Ginette Bone: Watching Architecture On The Big Screen
The architecture of New Orleans is one of Hollywood's favorite backdrops and Tulane professor of practice Ginette Bone studies that intersection in her freshman seminar, "New Orleans, Architecture and Film."
"We examine how New Orleans is portrayed in movies," explains Bone, who invites people from the industry to speak to the class, including local set designers, an architect who designs movie theaters and even the New Orleans film commissioner, all of whom are actively involved in the city's multi-million dollar film industry.
As part of the course, students must select a movie and critique how the characters are developed through the scenes. Students take a field trip to a local theatre for a screening of Tennessee Williams' classic Streetcar Named Desire.
Bone can rattle off a list of famous movies set in New Orleans: Déjà Vu, Runaway Jury, Love Song for Bobby Long, and The Pelican Brief, to name a few. But by far, she says analysis of the popular television comedy, The Simpsons offers the most fun.
"There are two episodes about New Orleans," Bone says. One is a takeoff on Streetcar Named Desire where Marge is cast in the role of Blanche duBois. The other is a parody of Magnum P.I. where Chief Wiggum comes to New Orleans. The Simpsons make a guest appearance during Mardi Gras."
Bone was born in Surrey, England and came to New Orleans for the 1984 World's Fair. She fell in love with the city and lives in a loft in the heart of the Garden District. Commander's Palace Restaurant is down the street and Lafayette Cemetery, itself a famous fixture in movies, is right across the street.
As much as she enjoys analyzing architecture in films, Bone spends more time teaching Design Studio to Tulane architecture students. It's a much more intense experience. "We meet for four hours on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays," she says. "Design is really the focus of architecture school-everything revolves around studio life."
As a result, Bone says Tulane's Architecture curriculum is very nurturing. "It's very social – I find that students' studies and social lives intermingle."
She says Tulane is the place to be if one wants to pursue an architecture degree, especially now. "Every architecture school in the country is looking at New Orleans. Tulane hosts visiting schools and studios all the time. It's a huge petrie dish for ideas for redevelopment. There's so many opportunities to get involved."
