Jamie's House: The Power of Set Design

It takes a lot of talented people to recreate what was in my head. Salli Levi, our set designer, recreated a Midcoast house into the home of Jamie Eugley--a ninth generation lobsterman, who inherited his grandfather's house on the ocean.

"They drove silently back home to Porter's Cove, to a crabby-looking Cape on the ocean's edge with cedar shingles weathered to the color of beef jerky."

"Jamie set leftover pizza on the counter and picked up the wall phone in the kitchen."

In the center of the living room stood a flagstone fireplace so inefficient, it barely heated the the room in the winter. Next to it, Jamie installed a small Vermont castings woodstove."

"At one time, they shared the master bedroom, which faced the sea, but then she drowned. And came back to life. And then it became necessary to set Anja up in the spare room, where she'd be up at all hours, like a kitten skittering Across the floor, batting curios off the dresser, keeping him awake all night."

I absolutely love the detail Salli put into this room. From the silver-framed photo of Jamie and Anja by her bed to the flashcards (so she can practice her math skills) to the childlike posters and inspirational quotes that inspire her to keep reaching toward her brain-injury recovery goals.

Note the Mad Libs (for vocan skills and the 1970s tape recorder.

These are the details that blew me away when I walked in and saw them. Anja's easel set up in the living room, her paintings, and the spent tube of red paint that factors into a major fight in the book/movie.

This is the ideal living room I've always pictured in the book. "The house had its own personality. It liked being dusty, blackened, and old. She settled on the plaid hunter's couch facing the TV with an irritated glance at the dingy things they had: bachelor furniture, a floral La-Z-Boy, a wooden chicken coop for a coffee table, a TV, and a telescope."

If you haven't already "liked" our Facebook page, please do so now for more videos and photos as the shoot progresses. There's also some good stuff on my TikTok as well. Stay tuned!