From the TikTok trend to the artificially intelligent created trailers to our own list breaking down the visual aesthetics of this filmmaker, Wes Anderson has a very specific visual style. However, the auteur filmmaker doesn’t believe he has an aesthetic.
In a recent interview with Deadline, Anderson says that he believes his style is recognizable because he films sequences in a specific way that “is not so typical for everybody. And I do it a lot.” Anderson clarified that he believes he doesn’t have an aesthetic but has “an invention” that changes with each project he works on.
“What I was doing in Bottle Rocket was what I had. That was my aesthetic,” Anderson said. “And it changed in this one. And, every time, so much of the next movie is informed by something we did in the one before. Like, people often refer to me doing these kinds of dolly shots, and Asteroid City begins with a long one. We go from one place to the next, and we run around. It’s a certain kind of way to film a sequence that is not so typical for everybody. And I do it a lot.”
Anderson’s signature dolly shot started on Bottle Rocket when the day of filming on the baseball field. Unfortunately, the field was flooded by an earlier storm. In problem-solving mode, Anderson knew that he had to film on the baseball diamond between home plate and third base, and decided to put everything facing one dugout and film the scene all the way that way.
“When I did it, I thought, ‘Well, I liked that. That was interesting and I enjoyed it.’ And so I feel like I’ve been doing variations of that ever since. That’s why I do those—because the baseball diamond was too flooded.”
‘The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar’Credit: Courtesy of Netflix
Each project Anderson pursues brings something new to how he approaches his next project. From stop motion to animatics to building sets that can pull away and come back together, Anderson is constantly challenging himself to push his visual style.
“And often I feel like that’s the way things kind of evolve when you’re doing movies,” Anderson says in the interview. “You know, you find the thing you like, and then you do it again, do it a bit differently, and then you say, ‘OK, I’m going to try a different thing here. I’ll go another direction.'”
While we might believe that Anderson has a specific aesthetic, Anderson sees his visual style as something that naturally evolves as he continues to make movies. He has a way that he likes to film, but he is open to challenging himself and evolving around the unique problems that inevitably come to each set.
Anderson is not afraid to experiment with new ideas and styles, and his work is always evolving, just as your work should always continue to grow as you keep making films, commercials, music videos, or TV shows. Never push yourself into a corner that you can’t grow out of. Never limit your imagination because it could stunt your creativity. But, it must be said, it’s not a bad thing to have an aesthetic. It just means that you know what you like and you are good at achieving that particular look. It’s a natural consequence of being a great storyteller.
Do you think Wes Anderson has an aesthetic? Let us know in the comments.
Source: Deadline
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