Hajtűkanyar Driving School
Slick set for a film noir theatre
Hajtűkanyar Driving School
Slick set for a film noir theatre
In a nutshell
It’s a hilarious dark comedy set in 20 different places, with an amazing team of actors and crew. We had to deal with a tight budget and had to stop rehearsals three times thanks to COVID-19. But you know what? It was a blast! We got to show off our skills in both 3D and 2D design.
Category:
Client:
Designed:
2020
Built:
2020-2021
Creators:
- set design and build
Alvégi Lóci - foto, video
Szombathy András
Partners:
- written and directed by Schwechtje Mihály
- actors Egger Géza, Hajdu Szabolcs, Mari Dorottya, Pálya Pompónia, Szabó Domokos
- costume
Kristina Ignjatovic - lighting
Bántó Csaba / Ujvári Zsolt - Sound and video technician
Szombathy András - producer
Gulyás Dóra, Petrovits Genovéva
Photos:
Publications:
Hajtűkanyar Driving School
It’s a hilarious dark comedy set in 20 different places, with an amazing team of actors and crew. We had to deal with a tight budget and had to stop rehearsals three times thanks to COVID-19. But you know what? It was a blast! We got to show off our skills in both 3D and 2D design.
Category:
Client:
Designed:
2020
Built:
2020-2021
Photos:
Creators:
- set design and build
Alvégi Lóci - foto, video
Szombathy András
Partners:
- written and directed by Schwechtje Mihály
- actors Egger Géza, Hajdu Szabolcs, Mari Dorottya, Pálya Pompónia, Szabó Domokos
- costume
Kristina Ignjatovic - lighting
Bántó Csaba / Ujvári Zsolt - Sound and video technician
Szombathy András - producer
Gulyás Dóra, Petrovits Genovéva
Publications:
Independent theatre = exciting theatre
Hajtűkanyar Autósiskola is an independent theater production by Füge Produkció in Budapest, Hungary.
The play (theater) was originally written as a screenplay (film), and that was the most interesting part. It is a satirical detective story, of the walking-talking kind, therefore there are 26 scenes at 20 different locations/sets in the story, including interiors, exteriors, and even very important car scenes as the story evolves around a driving school.
On top of all this, it is an independent theatre production, so the total budget for the set was less than the price of a 10-year-old used car…
Concept – abstract elements + projection
My idea was to create simple, abstract, geometric elements that are movable and projectable. This would allow the entire stage setup to be rearranged by the actors themselves during the scenes.
Objects
I designed and built a total of four large elements. These include two large L-shaped walls that play with perspective at a slightly unconventional angle and can enclose interior spaces. When turned inside out, they can serve as corners of buildings in exterior scenes. Additionally, I created two rectangular boxes that can transform into a car (with the hood and trunk), a table, a stage, and even a hospital bed.
Mappings
The director, Mihály Schwechtje, required a film noir atmosphere; therefore, the projections were shot and designed in a “sin city style”. They are orthogonal collages with moving parts like a clock, moving people/cars looking out of the window, etc.
“The technique of projection has always been a delicate tool in theater…”
Using projection in theater can be a bit tricky because it can sometimes compete with the stage lighting. And definitely, we don’t want it shining on the actors’ faces! So, during rehearsals, we had to be spot-on with figuring out how far the elements should be from the actors and getting the projector angle just right. My buddy Andriss Szombathy and I teamed up to create the media content, and he also handled the tech side for every show. Give him a shoutout from me if you snag tickets for the performance 🙂
