Oscar-nominated ‘Frankenstein’ production designer finds inspiration in rural Cape Breton

Tamara Deverell was at a party for the New York premiere of the 2021 film Nightmare Alley.

The movie that starred Bradley Cooper and Cate Blanchett was the production designer’s latest collaboration with filmmaker Guillermo del Toro, who was on the other side of the room surrounded by actors and Hollywood executives.

Through the chaos and glitz, del Toro noticed Deverell and waved her over.

She pushed through the crowd to get to the director only for him to say one word to her, “Frankenstein.”

“Who’s not going to say yes to Guillermo on something like that?” Deverell said from her home in the woods near Inverness, N.S.

The latest film adaptation of Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel, Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus released worldwide on Netflix on Friday after a short run in theatres last month.

Deverell works on the set of Frankenstein. The Canadian production designer has received much recognition for her work, including an Academy Award nomination for production design on del Toro’s previous film Nightmare Alley. (Ken Woroner/Netflix)

The movie marks the fifth time Deverell has worked with del Toro, who is known for using practical effects to bring to life his fantastical imagination.

It is the perfect challenge for a production designer.

“As a designer … you want to work with somebody who’s not only an artist, but he really focuses on the visuals,” she said. “When you build a set, he’s going to frame every corner of it.”

“I want a real ship because the ship is a character,” director Guillermo del Toro said in a Netflix promotional video. (Ken Woroner/Netflix)

It’s been widely reported that del Toro has wanted to make his version of Frankenstein ever since he was a child.

For Deverell, it was also an opportunity to accomplish a lifelong goal.

“I always wanted to build a ship,” said Deverell, who spent some of her youth in Vancouver working for a wooden sailboat manufacturer.

“So, that was one of the first things. And the other thing was the lab, you know, to do the del Toro version of [Frankenstein’s] lab.”

Cape Breton is ‘very inspirational’

In between the production of Nightmare Alley and Frankenstein, Deverell and her husband built a home in rural Cape Breton.

After spending different parts of her life living all over Canada, she said eastern Nova Scotia is a great place to relax and reset when she’s not away on movie sets for weeks at a time.

“I find it very inspirational [here], said Deverell. The production designer does a lot of research before building her movie sets.

Before Frankenstein started filming, she found herself at the Fortress of Louisbourg National Historic Site.

The initial script for the movie included a scene that took place in a village. Deverell thought the historic venue would be the perfect setting.

“I really wanted to shoot there,” she said. “It was fantastic.”

Deverell said she has a good working relationship with del Toro because she’s based in reality and Guillermo breathes fantasy. (Ken Woroner/Netflix)

The area would have also worked well for scenes in the movie that needed to look like they were set in the Arctic, she said.

The village scene was ultimately cut and “the Arctic” was recreated on Lake Nippissing in northern Ontario, however, Deverell still thinks Nova Scotia would have been a nice fit for Dr. Frankenstein and his monster.

As Deverell takes a break and ponders her next project, she now knows there are some great places to play in her new backyard.

“One day I’d love to make a movie here,” she said.

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