mid-century modern design in film is the idea that ‘the technology and optimism that had ushered in modern architecture… had been tainted by a knowledge of the destructive power of modern science…’ (Rosa 2000 : 162), referring to atomic energy, and how there existed a dichotomy of hope of advancement and fear of destruction. With the widespread ramifications of weapons of mass destruction existing in society, film, media and advertisement began to mould the individuals’ memory of these events, such as Roger Corman’s 1955 post-apocalyptic film Day The World Ended, which presents visions of how society lives after the bomb. One example of this is the protagonist of the film, Jim 20

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As explored in chapter 1, Erk theorises that the audience’s emotional response to a filmed interior is derived from a consistent exposure in the media to historical events that audiences have not experienced. Specifically, within the dystopian genre as a modern film phenomenon, this includes the exposure to mid-century modern architecture and its relationship to crime, debauchery and the unsavoury. What is interesting about Rosa’s findings on the negative connotations of mid-century modern design in film is the idea that ‘the technology and optimism that had ushered in modern architecture… had been tainted by a knowledge of the destructive power of modern science…’ (Rosa 2000 : 162), referring to atomic energy, and how there existed a dichotomy of hope of advancement and fear of destruction.

With the widespread ramifications of weapons of mass destruction existing in society, film, media and advertisement began to mould the individuals’ memory of these events, such as Roger Corman’s 1955 post-apocalyptic film Day The World Ended, which presents visions of how society lives after the bomb. One example of this is the protagonist of the film, Jim Maddison’s, fallout shelter interior (figure 7). The space strongly features mid-century furniture including Arne Jacobsen’s Model 3107 bent ply chair, along with matching mid-century modern desks and archetypal geometric curtain patterns of the era (figure 6). This imagery continues through to contemporary cinematography in Jo Wrights Black Mirror Season 3 episode 1, Nosedive (2016) which features a soft pastel colour palette, and mid-century modern clean lines and open floor plans, typical of the 1950’s. In figure 7 the Airport scene is stark and white with blue, green and pink pastel hues. The tiling features geometric patterns, similar to that on the curtains in the bunker of Day the World Ended and the columns and ceiling remain undecorated and raw. Despite these two interiors being disparate in that one is a residential dwelling, the other a public space, the key elements of mid-century modern have pertained over the 60-year gap in production, and in cinematography, audiences are relayed the same message— fear. Fear of change, the anxieties of the characters living in a nuclear waste-land bomb shelter, fear of the group, whereby the Nosedive protagonist moving through these spaces loses her individuality and freedom as the episode progresses. Through the repetition of these key interior elements that are selected from the 1950s era audiences gain an understanding of the interior features of the era, however, over-simplification of the architectural elements can result in the loss of the rich message these periods are emblematic of in contemporary examples which are explored in chapter three.

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Figure 6: Jim Maddisonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Fallout Shelter, Roger Corman, 1955, Day The World Ended, United States of America Aerican Releasing Corporation.

Figure 7: Airport Interior referencing 1950s, Joe Wright, 2016, Black Mirror Season 3 episode 1 Nosedive, Charlie Brooker, United States of America, Netflix.

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Rosas observations that ‘Fear of the modern— mirrored both in films and in the press- focused on the negative effects’ (Rosa 2000 : 160) outlines the pessimistic framing of the audiences’ collective memory of this period, which through the examples of the 1955 film Day the World Ended and its similarities to the 2016 episode Nosedive, concludes that mid-century modern has become a recurrent symbol. Similarly, Ellin in her reading on architecture and fear observes that modernity itself is insecure and thus this insecurity can be transferred to the spaces occupied by characters in cinematography (Ellin 1997 : 21). As such, the second part of this chapter examines the connection between characters, the filmed Interior and the sense of unease intended to be conveyed through these spaces.

2.2 Relationship Between Character and Filmed Interior Dwellings in Communicating Unease to Audiences Through understanding the inherent connection between mid-century modern, the social fears of the Cold War era and finally the repetition of a pessimistic viewport of this architectural period, the following section will discuss in greater depth the relationship between the central characters in contemporary dystopian film and the spaces in which they dwell. Furthermore, a connection will be made between the message of unease communicated by the producers and the historic periods which the sets replicate, in particular the significance of dwelling interiors related to central characters.

In the study of cinematic Interiors, film specific techniques are employed to immerse audiences into the plights of the character, and in extension of that the space and world in which these characters exist and interact with. As Winton (2018 : 108) states filmed interiors utilise ‘cultural and embodied symbols and references in the depiction of interiors in order to make key points about characters’, suggesting that the meaning associated with particular architectural styles sets historical context and place in the film, but can also play off audiences perception of these eras to reveal more about the characters intentions. In the example of Black Mirror’s episode Nosedive, the protagonist, Lacie (played by Bryce Dallas Howard), lives in a future world where selfimage is ranked and society determines the individual’s freedom of access to services.

We are aware of the film’s plot points that Lacie is controlled by a ranking system, a futuristic dystopian concept, yet by placing this character in a 1950’s inspired interior it provides the historical depth of that era to enhance the narrative of fear and oppression related to the Cold War period. However there are limits to this theory, as architectural theorist Anthony Antoinades states ‘Attention to history that does not consider the interrelationships and repercussions of these parameters [context] is superficial and can bring adverse results for any new creation derived from history.’ (Antoniades 1990 : 147). In relation to film, Antoinades’ statement implies that a superficial exploration of 23

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the historic precedence referenced in cinematic interiors can result in the failure of the depth and richness that is attached to the specific architectures socio-political history, explored further through the chapter 3 case study.

Furthermore, the typology of dwelling interiors becomes an interesting space for set producers to explore in order to indicate the characters’ anxieties towards the dystopia and communicate this to the audience. As Troutman states ‘the dwelling is intimate, immediate, a resonant chamber, a mirror of the self….’ (Troutmen 1997 : 143), it is a space which is fundamental to human experience in some form and as such that is why it is the focal typology explored in this dissertation. Dwelling is transitional, we move from external worlds and escape to the primordial cocoon designed to divide (Troutmen 1997 : 147). As a result of this, the dwelling spaces , further explored in the chapter 3 case studies, feature points of threshold between internal and external worlds and the extent to which one melds into the other, becoming a ‘violated interior: a zone without borders’ (Shonfield 2000 : 67). This blurring of boundaries creates a new experimental space for interior production designers to explore in communicating dystopic messages, whereby the collective memory of the mid-century modern period as symbol intermingles with the audience’s perception of security— developing the film protagonists’ portrayed anxieties through the insecure dwelling.

By examining society’s collective memory of war and post-war period architecture, and the integration of this in filmed interiors, this dissertation evidences how non-superficial historical references can convey a strong message of unease to audiences. In particular, the socio-political context of mid-century modernism and the blurring of interior as the protected realm and the urban nationalistic exterior that dystopias are predisposed to (Claeys 2017 : 45), will inform the case studies explored in chapter 3.

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CHAPTER 3

Cinematic Interiors Case Study:

Historicism in Films from the 1980’s to 2010’s

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This dissertation highlights the 1950s mid-century modern interior as the epitome of the contemporary dystopic vision; however, the following case studies observe that war and post war context include the architectural periods that emerged around political discourse. This includes both the reactionary architecture as well as the monolithic architecture designed to showcase the political power of a society— such as the references to Mayan and Third Reich architecture in the examples below. By contrasting these historical references, the case studies provide a unique insight of how audiences can be groomed by the media to interpret historicism in filmed interiors by associating certain designed spaces with the discourse and anxieties of the epoch they imply. The final case study demonstrates the ideas explored in chapter 2, critically denoting in the third precedence superficial referencing of a historic period, and how that inhibits audiences from relating to the rich socio-political context of these architectural periods in portraying the dystopian narrative.

3.1 The Blending Between Interiority and Exteriority in Blade Runner This section of chapter 3 explores Ridley Scott’s 1982 film Blade Runner, to analyse the blurring of the exterior city, and its representations of a totalitarian society, into the private dwelling of the protagonist Deckard, played by Harrison Ford. Through this observation of the dwelling typology, a greater understanding of how historical reference influences audience perception of new unfamiliar dystopian world-scapes is ascertained.

The first spatial experience of the film centres on the city, as per figure 8: represented as monolithic, inhuman and perfect in its symmetry and pyramidic form. The choking smog and rain in the misc-en-scene enhances the all-consuming nature of the external world-scape of the dystopic film, as film scholar Scott Bukatman states it expresses the ‘city as a monumental form…’ (Bukatman 1997 : 42), devoid of anything natural. What is interesting and becomes a common thematic in the external worlds of the three dystopian films explored is the comparison made between the monumental political architecture from a variety of eras, particularly the reference to Mayan architecture in Blade Runner.

As explored in comparison between figure 8 and figure 9, the external world-scape draws inspiration from Mayan design like the the El Castillo Mayan Temple. Architecture theorist Anthony Antoniades proposes that ‘through the historical framing of a project, he or she can acquire knowledge of the cultural, technological, and philosophical parameters’ (Antoniades 1990 : 147) from these eras, and in the example of Blade Runner it becomes indicative of the power and brutality of the Mayan civilization and

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the architecture which survived for so long. Through this historical correlation between an architecture of oppression and the representation of the exterior, it is interesting then to explore how these spaces interact with the private dwelling of the character Deckard in order to communicate the unease of this dystopian future to audiences.

Figure 8: Exterior of Tyrell Corporation 00:04:22, Ridley Scott, 1982, Blade Runner, United States of America, Warner Brothers.

Figure 9: Chichen Itza El Castillo Mayan Temple, Mexico, mexico archaeology, 2019 <http://www.mexicoarcheology.com/ chichen-itza-el-castillo/> Accessed : 28th of April 2019 27

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With the exterior world established, the interior of Deckard’s abode becomes the grounds in which the intimate space is corrupted by and emmeshed with the external.

Deckard is controlled by his role as a Blade Runner from following his love for the replicant Rachel, and spatially this is expressed by the city penetrating into the private dwelling space asserting control and much like nationalistic groups, repressing the individual (Claeys 2017 : 56). In figure 10 this notion of blending is evident in both the architectural design of the interior as well as in the use of light and shadow to differentiate interior and exterior zones. The filming location of this scene, Ennis House in Los Angeles, designed by American architect Frank Lloyd Wright in 1924, is distinctly Mayan Revivalist, drawing parallels to the temple-like reference of the Tyrell Corp building in the opening scenes (figure 8). Despite the home being a space of dwelling, where Deckard reclines in a brown leather lounge surrounded by nostalgic photographs and books of a time before the Blade Runner world; the audience is intently reminded of the oppressive dystopian city.

The dwelling as typology both guards and contains ones anxieties (Troutmen 1997 : 153), however in figure 11, through Deckard and Rachels interaction, the anxieties of their relationship are exposed as the swooping beams of light fluttering in and out of the interior, the threshold penetrating the space. The lowered scale of the interior (figure 10) vastly contrasts the monolithic forms of the external world scape, indicating that the space is intended for privacy. However, this is broken by the strong light central to the space, indicating an openness to the external [much like Niemeyer’s open glass partitions opening interior to exterior (figure 4)] and the presence of the modernist Mayan-revival wall tile repeated throughout that breaks from the American ideal of ‘traditional… to symbolize stability’ (Rosa 2000 : 5) in the home. It is the blending of these external and internal worlds, and in particular the immersion of the architectural style of Mayan Revival from the city to the dwelling which communicates to audiences the unease and invasion of the dystopic world in the private sphere. Similarly, in the 2012 film The Hunger Games, historicism in film is utilised to convey to audiences the plight of the protagonist, Katniss, as she fights against the Fascist state of the fictional Capitol.

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Figure 10: Interior of Deckards home showing threshold to exterior, Ridley Scott, 1982, Blade Runner, United States of America, Warner Brothers.

Figure 11: Interior of Deckards showcasing elements of Ennis House mayan revival tiles, Ridley Scott, 1982, Blade Runner, United States of America, Warner Brothers.

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3.2 Representations of Periods of Vast Socio-Economic Disparity Between Classes in the Interiors of The Hunger Games Suzanne Collins’ novel The Hunger Games, adapted into film in 2012 by director Gary Ross, follows a female heroin, Katniss Everdeen (played by Jennifer Lawrence), as she partakes as tribute in a televised death match called the Hunger Games. The world created by production designer, Philip Messina, draws from key architectural periods in which there existed great disparity between socio-economic classes in order to convey the over-arching thematic of the film— rebellion against class division and totalitarian power. In particular it draws from the architecture of the Third Reich and the lavish interiors of the 1930s Art deco period, which began as a ‘smart urban style… among a small contingent of upper-middle class sophisticates…’ (Gebhard 1996 : 3), and is evident in the interiors of the Captiol where the tributes dwell. Much like Blade Runner blurred boundaries of interior and exterior, The Hunger Games smoothly integrates the two through a balance of oppressive forms and lavish architectural design in the city which metaphorically plasters itself atop the brutality and suffering existing in the fighting arena and districts where the poor dwell (as seen comparatively in figure 12 and figure 12.1 in the disparity of Katniss’ dwelling in her district, and when she lives in the capitol).

The dystopic film heavily relies on historicism and the audiences’ collective memory of these periods through cinematography— such as in films Grand Hotel 1932 and more recently Moulin Rouge 2001, which sets up this image of opulence of the 1930s Art deco era. Antoniades (1990 : 148) explores the notion of ‘…the reduction of (historical) phenomena to ‘styles’…’ which is utilised by Messina in designing the ocularcentric experience of The Hunger Games interiors. Audiences gain a streamlined perception, which is to the advantage of the spaces analysed in these scenes, to showcase the opulence of the Marxist bourgeoise of the Capitol in contrast to the lower-class context of the protagonist (Figures 12.1 and 12.2). In the early scenes of the film audiences are exposed to Katniss’ home which features exposed timber walls, floor and fireplace, very little artificial lighting and a muted grey-blue colour palette that appears pulled from a rural American home in the 1930s (figure 12.1). In contrast to this, when the protagonist is transported to the Capitol, luxury is depicted through ornate artificial lighting scattered throughout the penthouse bedroom at the tribute’s accommodation (figure 12.2).

The many lighting fixtures, ornate crystal chandeliers and ornamental sculptural lighting pieces suspended above the bed and side tables, shows how overbearing the wealth of the spaces is in comparison to her former home. As well as featuring the repetitive streamlined moderne features of the deco period in the flooring step features of contrasting black and off-gold in zig-zagging patterns (Gebhard 1996 : 45). However,

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beneath the opulence the bones of the interior respond to the nature of the city scape (figure 13) characterised by the Third Reich period of architecture in 1930s Germany (figure 14) and reflected through a modernist and anti-traditionalist concrete interior (Rosenfeld 2000 : 57).

Figure 12 Dwelling Interior Comparison

Figure 12.1: Lower-class dwelling 01:29:30 Philip Messina, 2012, The Hunger Games, Gary Ross, United States of America, Lionsgate Films

Figure 12.2: Luxurious Capitol dwelling 00:35:52, Philip Messina, 2012, The Hunger Games, Gary Ross, United States of America, Lionsgate Films

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Figure 13: Capitol Exterior Archtiecture 00:33:35, Philip Messina, 2012, The Hunger Games, Gary Ross, United States of America, Lionsgate Films

Figure 14: Cathedral of Light above the Zeleptribune Third Reich era, Albert Speer, 1936 < https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Cathedral_of_Light#mediaviewer/File:Bundesarchiv_Bild_1831982-1130-502,_N%C3%BCrnberg,_Reichsparteitag,_Lichtdom. jpg> Accessed: 5th of May 2019 32

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This amalgamation of the oppressive political architecture— which is monumental in scale, classicism in form and utilitarian in material and function— with the American 1930s streamline modern in the interior speaks poetically to the films message of brutality that lies beneath luxury. Without the evocation of these key historical periods being thrust into a futuristic setting, audiences would be context-less to the messages of the interiors. Due to the repetition of these themes related to these architectural periods in film audiences are predisposed in perceiving architecture, such as that of the Third Reich and the Moderns, with the unease and apprehension towards the sociopolitical history of the forms which many affected try to come to terms with in their national memory (Rosenfeld 2000 : 15). The precedence of The Hunger Games which features a conglomerate of periods, relating Modernism, Art Deco and Third Reich architecture and contrasting this to spaces inhabited by lower economic classes of the 1930’s period forms a new type of dwelling space, one which has a context of fear attached, is familiar and yet completely new, befitting of the dystopian genres ability to define new worlds that have not been experienced before.

3.3 The use of Inauthentic Historicism in Black Mirrors episode Nosedive The final case study of this dissertation evidences where historicism is injected superficially into the filmed interior pin-pointing stereotypes of a style rather than truly evoking a strong contextual connection to the socio-economic travesties of the period. Joe Collins’ interior sets designed for the Black Mirror series’ episode 1 season 3 Nosedive, 2016, is one key contemporary example that inches on the verge of the 1950s suburban period, whilst also aiming to communicate a 2016 contemporary American environment to viewers. As film critic Louisa Mellor discusses in her review of the series, the balance of authenticity and inauthenticity, and the impossibility of this in a socially economic world is a key theme (Mellor 2016 : 1). The interior of Lacie’s dwelling strongly represents this thin thread between reality and non-reality. Firstly, the exteriority and interiority of the homes are cohesive, both suburbs and home sporting a paste of greypastel hues reminiscent of German Bauhaus founder Walter Gropius’ pastel grey-blue colour palettes in his 1938 home known as Gropius House (figure 15). The world-scape is dependent on the pastel-grey palette in evoking the mixed pessimism and hope of the 1950s ‘push-button’ era (Boyer 1985 : 135).

Unlike the previous case studies which utilised the immersion of the exterior to the interior to communicate the characters’ anxieties and insecurity, Lacie’s home is mostly enclosed with a singular window with closed blinds (figure 16), in this space there is no clash of interior and exterior, as in both Lacie is susceptible to the system of social ranking, never truly released from its grasp. The interior of Lacie’s home is devoid of iconographic furnishings of the mid-century modern period, opting for a mix of a 33

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contemporary Hampton lounge with pattern-less cushions painted in the same pastel grey and pink hues in contrast to a 1700s American Chippendale style timber chair.

The variety of eras from which furnishings are pulled into this space and made to be visually cohesive in a 1950s pastel haze adds a level of superficiality to the dwelling interior, which Antoniades describes as ‘visual historical clichés that… may be unreal…’

(Antoniades 1990 : 147). Although this may be considered an example where historicism in the filmed interior is not as successful, for the purposes of the dystopic stories’ intent, it achieves the inauthenticity that set producer Collins’ was tasked with conveying in these interiors. Therefore, Nosedive provides a separate example to the significance of how mid-century modern dwellings are represented in film- when portrayed through cliché as explored in this example these settings become inauthentic representations of the rich contextual history from which they lend themselves.

Figure 15: Lounge Room of Walter Gropius House, Walter Gropius, 1938, Andrew Knoll, 2011 < https://www.archdaily.com/118207/ ad-classics-gropius-house-walter-gropius> Accessed: 28th of April

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Figure 16: Lacies dwelling, Joe Wright, 2016, Black Mirror Season 3 episode 1 Nosedive, Charlie Brooker, United States of America, Netflix.

CINEMATIC INTERIORS CASE STUDY

CONCLUSION Throughout this dissertation, a connection between western cinematography of dystopian worlds and the significance of war time periods on filmed dwelling interiors was made. By analysing existing theories on defining dystopia as represented by the fear of totalitarianism and nationalism, translated in architecture as the urban external space, a recognition of war and post-war history as contemporary pivotal points of unrest determining the built form of the dystopian was investigated. Integral to connecting these ideas was the methodological framework established in chapter one. Included in this was connecting cinematography and interiority, by recognising the biased perception of interior architecture through the cinema lens’ leaning to ocularcentric experiences. Through this a consideration of how audiences respond to these spaces was explored by means of historicism in film to portray interiors the individual cannot physically experience, utilising in particular, reference to the midcentury modern period that emerged throughout and after World War Two. The context surrounding the mid-century modern period is strongly tied to the cold war period that psychologically instilled fear and anxiety in American society from the 1950’s onwards.

The psychology of fear, in particular Ellin and Troutmens theories on this, is integral to understanding how set producers connect to audiences to portray the unease of the Cold War era. In particular dwelling spaces are homogenised with the audiences as a space of familiarity, that is intended to be one of safety— and becomes perilously uneasy when it is violated, as explored in the chapter three case studies provided.

Elaborating on the genre of dystopia and the influence of cinema as the ocularcentric medium to the experience of interiors, chapter two established the characteristics of the interior architecture of the American modern post-war era and how this period translated through to filmed interiors. In placing dystopian cinematography and midcentury modern interior architecture in comparison this dissertation concludes a homogeny between the two, and provides a lens to how set producers utilise this connection to draw on the social malaise towards the Cold War period. As noted in the chapter there were many parallels between Claey’s definitions of dystopia and Boyers description of the Cold War era, in particular those related to the individuals fear of the group and nationalism. As such, the genres portrayal of interiors is inextricably linked to the mid-century modern period. In particular dwelling interiors in dystopian cinematography, identified as the key typology used in film to communicate unease to audiences, dominantly feature mid-century modern designs.

By following Rosa’s observations, that the mid-century modern is portrayed as antiprotestant and against American values, a symbol of debauchery (Rosa 2000 : 159), the 35

CONCLUSION

dissertation followed a case study approach through Day The World Ended and Black Mirror’s Nosedive. This evidenced the mid-century modern style from the 1950s to 2000s films as encapsulating the fear of the totalitarian dystopian futures portrayed in these films.

More specifically to interiority, it was recognised that another symbol used to communicate malaise to audiences is the connection between exteriority and interiority and the level in which these cross-overs occur (Shonfield 2000 : 55). Essentially the dissertation evidences a link between dystopian films portraying dwellings with midcentury modern design and exposing those spaces to the urban environment, violating the privacy of dwelling. As such using the penetration of threshold by the city and as Winton explored cultural and incorporated symbolism from historical styles, these interior spaces effectively communicate the characters in the dwellings’ sense of fear to audiences (Winton 2018 : 108).

The three case studies of filmed interiors explored evidences how set producers integrate elements of the mid-century modern into dwellings even more so exploring the primordial notion of threshold. This blurring of interior and exterior, the symbol of crossing from public to private, deeply impacts the interior sets examined in both Blade Runner and The Hunger Games, by signifying the violation of the intimate space, these films convey their protagonists’ unease spatially. Finally a counter-example was observed to understand further Antoniades’ (1990 : 147) discussion of historicism, whereby the reduction to stereotypes of a particular movement, such as mid-century modern, lead to an inauthenticity in the architectures ability to evoke the socio-political context of the 1950s Cold War era. Analysing these concepts through the medium of dystopian cinematography, the complex relationship between interiors, cinematography and portraying a sense of non-physical space to audiences was explored, with the dwelling interior showcasing its adaptability to conveying messages of security and in turn the anxiety produced when that safety is violated.

In reflection of this dissertation, the potentiality for cinematography to provide an unrestrained space for interior architects to explore interiority conceptually, although is not a new concept, is one which opens an avenue to shaping how society perceives history and the architecture associated. With the dystopian genre providing an opportunity for new approaches to the dwelling morphology [new from societies’ existing state that is not impacted by the dystopic plots of these films], it brings forth questions of how society defines and values security, and why both the presence of 36

CONCLUSION

the public in dwelling spaces and post-war period styles are utilised to signify unease.

Therefore, given the limitations of this dissertation and how more cinematic content is produced with respective interior spaces, these concepts, denoting mid-century modern architecture as indicative to post-war anxiety, may evolve as new socio-political issues arise and new architecture is created in response.

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FIGURES LIST Figure 1: Big Kahuna burger from Pulp Fiction, 1994, Quentin Tarentino, United States of America, Miramax Films Figure 2 Comparison of Munich Before War and After: Figure 2.1: Munich’s Old Town Street Photograph, LHM photography, 1980 <https:// www.muenchen.de/rathaus/Stadtverwaltung/Referat-fuer-Stadtplanung-und-Bauordnung/Stadtentwicklung/stadt-bau-plan/city-building-plan/cbp_phase_5.html> Accessed: 5th of May 2019 Figure 2.2: Facade of Hause Der Kunst, Paul Ludwig Troost, 1937, Historical Archives <https://hausderkunst.de/en/history/chronical> Accessed 5th of May 2019 Figure 3 Art Deco to Film Comparison: Figure 3.1: Capitol Train Interior 00:21:20, Philip Messina, 2012, The Hunger Games, Gary Ross, United States of America, Lionsgate Films Figure 3.2: Foyer of the Film Centre Building, Ely Kahn, 1928-29 New York, John Baldwin, 2016 <https://www.theclio.com/web/entry?id=22902> Accessed: 1st May 2019 Figure 4: Communist Part Headquaters Paris Lounge, Oscar Niemeyar, 1965, France, Team Yellowtrace, 2014 <https://www.yellowtrace.com.au/brazilian-architect-oscar-niemeyer/> Accessed: 28th April 2019 Figure 5: First Floor Plan of Comunist Party Head Quaters with additions by author, Oscar Niemeyar, 1965, France, Foster Associates Ltd, 2019 < https://www.northernarchitecture.us/housing-project/oscar-niemeyer-office-communist-party-headquarters.html > Accessed: 28th April 2019 Figure 6: Jim Maddison’s Fallout Shelter, Roger Corman, 1955, Day The World Ended, United States of America Aerican Releasing Corporation.

Figure 7: Airport Interior referencing 1950s, Joe Wright, 2016, Black Mirror Season 3 episode 1 Nosedive, Charlie Brooker, United States of America, Netflix.

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FIGURES LIST Figure 8: Exterior of Tyrell Corporation 00:04:22, Ridley Scott, 1982, Blade Runner, United States of America, Warner Brothers.

Figure 9: Chichen Itza El Castillo Mayan Temple, Mexico, mexico archaeology, 2019 <http://www.mexicoarcheology.com/chichen-itza-el-castillo/> Accessed : 28th of April 2019

Figure 10: Interior of Deckards home showing threshold to exterior, Ridley Scott, 1982, Blade Runner, United States of America, Warner Brothers.

Figure 11: Interior of Deckards showcasing elements of Ennis House mayan revival tiles, Ridley Scott, 1982, Blade Runner, United States of America, Warner Brothers.

Figure 12 Dwelling Interior Comparison Figure 12.1: Lower-class dwelling 01:29:30 Philip Messina, 2012, The Hunger Games, Gary Ross, United States of America, Lionsgate Films Figure 12.2: Luxurious Capitol dwelling 00:35:52, Philip Messina, 2012, The Hunger Games, Gary Ross, United States of America, Lionsgate Films Figure 13: Capitol Exterior Archtiecture 00:33:35, Philip Messina, 2012, The Hunger Games, Gary Ross, United States of America, Lionsgate Films Figure 14: Cathedral of Light above the Zeleptribune Third Reich era, Albert Speer, 1936 < https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cathedral_of_Light#mediaviewer/File:Bundesarchiv_ Bild_183-1982-1130-502,_N%C3%BCrnberg,_Reichsparteitag,_Lichtdom.jpg> Accessed: 5th of May 2019 Figure 15: Lounge Room of Walter Gropius House, Walter Gropius, 1938, Andrew Knoll, 2011 < https://www.archdaily.com/118207/ad-classics-gropius-house-walter-gropius> Accessed: 28th of April Figure 16: Lacies dwelling, Joe Wright, 2016, Black Mirror Season 3 episode 1 Nosedive, Charlie Brooker, United States of America, Netflix.

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