Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/929567
66 P E R S P E C T I V E | M A R C H / A P R I L 2 0 1 8 Tom Hanks portrays Ben Bradlee, executive editor of The Washington Post, and Meryl Streep plays Katharine Graham, publisher. These actors wanted to be grounded in the history, but this did not lessen the challenge of how to make poetic, visual sense of this particular telling of the story. I focused on three primary sets to start: The Washington Post newsroom and offices, Kay Graham's home, and Ben Bradlee's home. The design process began with Production Designer Rick Carter grounding the story in the protest imagery of the time, contrasted with the Georgetown social scene around John F. Kennedy before his ascendancy to the White House. The newsroom set was first on the shoot schedule and therefore, first up on the design boards. Production Designer George Jenkins' iconic newsroom from All the President's Men was of course, looked at. This newsroom sits in the collective memory, with Dustin Hoffman and Robert Redford running through a sea of primary-colored desks. Jenkins' design was well grounded in the actual 1973 newsroom (with some added perspective tricks in the depth of the space). One of the striking aspects of his design was Bradlee's visual command of the newsroom—epitomized in the view from his office desk. The design team became interested in honoring this aspect of the Jenkins' design. DEBORAH JENSEN, CO-SUPERVISING ART DIRECTOR: One of the challenges faced in designing the visual world of The Post came from the simple fact that the film's story springs from real history—the publishing of The Pentagon Papers. The story, the individuals and the places all exist in the living memory of many people. Perhaps most importantly, the history exists in the flesh of those who participated in the publishing of The Pentagon Papers, those who knew and supported them and those who worked alongside them. The importance of this living history was further underscored by the actors' desire to embody these remarkable real individuals. A C B D