As you might expect, bringing the world of Barbie to life for Greta Gerwig’s summer hit of the same name involved a lot of pink – enough that the film’s production, famously, caused a worldwide shortage of Rosco’s fluorescent pink paint.
According to the film’s production designer, Sarah Greenwood, this particular Rosco pigment was used as the basis for creating the approximately 12 shades of pink seen throughout the film. Once the perfect pink shade was created, the painters ordered gallons of pigment, but the design team discovered there wasn’t enough to meet their needs.
This led to what Greenwood told Artnet News was a “mad rush” to find more of this particular hue at various film studios in the United States and Europe. The team also sourced a similar color match from another paint brand.
Always from Barbie (2023). Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures.
“To get to these roses, it took forever,” added decorator Katie Spencer. She joked that those involved in the paint selection process had become “pink blind,” likening the search for the right shade to snow blindness. Through their efforts, the team eventually managed to locate enough of the coveted pigments.
“You kind of have to find a way through. Nothing will wait for you. You’re not going to say, ‘Okay, we’re just going to wait for this,'” Spencer said.
Barbie Land’s color palette was born in part from director Gerwig’s admiration for American painter Wayne Thiebaud, best known for his radiant paintings of cakes, ice cream, sundaes, and more. He also served as a source of inspiration for Gerwig’s first film, lady bird (2017).
Director Greta Gerwig and Ryan Gosling, who plays Ken, on the set of Barbie (2023). Photo: Jaap Buitendijk.
“[Thiebaud] does not use black or white in its shadows,” Greenwood said. “Her shadows are always done in beautiful purples and blues, and that’s really something we did in our Barbie Land: we didn’t use black or white or chrome.”
While Barbie’s famous Dreamhouse and its surrounding homes were inspired by mid-century modernism and Palm Springs architecture, a residence, that of Weird Barbie (played by Saturday Night Live alum Kate McKinnon), is intentionally separated.
She’s the over-played Barbie, whose hair is cropped and her forehead is scribbled with marker. Likewise, her house is “skewed,” Greenwood said, to sum up what this character represents, as she is far removed, both in appearance and in the location of her house, from other, more perfect Barbies.
Always from Barbie (2023). Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures.
Instead of looking like the quintessential Barbie Dreamhouse, Weird Barbie’s house is an amalgamation of various Dreamhouses, sitting atop a perfectly landscaped hill overlooking all of Barbie Land. Greenwood added that this dwelling acts as a sort of haven from Barbie HQ, where damaged or abandoned Barbies go to get repaired.
The otherness of the design and location of this home was inspired by a myriad of sources. Takashi Murakami “in a blender” was one such reference, Greenwood said – given the many bright colors seen throughout the exterior and interior – while Alfred Hitchcock’s Victorian home psychology and Boo Radley’s house in Kill a mockingbird served as inspirations because of their “imminent presences”. Like Radley, Weird Barbie is a harmless but judged character given her apparent differences from her fellow Barbies.
Always from Barbie (2023). Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures.
Barbie’s Dreamhouse, meanwhile, stays true to Mattel’s original playset, with life-size iterations of the doll’s accessories, which have been scanned and transformed using CGI.
Inside the residence, the famous doll (played by Margot Robbie) wakes up in a heart-shaped pink velvet bed, complete with a sequin quilt and a Sandro Botticelli-inspired seashell-shaped headboard. The birth of Venus (1485-1486). Her see-through closet was inspired by a toy chest, as the doll’s clothes and accessories are often visibly arranged in the same way.
And while the Barbie the sets unfortunately no longer exist in full size – as the sets are often taken apart due to their large size and sometimes recycled for other films – detailed Barbie Land miniatures, which were also used in the film, still survive.
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