Severance and Visual storytelling: Structure, Colour Theory and Emptiness

 

Spoilers for Severance episode 1:

Severance (Erickson, 2022) is a show reminiscent of Black Mirror (Brooker, 2011) where the protagonist Mark gets a promotion in his company, Lumon, after his colleague mysteriously quits his position. The artistic direction for how Lumon looks is calculated, with an intention in mind and today, I want to discuss how Severance visually communicates that Mark's company is abnormal, with barely any dialogue.

At this point in the first episode, we know nothing about the company, what they do or what a severance is, but we can rapidly understand that something about Lumon feels...wrong. As you can observe in the pictures, everything is too organised, the shots and building structured in a way that does not feel natural. 

In the picture above, the mix of colours is important to point out. In colour theory, every colour can have a negative connotation. For example, red grasps attention but can be seen as aggressive.

 

Here, the yellow of the carpet creates a sense of anxiety and the monochrome colors of the building make it seem cold, unapproachable and distant. However, green is the only consistant colour, the dominant one. 

According to behavioural design consultant Karen Haller: 'Too much green or being surrounded by the wrong shade of green can bring up the feelings of boredom, lack of life and stagnation.' (2012)

But what is a severance and how is it relevant to our discussion? In the show, the severance is a process that all employees of Lumon (except high ranked figures) undergo where their personal life is seperated from their professional life. Which means, at work Mark has no detail on who he is and his life, he's just an employee severed from any humanity like his workspace.  

Finally, the long hallways Mark walk through for a good minute are the epitomy of the eerie emptiness of Severance: similar to the minimalism of Apple packagings/designs, there are no decoration, no colours. Just undinstiguashable white walls. After watching this sequence, the message is clear : something is definitely not right here.

In the end, it is the lack of humanity that creates that disturbing feeling when looking at Lumon's building, the colours, the decoration, Mark and the absence of anything that makes us expressives human beings. 

And just like that, in a few minutes without the need for exposure dialogue but through its camera work, acting and scenography the show succesfully convays its message. 

References:

Erickson, D. Severance, Episode 1, Good News About Hell. (2022). Apple TV. 18th February, 05:00.

Haller, K. (2012). colour psychology... the meaning of green. Available at: https://karenhaller.com/journal/colour-psychology-the-meaning-of-green/ (Accessed 28th February 2022)