This project was created as part of the final assessment for MMCC8055 Performance Practice, a core unit in the final semester of my Master of Creative Industries at Macquarie University in October 2024.
When the A Super Date with Mr Broom film crew opens its studio tour to outside audiences, both onstage and backstage creatives are brought into view, offering a broader glimpse into the production team. Within this setting, the film, presented as a play-within-a-play, follows a girl’s whimsical fantasy of falling in love with her broom.
The design served both the film itself and the overall performance setting of the studio visit. The approach combined the film’s surreal, whimsical tone with the studio tour format, which deconstructed the classic performance pattern by showing both onstage action and behind-the-scenes processes, positioning visual design as central to both narrative and atmosphere.
From the outset, I worked with the team to define visual highlights. Instead of treating projection, props, and stage elements separately, I integrated them into a unified visual system that blurred the line between stage and audience, making viewers feel part of the film studio.
This unconventional approach reimagined traditional stagecraft by merging performance design with visual communication at every touchpoint. Precision execution, from projection correction to consistent key visuals across all assets, ensured technical accuracy and narrative cohesion, aligning with the brief’s aim to make visual communication an active role in performance.
The projection screen was treated as an active part of the performance narrative rather than a passive backdrop. The opening welcome screen brought the audience into the “backstage world”, while a dark, glowing transition screen appeared when the director called “cut”, paired with dimmed lighting to signal technical adjustments without breaking audience engagement.
The visuals echoed the real venue. The stage’s floor marking tape, typically a backstage or rehearsal tool, was reimagined as part of the stage design. During pauses or before filming, the projection displayed five lines aligned precisely with these floor marks, visually linking the physical and digital environments. This continuity was designed to reinforce the idea that both the performers and the audience were within the same working studio, rather than simply facing a flat projected studio image.
Lines on different screens echoing the venue‘s ground
Multiple on-site tests were conducted to align projection lines with the stage marks and adjusted element widths to offset the 270-degree projection distortion, ensuring a seamless fit in the live environment.
(Just a note, the bow tie on the right screen used the design from the heroine’s cat’s bow tie, and the cat appeared at the performance’s climax.)
The key visuals extended across physical props and printed materials, designed to enhance audience engagement before, during, and even after the performance.
Clapperboard: Built in the shape of Mr Broom, it functioned both as a practical stage tool and as a strong recurring symbol within the performance.
