When one thinks of Barbie, chances are good that you also think of the colour pink. The upcoming Barbie movie will bring the beloved plastic icon into the real world, but the production used so much pink paint to bring Barbie Land to life that it caused an international shortage.
While speaking with Architectural Digest, Barbie production designer Sarah Greenwood confirmed that there was an international shortage of the pink shade of Rosco paint. “The world ran out of pink,” Greenwood laughed. Barbie director Greta Gerwig tried to avoid using CGI whenever possible, aiming for what she called “authentic artificiality.” The production used hand-painted backdrops instead of CGI. “Everything needed to be tactile, because toys are, above all, things you touch,” Gerwig said.
Neither Sarah Greenwood nor set decorator Katie Spencer had owned a Barbie before, so they placed an Amazon order for a Barbie Dreamhouse. They used the odd proportions of 23% smaller than human size for the live-action set. “The ceiling is actually quite close to one’s head, and it only takes a few paces to cross the room,” Gerwig said. “It has the odd effect of making the actors seem big in the space but small overall.” Their efforts paid off, as what we’ve seen from Barbie Land in the trailers really does seem like a toy set come to life.
“To live in Barbie Land is to be a perfect being in a perfect place,” reads the official Barbie description. “Unless you have a full-on existential crisis. Or you’re a Ken.” The film also boasts quite a stacked cast. In addition to Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling as Barbie and Ken, the movie also features America Ferrera, Kate McKinnon, Michael Cera, Ariana Greenblatt, Issa Rae, Rhea Perlman, and Will Ferrell. The film also stars Simu Liu, Emma Mackey, Ana Cruz Kayne, Hari Nef, Alexandra Shipp, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Ncuti Gatwa, Scott Evans, Jamie Demetriou, Connor Swindells, Sharon Rooney, Nicola Coughlan, Ritu Aryya, Dua Lipa, and Helen Mirren. Greta Gerwig directed the Barbie movie and penned the script alongside Noah Baumbach.
Barbie will hit theaters on July 21st.
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