For This Magical Moment in Cosmic History, the production design was a key storytelling element, instrumental in seamlessly blending diverse genres and creating a cohesive narrative experience. As the co-creator of this project, I thoughtfully crafted the visual worlds, using each setting as an immersive stage for the characters' journeys. This grounded the audience in distinct moods and styles while allowing for smooth transitions between them.
In the opening rom-com/dramedy world, the production design established a grounded, naturalistic aesthetic that mirrored the characters' internal states. Celeste's space, as an astrologer rooted in science and logic, featured a tidy desk, telescope, and whiteboard sketches of rocket ships. Her space and wardrobe were all in a serene palette of blues and greens to reflect her disciplined sensibilities.
The solar system featured on Celeste's desk is also on her desk in the final scene of the film.
These rocket ship structures were made out of scrap metal for the display.
I sketched these drawings for her work space.
I created these pieces. They feature Celeste's love for space, but that love is rooted in science.
Celeste's apartment.
The moon and star symbol on her apartment door is the same symbol on Apollo's face in the final scene. The photo of Nancy Grace Roman is featured because she was the first female astrologer.
Featuring the telescope in Celeste's apartment.
In contrast, the more free-spirited Apollo's wardrobe and apartment embraced organic textures, plants, tarot cards, and a lava lamp, with a warmer color scheme of reds, plums and blacks evoking his creative, spiritually-inclined nature. These carefully curated environments not only illuminated the characters but also hinted at the broader thematic tensions that would unfold.
Set decorations in Apollo's apartment.
Tarot cards.
Personal journal.
Record player and crystals.
Turkish mosaic lamp and plants.
A tarot card table, himalayan salt lamp, '444' hand tatto.
I painted this eclipse: Celeste dies on her 30th birthday during a total lunar eclipse in each genre.
Apollo's apartment.
Transitioning to a 1970s sitcom setting, the production design shifted to a static, stage-like kitchen set, maintaining the characters' established color palettes allowing the audience to comfortably recognize the genre tropes while still feeling grounded in the core personalities.
Celeste's bag on the chair is the same bag she uses in the previous rom com genre.
The 1950s musical world embraced a classic Hollywood aesthetic, with a sprawling outdoor cityscape backdrop reminiscent of iconic movie musicals.
Celeste in blue.
I decorated this set. The lily from their picnic is the same one featured in the previous rom com genre.
Moving into a spy thriller setting, the production design took the characters out onto the gritty streets of downtown LA, immersing them in an urban environment filled with graffiti and dark alleys. While the characters' costumes still retained subtle nods to their established color palettes, the overall aesthetic shifted to a sleek, high-stakes world of espionage.
Apollo's work station was built/decorated inside a Uhaul van.
While Celeste's spy wardrobe is all black, her eyeshadow is blue.
The fantasy world transported the audience to a lush, otherworldly environment, with a handcrafted tent, fur-lined palette, and set dressings of vintage books and candle holders evoking a timeless, mystical atmosphere.
Hand made set decoration.
Set decoraction cont.
Hand made fur lined bed.
Hand made arrow. Celeste's subtle blue sparkle in her cape.
In the final sci-fi world, I fully embraced a heightened, futuristic vision where the boundaries of reality had been fractured using underwater and intergalactic aesthetics. Celeste's lab featured a cold, sterile aesthetic, with the "hard drive" I constructed to mimic pillars covered in sea life. The head gear she used on Apollo was built to emulate bubbles, and any visible wires were covered in kelp. Drawing inspiration from shows like Maniac, I used retro hardware as a nod to the interplay of old and new technologies in this heightened world. The neon-crack in the wall symbolized the fractured nature of this reality, a world not quite our own.
Apollo's handmade head gear.
Inspired by bubbles combined with neon lights incorporating the underwater and intergalactic vision.
I built the hard drive to mimic pillars covered in a mix of sea anemones, mussels, barnacles, etc that I saw at Monterey Bay Aquarium.
The solar system we saw on Celeste's desk at the beginning of the film is also featured here at the end of the film - another small hint that all of the previous realities were simulated.
I sourced this retro laptop.
Featuring the neon crack in the infrastructure coming from where Apollo is seated.
The images on their faces light up when their foreheads touch suggesting they are perhaps otherworldly, not fully human.
To further this otherworldly feel, I worked with a costume designer to evoke a fishlike quality in Apollo's costume, while Celeste's iridescent costume was inspired by jellyfish. The final dancing scene took place against the backdrop of a neon-lit, evening-in-space environment suggesting their world was not Earth, but perhaps some kind of advanced spacecraft or station.
Simulating they are likely walking through the halls of a spaceship.
Jellyfish are seen as a symbol of faith and the ability to go with the flow. Celeste's jellyfish costume symbolizes the core message of the film. She must let go of her control in order enjoy the present moment alongside Apollo.
