The spaces that make up the fabric of early English Shaker life played out in The Testament of Ann Lee feel like hand-me-downs—the first big steps of a group branching out from another (the Quakers), creating their own, dedicated space. “When it came to the meat of it, anything Shaker you saw was built by our amazing set dec fabrication team there,” says Bader. “Lauren Doss, our lead decorator, was able to find a fantastic recreation of the chair we were looking to make: the Niskayuna Albany chair. That was serendipity.” We also get a look at a darker kind of early-English minimalism when Ann is arrested for public preaching—piles of straw for sleeping, iron bars, and the smallest of cell windows. Later on, Budapest also served as a surrogate home to the Cunningham House, a residence that houses the group once they reach New York City after a long sail from Manchester.
Moving stateside: New Hampshire and New York
The team had an easier time sinking into the Shaker world in the stateside filming sessions. Much like Ann Lee had been tasked with founding and growing a Shaker community from nothing in what is now known as Upstate New York, Bader and the crew had to become—or find experts—centered on a group known for their humble way of living (fun fact: they never named any of their furniture designs after a specific designer). The team went with the latter, sourcing those who knew more about the region’s history to send them in the right direction.
One of the largest collaborations was with the Hancock Shaker Village, a community in the Berkshires region of Massachusetts. “They have a 360-degree fluid, fully interactive Shaker village,” says Bader. “Much of what’s there is original, and some of it is immaculately recreated.” This collaboration was a slow burn, resulting in a deep trust that brought a necessary layer to the film. “Layla Stover, our American set decorator, has such a phenomenal bedside manner when it comes to handling historic spaces,” Bader continues. “We built a lot of shorthand to the point where they ultimately really did unlock some of the stanchions and let us go in and shoot some of those stunningly preserved rooms, which are usually not spaces they let people into.”
