Life & Work with Jessica (Chieh) Ning

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jessica (Chieh) Ning.

Hi Jessica (Chieh), please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Born and raised in Taiwan, I’m a scenic designer in theatre and a production designer for film who is currently studying at Chapman University. Growing up in an open-minded family, I’m the kind of kid who’s always dreamed of living in a wonderland. Moreover, I created my own dreamland. I like to explore different universes from the texture of the tree to the color of the grass. So, I started as an experimental artist who used flour to create a xiaolongbao tribe and potato to sculpt my homeland. These mini wonderlands of mine were my first few attempts at my dream. However, I’ve been searching for a larger venue where my imagination can live wildly. This is how I ended up in theatre and film. Here, people tell diverse stories of characters in different universes. I find it fascinating and challenging to create a world that can immerse the audience through the building of storytelling in a short time.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
As I was focusing on my studies in theatre, I was introduced into film as a production designer for student films. I did not have much understanding of what is a production designer’s responsibility on the team. Luckily, I have my knowledge in the theatre as a scenic designer. People think that it is an easy job for me to transfer from a scenic designer to a production designer since it is basically the same thing to them. Indeed, there is not a big difference in skill-wise. I would say that the best challenge of being a scenic and production designer at the same time is to adapt similar skills through a totally different approach of storytelling. In the film, the audience follows the lenses to understand the story. This means that they have no freedom to explore the world through their own eyes. As a production designer, I always ask myself, “How can I build a convincing world through a unified frame?” In theatre, it is a live performance that the audience have the freedom to explore the space however and whenever they want. But on the other hand, this black box is the only space where all the stories need to happen. So how can I create diverse spaces in this one limited black box with all the details? I find solving these questions using different methodologies is the most challenging part for me, but I’m definitely enjoying the challenge.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
As a scenic and production designer, I’m proud to say that this is what sets me apart from others. It’s like having two pairs of lenses that can switch on and off. One lens allows me to see the world more dramatically. Whereas the other lenses capture a more subtle emotion. I was working on a cyborg boxing student film as a production designer a few months ago. What I needed to build was a visually dramatic world that contains an underground boxing ring and a subtle apartment that matches the futuristic nature. It seemed very ambitious for our team to achieve this scale of world-building since it was a lot of our first time making such a high scale of world-building. Most importantly, we had a limited budget. It was really a challenge for the art department since there were prosthetics and makeup costs that were also expensive. This is where my curiosity about trying new things also comes in handy. A dear teacher of mine used to teach me, “First, you dream big as there’s no limited budget. Then you go from there. Otherwise, your creativity has no place to live.” I think being a scenic/production designer is a position that need to solve problem constantly. What makes me stand out is the courage of dreaming and making it happen.

How can people work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
People can reach out to me through my email and social media. I’d love to work on different projects in theatre and film. 🙂

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @jes21caning
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002272159242
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-ning-bb8a1621b?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios_app
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@jessicaning0121?si=_DbruakmUoo1-iSy