Film Director Production Design Options
You will need lots of stuff to fill the frame with. Items that develop character, set a mood, or specify period. You'll need furniture, buildings, clothing, automobiles and more. How to get possession of these things will take a good portion of production and no two movies do it the same way. Before going into this situation blindly, let's consider the ways you can get a hold of the production design stuff you need.
Find
There is a good chance that what you need has already been created and all you need to do it locate it. There are likely existing buildings you can use as interior and exterior locations. There is a lot of furniture in the world and with a little doing you could find just what you need. Clothing is readily available in every friends closet and every thrift store.
This is the easiest option but can also be the least expressive. It takes a good deal of time in the looking and a keen eye for style to pull it together. Much of the stuff will have been seen already by people. The advantage is it will have inherent realism since it once did exist in a real person's life.
Alter
You might not be finding exactly what you envisioned. Things you encounter may seem close, but just not right. It's easy to jump to the conclusion that you need to go right into creating originals, but there is a compromise that might work. Don't overlooking modifying whatever you find that is close to what you want. Painting walls, dying fabric, altering clothes; there are lots of ways to alter found production design objects.
Build
You may have such a unique vision that you aren't able to find anything like it in the real world or for the budget you have. You may be forced to create what you need from scratch. This will take more time, but also will also make your movie that much more unique. It might take longer, but when it's right for the story it will pay off. Building doesn't always mean physical replicas; it can be models or even computer-generated graphics.
Production design is important and needs your full attention. You also need to consider the pros and cons of each method of production design creation. None is better than another, but for a particular director one may come more naturally than another. Don't do something unique just to be unique. Certain stories need visuals that call attention to themselves and some need to be less prominent. Concentrate on what works best for the story.





