How Does the Design of the Prison in Paddington 2 (2017) Convey Character, Story and Visual Concept?

Barnwell, J. 2020. How Does the Design of the Prison in Paddington 2 (2017) Convey Character, Story and Visual Concept? in: Harmes, M., Harmes, M. and Harmes, B. (ed.) The Palgrave Handbook of Incarceration in Popular Culture Australia Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 223-242

Chapter titleHow Does the Design of the Prison in Paddington 2 (2017) Convey Character, Story and Visual Concept?
AuthorsBarnwell, J.
EditorsHarmes, M., Harmes, M. and Harmes, B.
Abstract

This paper explores the role of the prison in the representation of character and narrative in the film Paddington 2 (2017). The prison is a key setting in the film, which playfully stitches together popular notions of the real and imagined prison and turns into a community where friendship, food and flowers blossom. It effectively forms a transition space linking Paddington’s journey from home and back again. The Brown’s home is established as a warm and welcoming environment, which Paddington is forcibly removed from when he is wrongly sent to prison. On arrival the prison appears to be a classic harsh and hostile place of incarceration where Paddington is intimidated and alone. However, Paddington’s presence is slowly seen to transform the place into a warm and inviting world full of friendship and hope. The design is crucial in conveying key themes in the script that reflect Paddington’s character and the positive impact he has on people’s lives. The changes we see taking place in the prison are metaphors that convey the visual concept at the heart of the design.

Traditional ideas and images of the prison are turned on their head as the place of incarceration becomes a candy pink striped world of high teas and bunting. The environment reflects the camaraderie between Paddington and the inmates he becomes friends with. The form an escape plan and Paddington eventually closes the narrative circle by returning home. Order appears to have been restored as Phoenix Buchanan (Hugh Grant) is sent to prison in his place. However not only has the prison remained a cosy reflection of Paddington’s character it now incorporates the high camp theatricality of its new inmate. Complete with a closing musical number that sees Buchanan singing and performing to rapturous applause.
The design functions to reflect these changes physically while also visualising the underpinning concepts at work in the narrative.

My paper works through the way the design conveys these ideas using a model I’ve developed for the analysis of production design, called the Visual Concept methodology. The model works through the five key ways a script is visualized by a production designer: i) Space, ii) In and out, iii) Light, iv) Colour and v) Set decoration. Using this case study I will illustrate how every decision about the five elements is linked and returns to the logic of the central visual concept driving the design.

KeywordsPrisons, media representation, space, production design
Book titleThe Palgrave Handbook of Incarceration in Popular Culture
Page range223-242
Year2020
PublisherPalgrave Macmillan
Publication dates
Published04 Feb 2020
Place of publicationAustralia
ISBN9783030360580
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-36059-7_14

Related outputs

‘Searching for the lost home in the labyrinth: Set design in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy’,
Barnwell, J. 2023. ‘Searching for the lost home in the labyrinth: Set design in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy’,. in: Histories, Adaptations and Legacies of Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy New York Routledge.

Production Design & the Cinematic Home
Barnwell, J. 2022. Production Design & the Cinematic Home. Palgrave Macmillan.

How does the design of the Byers’ home in Stranger Things (2016-2019 Netflix) reflect notions of nostalgia for a particular space in time?
Barnwell, J. 2020. How does the design of the Byers’ home in Stranger Things (2016-2019 Netflix) reflect notions of nostalgia for a particular space in time? in: Investigating Stranger Things: Upside Down in the World of Mainstream Cult Entertainment London Palgrave Macmillan.

Spies at home: How the design conveys character and narrative
Barnwell, J. 2017. Spies at home: How the design conveys character and narrative. Kosmorama . 268, pp. 1-11.

Production Design for Screen: Visual Storytelling in Film and Television
Barnwell, J. 2017. Production Design for Screen: Visual Storytelling in Film and Television. London Bloomsbury.

Permalink - https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/qx249/how-does-the-design-of-the-prison-in-paddington-2-2017-convey-character-story-and-visual-concept


Share this

Usage statistics

527 total views
0 total downloads
These values cover views and downloads from WestminsterResearch and are for the period from September 2nd 2018, when this repository was created.