Using Wallpaper in Films – and the Story It Tells

MZed Education

by Mascha DeikovaDecember 12^th, 2025

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Yes, your eyes aren’t deceiving you! Today, we’re looking at wallpaper in films, not just as background decoration but as something with its own narrative weight. It turns out, wallpaper can do much more. It tells stories, conveys hidden messages, and becomes an integral part of the visual aesthetic. Sounds weird? Well, let’s take a look at some great film examples that prove the point.

This topic was inspired by an Instagram post. I was scrolling through my feed (a bad habit that only sometimes pays off), and stumbled upon a collection of film stills with outstanding wallpaper. That got me thinking. Certainly, wallpaper in production design is a great tool to make a shot more attractive. White walls are dull, and most cinematographers I know avoid shooting at them at all costs. Yet, when wallpaper is so eye-catching, it can definitely play a more specialized role in the frame. What role? Here are some interesting ideas.

Traveling in time through wallpaper in films

The most obvious answer is that wallpaper can be a signifier of a particular period or culture. Remember the Art Deco mansion of Leonardo DiCaprio’s character in “The Great Gatsby?” The wallcoverings in the film pay homage to the glamorous style popular in the 1920s and 1930s. The common themes of those days included zigzags, chevrons, and stylized floral designs. Thus, the set decorations were picked to represent that period authentically.

Another example is from the German film “Good Bye, Lenin!” It follows a fictional story of a mother, dedicated to the socialist cause, and her son, Alex. In the film’s plot, the mother falls into a coma for 8 months and misses the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of communism in East Germany. Once she wakes up, Alex tries to shield her from the shock and artificially creates an atmosphere she is accustomed to through wallpaper, pioneer children singing, and even fake ads, which they film with friends.

As I was born in the Soviet Union, this communist aesthetic is very familiar to me. That wallpaper in the film instantly transports me back to my childhood, to my grandmother’s apartment, with the smell of her homemade dumplings from the kitchen, and the bittersweet taste of nostalgia. Of course, wallpaper is not the only tool that helps create the atmosphere here. Yet, it definitely is the essential one, and triggers a huge emotional response in viewers like me.

Wallpaper that tells stories

Let’s go a level deeper and rewatch this scene from Zach Braff’s “Garden State.”

The image from the bathroom is an unforgettable one. Even if you watched the movie long ago, it would probably be the first one to pop up in your mind. It’s original, creative, absurd, and playful. Yet more importantly, it tells a story and helps us to understand the character even more.

What does this image communicate to you? The film tracks Andrew’s (the protagonist) emotional numbness. He has been depressed and heavily medicated since the age of ten, after a serious accident with his mother. Andrew is detached and hasn’t been able to laugh or cry for years. By letting him literally blend into the floral wallpaper, the film emphasizes that interior state. Andrew is part of the background, not an active agent.

At the same time, one of Garden State’s themes explores the idea of returning home and being swallowed back into family patterns and small-town roles. This shirt, which perfectly matches the wallpaper, is like an ironic welcome gift, allowing one to “fit in” with people’s expectations. After all, we hear not only disappointment in the voice of his aunt, but also bitter sarcasm:

You’re gonna love the material.

A quote from the film

Meaningful aesthetic use of wallpaper in films

Naturally, wallpaper, used in films, can be a huge part of the visual aesthetic. Take, as an instance, this amazing background from “Decision to Leave.”

The director, Park Chan-wook, leans into color theory and uses a very dedicated palette in this movie (red, green, and blue). Each of the two main characters has their own color (blue and green), but the prevalent shade of the film’s cinematography is turquoise. We can put a lot of meaning into it. For instance, the characters are drawn together, yet the way they meet as a detective and a suspect constantly questions their trust and pushes them apart.

Another notable aspect of this wallpaper is its pattern. It deliberately reads either as a mountain range or waves on the sea, depending on how you look at it. On the one hand, it emphasizes the characters’ similarities and differences, such as those of the ocean and the mountains. On the other hand, both have symbolic meaning in East Asian philosophical imagery. The mountain can signify stability and clarity, while the sea suggests change, depth, and mystery. Taking into account that the wallpaper is located in Seo-rae’s apartment (the wife / suspect), it implies that her character is layered, ambiguous, not fixed or entirely legible. Not to mention that both the sea and mountains have important roles in the film’s plot. (And that the wallpaper looks dead gorgeous in the frame above.)

Wallpaper in films for character building

Last, but not least, an example we will observe is from “Amélie.” This French romantic comedy, which has already become a classic, also uses colors for storytelling. No wonder that the wallpaper in the main character’s apartment matches so smoothly with other interior design elements:

Not sure if anyone would make their bedroom wall this striking in real life. Yet, in the cinematic world of Amélie, it only makes sense. She is definitely not an ordinary girl. No, she is always in her mind, vivid, creative, with a positive mindset and a magical ability to see even the simplest and mundane things as whimsical.

Thus, her room should tell us all that at first glance. And it definitely does.

And other examples of using wallpaper in films

If you return to the original Instagram post, which inspired this text, you will see that there are many more creative examples of using wallpaper in films. Naturally, we can’t cover every aspect; otherwise, this article might become an endless read. Yet, if you wish, we can continue the discussion in the comments!

To better understand what “effective images” are and how to carefully craft them, so that even wallpapers become a storytelling tool, I recommend checking out our MZed course, “Cinematography for Directors,” taught by seasoned filmmaker and educator Tal Lazar. It explores the distinction between filming the story versus filming the plot, explains how lens choice influences the audience’s reaction, and helps determine the suitable cinematic voice for each project.

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Feature image source: film stills from “Garden State” by Zach Braff, 2004; “Amélie” by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, 2001; “The Great Gatsby” by Baz Luhrmann, 2013; “Good Bye, Lenin!” by Wolfgang Becker, 2003; and “Decision to Leave” by Park Chan-wook, 2022.

What other moments come to mind where wallpaper is used creatively in films? Have you ever thought about them as a storytelling tool? Do you generally pay attention to such details and try to analyze their meaning, or is it a mere visual treat to you? Let us know in the comments below!