The garden star of the show

Gardens have been used as film sets ever since cinema first began. Filming in these sorts of settings is never neutral. It is inherently emotionally charged, harbouring incredible theatrical potential. From bucolic scenes to moments of terror, from childhood locales to fantasy lands, gardens can be a refuge or a trap, a utopia or an initiation, a paradise or an allegory.

What cinema shares with the art of the garden is that same focus on perspectives, lines and flow. Both organise and structure space to steer the viewer’s gaze. Gardens are staged with the intention of being roamed, and sequences of film shots with the intention of being read. In both cases, movement creates an implicit narrative. Gardens can thus be conceived as a cinematographic tool, a moving scene where light, rhythm and matter all coherently interlink in time.