‘1923’ production designer Cary White: ‘I guess I’m not that retired’ [Exclusive Video Interview]
“I did some globe trotting on that show,” declares production designer Cary White about his work on “1923.” The Paramount + series serves as a prequel to the hugely successful drama “Yellowstone.” White is no stranger to the “Yellowstone” universe, having served in the same capacity on both “Yellowstone” and the previous prequel series “1883.” However according to White, “1923” had its own unique set of challenges. Check out more of our exclusive video chat with White above.
White had been retired for a number of years when “Yellowstone” and “1923” creator and writer Taylor Sheridan invited White to work on the franchise’s flagship series. As it turns out, White had worked on one of Sheridan’s favorite television projects– the 1989 television miniseries adaptation of Larry McMurtry‘s “Lonesome Dove.” “Taylor got on the phone. I was living in Mexico at the time and was retired,” recalls White. “[Sheridan] said, ‘Well, how retired are you?’ I thought about it and said, ‘well I guess I’m not that retired.'”
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After seeing some of the earlier episodes of “Yellowstone,” White knew he wanted to work with Sheridan. “There’s very good production value in his shows, and to me as a designer, that’s a big incentive to go to work for someone.,” he says. “Technically, it’s television. Bit his shows to not look like television; they look like movies.”
“1923” is a sprawling production by any standard, and White holds nothing back in describing the challenges of filming. Perhaps most daunting was the scope of the story’s multiple locations, spanning several continents. “I’ve never done a show where I had to do as much globe trotting as I did on this show,” he says. “I made four trips to South Africa, three trips to Malta. I went to Morocco and just one Sunday I took a ferry ride over to Sicily.”
When asked how Sheridan has managed to make the western popular on television again, White’s answer is strikingly simple. “Taylor is a Texan and he loves the genre,” he argues. He loves horses. He loves the West. So I think his enthusiasm for all that comes through in his writing.”
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