Cathy T. Marshall, SDSA (Set Decorators Society of America) East Coast VP, has honed her skills as a set decorator over several, multi-faceted years. Her most recent credits include decorating the 2020 Amazon Series Hunters, starring Al Pacino. Other projects include the Spike Lee-directed BlacKkKlansman, starring John David Washington and Adam Driver, which was nominated for 6 Oscars and won one for Spike Lee. Also working with Spike Lee, she decorated the revival of his classic movie She’s Gotta Have It as a series for Netflix. Cathy decorated the Sundance-nominated film Puzzle, and two seasons of the Amazon favorite Mozart in The Jungle, which garnered two Golden Globes and an Emmy nomination for Production Design.
Some other decorating film credits include the Millennium Pictures blockbuster feature Olympus Has Fallen, starring Gerard Butler, Morgan Freeman, and Angela Bassett, Gun Hill, directed by Reggie Blythewood, and Gimme Shelter with Brendan Frazier, James Earl Jones, and Vanessa Hudgens. Notable TV shows include: The Family for ABC (decorator), The Americans for Fox/FX (assistant decorator), Person of Interest for CBS (assistant decorator), and The Normal Heart for HBO (assistant decorator), which was directed by Ryan Murphy and written by Larry Kramer. The Normal Heart won both Primetime Emmy and Golden Globe awards.
With a BFA in Photography and Video from the High Museum of Atlanta’s College of Art, Cathy started her career in TV commercial production in NYC. She produced over 500 commercials including work for AT&T, American Express, IBM, Bank of America, among others, and art directed/designed spots for Lenscrafters, AIG, Zurich Financial, United Healthcare, Scientific American, and Cuisinart, ultimately becoming co-owner of the respected production company Manhattan FilmWorks with director/husband, Peter Marshall.
Her experience as a commercial producer, and love of design has made Cathy a formidable combination of both worlds. She says, “My favorite part of this business is visualizing the script and creating the worlds that the characters inhabit. I want the objects I choose for the characters to speak to the audience in the same way they speak to me when I find them. The show Hunters provides far-reaching social awareness of the atrocities of the Holocaust which should never be forgotten. The movie BlacKkKlansman was a totally immersive experience drawing from life growing up in the South, and addressing the cultural significance of these volatile and pivotal times…something of which I am very proud.”
HUNTERS
Set Decorator: Cathy Marshall
Cathy Marshall on Decorating Hunters
Q.
What was the biggest challenge in decorating Hunters?
A.
I would say the biggest challenge decorating the show Hunters, was the sheer amount of sets and locations. The pilot alone had 65 sets, which is three times the norm. Many locations were multi-set meaning that there were 4-6 areas to be dressed. I think we figured there was a total of about 350 sets for the entire show of 10 episodes. Additionally, the time period was 1977 with flashback scenes to Nazi Germany, Poland, and Austria spanning 1939 to 1945.
Q.
Can you tell us about your design inspiration?
A.
We did a lot of research for the show, naturally. The 70s and 60s were unique and colorful times with psychedelic patterns and midcentury furniture so I really got to play! Each set tended to dictate its own style based on the characters and action within. We had some very colorful heroes and villains so I was able to push the envelope into a stylized interpretation of the characters. I credit production designer Curt Beech with some amazing overall set designs and over the top wallpaper choices to springboard off of. We blew it out of the water with the Nasa scientist Gretel’s Miami condo and gas chamber bathroom!
Q.
What three adjectives would you use to describe the design of Hunters?
A.
Graphic Novel, Steroidal, Vigilante, Polarizing (I know…that’s four!)
Q.
What is your favorite room/set?
A.
Now that’s a hard one! There were so many great opportunities and fun sets. I am now very spoiled and will never be able to entertain doing a boring procedural cop show or ho hum sitcom by comparison. If I have to choose one…I had a blast doing the Phil Spector-like recording studio, inhabited by a record producer (former Nazi Herr Holstedder). The three room set consisted of the very 70s Studio, Control Room/Lounge, and secret hidden Radio Room where he broadcast coded messages to the burgeoning far-reaching Fourth Reich! My shopper Jonathan Sanchez was amazing coordinating the many music components and getting everything to work on cue. I had fun finding the round orange 70s sofa and many other elements, like a piano-shaped side table with marble keyboard.
Q.
Is there anything you wish you had done differently?
A.
Weeelll…there is that one foyer table I misjudged the size of, but that’s not a happy thought.
Q.
Did you collaborate or discuss your design ideas with other set decorators?
A.
I was very fortunate to have some amazing set decorators who helped out and rotated as day player buyer/shoppers. Each one contributed in a unique and valuable way. Thanks go out to my assistant decorator, Rob Covelman, and others: Jonathan Dib Sanchez, Kimberly Fischer, Jackie Jacobsen, Rich Devine, Nadya Gurvich, Aja Cooper, and aspiring newcomer Mark Weinheimer. While shooting in Budapest, I collaborated with local decorator Szusa Mihalik for our Nazi concentration camp and Poland scenes.
Q.
How were your initial design plans different from the final product?
A.
We were moving so quickly that the initial designs manifested into the final product fairly intact. We had a very well-oiled machine of an art department headed by the fab art director Marci Mudd.
Q.
How did you go about sourcing furniture? Did you run into any obstacles doing so?
A.
With a period show like Hunters, your vendor resources are critical assets that a set decorator can’t perform without. For many of the everyday household sets we sourced and purchased a lot of vintage items online and via specialty thrift and vintage shops and collectors. This was particularly important for our permanent sets.
There were several sets that were “one off” or recurring, where the need for a high-end, antique furniture look was critical to the upscale look and status of the character. My budget, generous as it was, could not have allowed purchasing the quantity or quality of the furnishings, lighting, art, curtains, or tapestries that I needed. Experience has taught me that vendor prop houses like Newel Props have the inventory and rental pricing to make my dreams come true where a high end look is critical.
I used Newel Props in several Hunters sets: both of the “Colonel’s Offices” had amazing red sofas and unique antique desks, chairs, rugs and lamps. I had Newel Props in “The Bank of Zurich Offices,” “Safe Deposit Rooms”, and especially the underground “Nazi Plunder Room” of priceless stolen items. Another favorite set was Meyer’s Mansion “Foyer” and “Library” as well as his bedroom at the end. They also provided most of the elements of the White House “Roosevelt Room” circa 1977. None of these would have been possible without Newel and their great staff, especially Christine Murray.
