Podcast Summary: Building the World of 'Hamnet' with Production Designer Fiona Crombie

Show: All Of It with Alison Stewart, WNYC
Episode Date: February 26, 2026
Guest: Fiona Crombie, Oscar-nominated production designer
Series: The Big Picture

Overview

This episode of "All Of It" features a deep dive into the artistry of world-building in film, focusing on the Oscar-nominated work of production designer Fiona Crombie for the film Hamnet. Host Alison Stewart explores how Crombie recreated 16th-century England to bring the Shakespeare family’s world to life—balancing authenticity, emotional resonance, and creative interpretation. The conversation reveals the nuance of production design and the collaboration required to support story, characters, and feeling in cinema.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Role of a Production Designer

• Definition (01:33):
  Crombie explains her role as:

  “If you imagine a frame of film…production designer is across the location or the set build… We’re involved in the food that’s on a plate, the color of the curtains, the carpet, as well as the actual architecture… It’s basically everything that’s in a frame that’s not an actor, not a costume, not hair and makeup.”
  (Fiona Crombie, 01:44)

• Impact:
  Good production design “wordlessly informs the audience about ... the backstory of a character or the circumstances. Production design can make you feel something that isn’t said.” (Fiona Crombie, 02:29)

First Impressions & Emotional Resonance

• Initial Reaction to Hamnet (03:05):
  • Crombie quickly sensed “a contrast between this rambling nature ... of Agnes and the structure of Tudor architecture.”
  • The story’s depiction of family resonated:

    "I kept thinking of my family, my children, my mess ... How do I bring that into a period film?"
    (Fiona Crombie, 03:33)

Research and Creative Process

• Two-Pronged Approach (04:22):
  • Crombie gathers historically accurate references and “emotional responses”—images, colors, textures, anything instinctively resonant.
  • She highlights how location scouting, even though the locations were eventually built as sets, helped her "understand the spaces and feel how people lived." (Fiona Crombie, 04:22)

Collaboration with Director Chloe Zhao

• Shared Vision (05:43):

  • Crombie and Zhao quickly aligned on visual tone through image exchanges.
  • Authenticity was paramount:

    “Anything artificial or overdone was just—No. We’re not doing that. We want to ... keep it precise, and personal the whole way through.”
    (Fiona Crombie, 05:43)

• Director’s Instinct (06:38):

  • Crombie’s instinct was for detail and realness—using “reclaimed timbers and vintage fabrics” to create a lived-in feel, and avoiding the stiffness of “admiring period sets.”
  • She wanted the audience to feel "in amongst everything ... the real sense of the daily life of a family."
    (Fiona Crombie, 06:49)

Casting and Character Adaptation

• Working with Cast (07:53):
  • Knowing the physicality of Jesse Buckley (Agnes) shaped the spaces and design choices.
  • Buckley's immersive approach:

    “We did foraging workshops and she played with all her props ... She really gets into it.”
    (Fiona Crombie, 08:13–09:33)

Materials, Texture, and Authenticity

• Tactile Design (09:33):
  • Texture was critical: “We used reclaimed timbers and vintage fabrics ... props that had history ... Every plant in the garden is old, it’s got some little dead bits.”
    (Fiona Crombie, 09:44–10:03)
  • These decisions made the set feel “embedded in a way it’s really hard to do with new materials.”

The Globe Theatre: Fact and Imagination

• Balancing History and Storytelling (11:04):
  • Crombie aimed for “simplicity” over grandiosity (as seen in the reconstructed Globe).
  • The Globe set was scaled down (70% of original) and intentionally less ornate, to evoke origins.
  • Director Zhao wanted “the inside of a tree,” tying the Globe visually to the film’s forest and family home.
  • Some historical liberties (e.g., painted backdrops, stage layout) were taken “to inform story...we wanted to have our forest brought to the stage.” (Fiona Crombie, 11:28–13:28)

Emotional Attachment to Sets

• Letting Go (13:28):
  • Unlike other projects, Crombie felt an unusual emotional connection to the Hamnet sets—perhaps “because we grew gardens or something...those sets had a life.”
  • The entire crew felt “very connected to this temporary dwelling ... that is no longer there.” (Fiona Crombie, 13:43–14:42)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the invisible power of set design:

  “Production design can make you feel something that just isn't said.”
  (Fiona Crombie, 02:29)

• On designing for emotion and history:

  "I always do like a kind of a two-pronged approach. So I'll go historical accuracy and ... an emotional response ... then I'll see where they come together."
  (Fiona Crombie, 04:22)

• On Chloe Zhao’s direction:

  "Authenticity is hugely important to Chloe. So anything artificial or overdone was just—No...We want to keep it precise, and personal the whole way through."
  (Fiona Crombie, 05:43)

• On the importance of tactile history:

  "...using the reclaimed timbers and ... props that had history ... there was just a decision to find anything that brought story or history into the set build. And I think it made the most enormous difference."
  (Fiona Crombie, 10:03)

• On building and letting go:

  “Those sets ... had a life that I haven’t really encountered in the same way. There was an emotional connection that I haven't had. And it wasn't just me. It was like the whole crew.”
  (Fiona Crombie, 13:43)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 01:33 – What a production designer does
• 02:29 – How design helps the film
• 03:05 – First impressions of Hamnet and the emotional connection
• 04:22 – Research and creative process
• 05:43 – Collaboration and authenticity with Chloe Zhao
• 06:49 – Value of instinct and detail in production design
• 07:53 – Working with the cast, especially Jesse Buckley
• 09:44 – Importance of texture and tactile materials
• 11:28 – Designing the Globe Theatre: challenges and storytelling
• 13:43 – Emotional attachment to the sets

Closing Thoughts

This episode provides a rare look into the invisible layers of filmmaking—how production design both serves story and silently shapes what audiences feel. Fiona Crombie’s passion for detail, authenticity, and emotional truth brought not just the 16th-century world of the Shakespeares to life, but also a living, breathing sense of family and loss. Her collaborative process with director Chloe Zhao and her ability to blend historical accuracy with creative storytelling make this a masterclass in the art of cinematic world-building.