Meet Ligia Batschke of San Diego

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ligia Batschke.

Ligia, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I’m a Brazilian set and production designer pursuing my Master of Fine Arts at San Diego State University in California. I’ve been moving since I was a kid, San Diego is my 9th city, so I learned early how to feel at home even when everything around me is shifting, and I’m sure that’s shaped how I work.

My path has never been the obvious one. I studied architecture and urban planning in Brazil, then, in the middle of my undergrad, spent a year in Paris (France) studying interior design. It was there, almost by accident, that I discovered scenic design through an internship at a music festival. I applied with zero expectations, but after that experience, something just clicked, and I wanted to learn more about this kind of ephemeral architecture. That was the moment everything shifted.

After going back to Brazil and graduating, I was living in Curitiba, engaged and with a whole life lined up. Long story short, something didn’t feel right, so I called it off, sold my wedding dress, and moved to São Paulo to pursue my career dream with no guaranteed work, just enough savings to give myself three months. I landed on a friday and was already on a job by monday, which made me understand that all the past struggles were for a reason.

Those years in São Paulo were packed with production design work across commercials, film, series, and photoshoots. I learned so much and loved the life there, until I decided I wanted more depth, more tools, more world.
So I decided to apply for an MFA in the US, and here I am now, discovering the magic of theatre and immersive experiences like theme parks, and figuring out what the next chapter looks like, but knowing for sure it will be filled with storytelling.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
That’s a tricky question, because in some ways it was smooth, the right opportunities kept showing up at the right time, leading me somewhere I never could have planned ten years ago. I wasn’t aiming to be here specifically, but I kept saying “yes” to what felt true, and that thread never broke. But physically, financially, and emotionally? Definitely not smooth. Sometimes you know what the right answer is, but making that final decision is terrifying, because you know exactly what it’s going to cost you.

I remember being in the middle of one of those really hard moments, and a close friend told me she understood my decision, but that she would never want to be in my shoes. That actually stopped me at the time. I sat with it for some days, and my conclusion was, yes, this is going to be hard as hell, but I’d rather go through that than choose an easier path that doesn’t feel like mine just because I’m too scared now.

The struggles are constant, the language barrier, the cultural gap, missing important moments with family and friends back home, those don’t go away. They only make sense to carry while it makes sense to be where I am. I know that at some point the balance might shift, and when it does, that will tell me where to go next.
When you’re following something that genuinely matters to you, it’s never going to be a smooth road, but it will be worth it, every single time.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I like to call myself a storyteller, and my focus is production and set design for film, TV, and theatre. My background in architecture and interior design still brings me work in retail and commercial spaces too. I like keeping my projects diverse, because at the core they’re all the same challenge: understand your story, your client, your audience, and design for them.

What sets me apart is that I refuse to be put in a box. I bring my architecture thinking to theatre, my theatre sensibility to film, and my design eye to everything else. Those worlds overlap constantly, and that cross-contamination is where my best work comes from.

The project I’m most proud of right now is a production design for a short film called Selene and Mitch. It was a really fun collaboration, I worked closely with the director to discuss the script and develop a floor plan rooted in the feelings and narrative she wanted to bring to life. That’s when you truly understand that designing isn’t about your own taste or preferences, it’s about serving the story in a way that’s felt but not seen. It was also a restricted budget project, which made the final result even more rewarding, after a lot of work building the set, props, and digging through thrift stores and flea markets to find the right pieces.

Are there any books, apps, podcasts or blogs that help you do your best?
Reading is always a good way to keep your imaginative thinking alive. I’m currently finishing “The Midnight Library” by Matt Haig and I strongly recommend it. I also try to constantly feed my brain with interesting content (outside of social media), my go-to places right now are Architectural Digest, Director’s Library, and Fucking Young.

I’ve also been listening to a lot of podcasts lately, “Team Deakins” and “The A24 Podcast” are at the top of my list, along with “Good Hang with Amy Poehler”.

Last but not least, when I start a new project, I try to find artists who correlate with the theme or the feelings I have about a certain piece. My last obsession was the japanese graphic designer and illustrator Hiroshi Nagai.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.ligiabatschke.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aigil/