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Design Then and Now

Veteran production designer Sir Ken Adam looks back on his career and shares his views about the current state of his business.


Sir Ken Adam

Sir Ken Adam, production designer of several James Bond movies and Stanley Kubrick’s DR STRANGELOVE and BARRY LYNDON, visited us at the Berlinale Talent Campus. We had the precious opportunity to interview a legend.

To begin with, which of the James Bond films would you consider to be your favourite?
Well, I am not asked this question very often, but I think YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE. It is spectacular. It is followed by THE SPY WHO LOVED ME.

You designed the 1972 version of SLEUTH. What do you think about its remake in 2007?
I think it is terrible. I could not even fully watch it because I thought it was so bad. In terms of atmosphere and in terms of Laurence Olivier’s performance, the 1972 film was fascinating. And Michael [Caine] was also very different. Because, as you know, he played the other guy. And yes, I did not like the new film at all, including the set design.

Could you name anyone among the new generation as your favourite production designer?
It’s a good question, difficult though. Because I cannot remember most of the names right now. In England I think Stuart Craig, he does HARRY POTTER. There are some American designers whose names escape me now. I thought SHERLOCK HOLMES was different. You see, things have changed so much in the production design business. If you see a movie like AVATAR, the fantasy segments are fantastic, it’s unbelievable, but its design is so very different. CGI changed everything. It sort of killed the production design business. You know, I worked with many great actors like Brando and Olivier, and they always wanted a set around them which would influence their performance. For example, Brando used to love to play around with props and so on. Of course in CGI this does not exist. Therefore the actors have to use a completely different technique.

How would you evaluate Berlinale 2010 so far?
Well, I cannot evaluate it because, unfortunately, my wife was not well so I had to leave. I only got back the day before yesterday, and I did not have the chance to see any films. But this Berlinale Talent Campus is fantastic. To deal with all these events at the same time, it is unbelievable.


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