Film & Interior Design part 1 : The Island (2005)

As promised, this is the first of many posts celebrating interior design in films, as a tribute to the 48th Thessaloniki International Film Festival. The first film is a fairly recent one. The Island (2005, Michael Bay director) stars Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johansson as clones living on a remote island, waiting for their fate. The interiors of the house where the "original" Ewan character lives (in total contrast to his clone) are spectacular.


Lots of big empty surfaces, combinations of glossy and rough, matte materials, shades of black, grey and steel is the overall feel of the house. The bare concrete effect overall (seen also in other sets of the film) is one of my favourites. An impressive staircase with singular massive steps jutting out of the wall is the main attraction of the living room area.

The living room area has massive windows, minimal furniture (as all over the house) and impressive accessories.

There is a big (stone?) table nearby, it looks like a dining room but it could be an extension of the kitchen counter doubling as a table. We will see the dining table later on.


Everything inside has been picked very carefully to match the overall set. The art director did a wonderful job with this. Look at the trophy and the boat model...

...or the car model in a wall opening. Bare concrete seems to be everywhere.

It also shows up here, the view is from the stairs further up the house, going onto the second level. This whole thing looks like a minimalistic fireplace without the fire.

The dining table is black (surprise!) with the classic multi-light fixture in a linear setting above it.

There is of course a large book case, seen at the back of the photo...

...and closer here...

No bachelor pad would be complete without a high-tech media centre.

Going upstairs, we can see the bedroom, decorated in a romantic way, a bit strange for a bachelor pad, with a very impressive curtain.

There is also a modern walk in closet, with backlit walls. I could not get a decent capture of that. There is also a nice sideboard in the bedroom.

The corridor upstairs is without a rail, making it extremely un-safe...

The upper part of the stairs is more typical modern...

...with the bottom part in total contrast. I can never figure if it is the same staircase, changing after the first flight of steps, or there are two stairs in the house.

The kitchen is in steel and stone, making it very industrial looking and sleek.

Finally the garage is bare and minimal, with light incorporated into the wall and floor. The car inside looks like a million bucks.

And the credits for all this excellent work:

Production design by Nigel Phelps

Art Direction by Jon Billington, Sean Haworth and Martin Whist

Set Decoration by Rosemary Brandenburg

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