This reboot of the 1981 movie of the same name (starring Brooke Shields) was also based on the same book by Scott Spencer that the first film was based on. The movie tells the story of Jade (Gabriella Wilde), a sheltered and well-off girl, and David (Alex Pettyfer), a charismatic and less well-off boy whose instant desire sparks a love affair made only more reckless by parents trying to keep them apart.
To bring her vision for Endless Love from script to screen, director Shana Feste assembled a behind-the-scenes team led by cinematographer Andrew Dunn, production designer Clay Griffith and costume designer Stacey Battat.
For Griffith, the inspiration for the colors of the production began by sitting down with Dunn, Battat and Feste, and pulling photographs that would reflect their shared, desired palette. Griffin recalls: “It’s not often that the director, director of photography, costume designer and production designer sit down and conjure up the look of the film. But we did, and it was fantastic.”
Because they were on location in Atlanta for 34 of the 37 shooting days, and not on a soundstage, the color palette was difficult to control. But Griffith worked with Battat to create the film’s signature look. The costume designer describes the style evolution of Jade’s character progressing from girl to woman: “We wanted Jade to be more of a little girl at the beginning and then progress into being a woman. The fact that she’s still a kid means she might want to wear her dresses with Converse high-tops. Jade’s color scheme is what I like to call a ‘1920s color palette’—soft, muted pale pinks, peaches and minty greens with occasional reds when she’s being defiant with her father. When she chooses David, she’s in red.”
On the opposite end, it was important that David’s wardrobe reflect his demeanor of little change. Shares Battat: “David is a stable force in the movie, so his wardrobe always remains constant; his look remains consistent, like a James Dean-type character.”
For his part, Dunn needed to allow for specific spacing of the characters to reflect Feste’s vision. “We initially created a tightness of space around Jade,” notes Dunn. “As she becomes a woman, develops her own point of view and finds her place in life and in love, we created more freedom of space around her. She becomes more the mistress of her environment and her space becomes freer.” Reflecting on Dunn,Feste compliments: “He is so incredibly generous and calm and his spirit is so giving that I knew he would be perfect to shoot a love story. It’s great that he’s so open and not cynical. When I explained what I wanted in a scene or how I wanted a kiss to go and he said, ‘Oh, that’s beautiful,’ I knew that he meant it. On top of that, he’s made the actors feel so free with their emotions.”
Endless Love is available starting May 27 on Video On Demand. Check your cable system for availability.
© 2014 Universal Studios Credit: Quantrell D. Colbe
