More Case History

The Right Light is Everything

Hunter Douglas window coverings go Hollywood on set of "Pacific Palisades."

The set of the Fox series, "Pacific Palisades," produced by Aaron Spelling, provided the backdrop for fame, fortune, scandal and, in some cases, ruin in a Los Angeles, CA, suburb. Most of the action occurred in the offices of an architectural firm and its owner's home, where Hunter Douglas window treatments were able to provide the right note of drama-and played an important functional role as well as aesthetic role. "Most people choose window treatments for decorative reasons, but I have to worry about the camera," said Marc E. Meyer, Jr., set decorator for "Pacific Palisades." The right window coverings, he added, "make the set look more realistic, they're easier to film and they give me complete control over light-necessary factors on the set of any television series." For the home of protaganists Robert and Kate Russo, Meyer selected Silhouette® window shadings for its light-diffusing properties. A painted flat was supposed to look like a patio beyond the doors of the living room, but not too closely because it wasn't real, Meyer said. "Silhouette shadings filtered the view perfectly and made it more realistic. And at night, when we shot from the outside into the house, Silhouette added softness to the look." In the architect's office, Meyer said the reasons for choosing Lightlines® copper-toned aluminum blinds and matching Country Woods wood blinds were both aesthetic and functional. "We used a lot of copper artwork so we wanted to tie in the window treatments with that color," Meyer explained. "But more importantly, we again needed to diffuse the backing beyond the windows to make it credible while controlling light at the same time. We also had to use the wider, two-inch size in the wood blinds because the narrower width tends to create a ripple effect on videotape which is distorting and distracting. So with the wider wood blinds, the illusion to the viewing audience is that you're looking out a real window at an unfettered view." Shooting a night, windows can become troublesome black mirrors. On the set of "Pacific Palisades," the Hunter Douglas window treatments selected provided just the right degree of light control to make filming easier and faster. During the day, the window treatments gave texture with light that adds another dimension to the look of the series. Meyer especially enjoyed the quality of light that wide vertical blinds create. "Big shafts of light-cameramen like that. And I have to think about them."

Country Woods® wood blinds were chosen with two-inch slats because a narrower slat width tends to create a rippled, distorted effect on videotape.