Retro Rave
Role: Scenic Designer
Project Type: Live Event
Fall 2021
Retro Rave was the theme for CalArts' 2021 Halloween Party, a staple of the CalArts experience. Our theme was inspired by the vapor-wave, retro-wave, and retro-futuristic aesthetics, filled with bright colors, vintage computer graphics, and a juxtaposition of the new and old.
Co Scenic Designer: Holly Webb
Finalized food station design photographed during event
Working with another co designer, we were tasked with creating a themed food station for the event. We were inspired by vintage foods and commercials like TV dinners and frozen foods. Since we joined later in the production process, we pulled inspiration from the surrounding spaces to make the event as a whole more cohesive. One of our biggest inspirations was how the retro-futuristic aesthetic is filled with a balance of biological and artificial, which is what led us to use mannequins and vegetation.
We also had to think logistically as this station had to serve 700+ people. This led us to create a facade for folding tables out of flats, which was good for our tight budget and timeline.
Design intent photo bash, created in Photoshop
Finalized 3D model, created in SketchUp
Project budget and timeline, created in Google Sheets and updated throughout production
Producers: Percent Han, Aaron Wilson
Production Manager: Emerson Bualat
Scenic Designers: Charlie Jacobs, Holly Webb
Lighting Designers: Jack Cannon, Niko Balbin
Technical Directors: Owen Reese, Dustin Washburne