The Thérèse DePrez papers span the years 1976-2015 and encompass 18 linear feet. The collection consists of production files (produced and unproduced), television files, stage files, other media files, subject files, books, and oversize material documenting DePrez’s career as a production designer in several mediums.

The production files (produced) comprise the bulk of the collection and contain production material for over 40 feature length films and shorts DePrez worked on as an art director or production designer. Of special interest are DePrez’s design notebooks, compiled during pre-production on a film, which contain notes from meetings with the director, handwritten notes from location scouts, sketches, research material, photographs, and visual inspiration material in the form of clippings, labels, and printed images. The collection contains design notebooks for AMERICAN SPLENDOR (2003), BLACK SWAN (2010), BOX OF MOONLIGHT (1997), BROOKLYN’S FINEST (2010), DARK WATER (2005), THE DROP (2014), GOING ALL THE WAY (1997), HAPPINESS (1998), HIGH FIDELITY (2000), HOWL (2010), JACK GOES BOATING (2010), MR. MAGORIUM’S WONDER EMPORIUM (2007), OUT OF THE FURNACE (2013), STOKER (2013), and SUMMER OF SAM (1999), among many others. HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH (2001) is the best-represented title in the series, with script and production material, design notebooks, flip books containing fabric swatches and paint samples, floor plans, and design material and research specific to the film’s East Berlin, motel, and trailer park locations. Unfortunately, there is only a small amount of production material for notable early credits such as THE DOOM GENERATION (1995), DOTTIE GETS SPANKED (1993), I SHOT ANDY WARHOL (1996), LIVING IN OBLIVION (1995), STONEWALL (1995), and SWOON (1992). The series also contains numerous scripts, crew lists, or budgets for films DePrez did not work on but may have been considered for, including THE ADDICTION (1995), AUSTIN POWERS: INTERNATIONAL MAN OF MYSTERY (1997), COP LAND (1997), HUGO (2011), HUMAN NATURE (2002), THE ICE STORM (1997), INFAMOUS (2006), KIDS (1995), MELINDA AND MELINDA (2005), SAFE (1995), SHAFT (2000), and WELCOME TO THE DOLLHOUSE (1996). Of particular interest is extensive preproduction material for an earlier iteration of AMERICAN GANGSTER (2007) which was to have been directed by Antoine Fuqua and designed by DePrez, as well as a design notebook and preproduction material for Gregg Araki’s NOWHERE (1997), which DePrez was briefly attached to before production began.

The production files (unproduced) consist primarily of script material, most notably for two separate projects on Janis Joplin, one co-written by Francine Prose and Nancy Savoca, and another co-written by Penelope Spheeris which Spheeris was to direct. Of interest are a script and project proposal for A SHORT FILM ABOUT ANDY WARHOL, conceived by James Lyons, which would have starred Gus Van Sant as Andy Warhol with production design by DePrez.

The television files include production and design material for the television movie PATH TO PARADISE: THE UNTOLD STORY OF THE WORLD TRADE CENTER BOMBING (1997) and THE SECRET LIVES OF HUSBANDS AND WIVES, a pilot for a series which was filmed but never aired. There are also resumes collected by DePrez for potential art department crew for the television movie GREY GARDENS (2009), which DePrez ultimately did not work on.

The stage files consist almost entirely of design and production material for REALITY, David Bowie’s final tour for his album of the same name, staged 2003 through 2004. There is also a flier and a program documenting DePrez’s early work with the off-Broadway theater group Cucaracha Theatre. The other media files contain production material for numerous commercials designed by DePrez for such brands as Shiseido, Slimfast, and Snickers. Of interest is the design notebook for an Air France commercial directed by Michel Gondry. There are also sketches and notes for a promotional ad for John Leguizamo’s television special JOHN LEGUIZAMO: SEXAHOLIX. . . A LOVE STORY (2002).

The subject files include clippings, educational documents, material on DePrez’s involvement with the Gijon International Film Festival, the High Falls Film Festival, and the Sundance Film Festival, and personal and professional correspondence. Of interest are handwritten letters and drawings from DePrez to Noah Baumbach regarding her interest in working on THE SQUID AND THE WHALE (2005) and from DePrez to Barry Mendel and Drew Barrymore regarding her interest in working on WHIP IT (2009). There are documents related to DePrez’s acceptance into the Art Director’s branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, including letters of recommendation from George DeTitta Jr., Neil Spisak, Darren Aronofsky, and Michael Wilkinson. There are also professional papers in the form of resumes, credits, kit inventory, and references for DePrez, as well as numerous resumes and credits kept by DePrez for prop masters, set decorators, production designers, art directors, and other professionals related to a production's art department. Also notable are several small sketchbooks kept by DePrez containing her handwritten notes and sketches.

The book series consists primarily of books on production design. The oversize series includes design materials for such films as THE DROP, MARCI X (2003), PREMIUM RUSH (2012), and THE RETURN (2006), among others. Also included are periodicals and a sketchbook containing clippings, drawings, and handwritten notes, likely kept during DePrez’s years at Parsons School of Design.

Thérèse DePrez was born in Rochester, New York in 1965. She attended World of Inquiry School No. 58 and James Monroe High School, both in Rochester, and she excelled in art classes from an early age. She admired Saul Bass’ film title work and initially hoped to pursue a career in title design. She enrolled in Parsons School of Design and moved to New York City where her older brother, Mike DePrez, was studying in NYU’s film program. DePrez often assisted him with his student films and soon became more interested in production design as a career. She especially admired the films of Georges Méliès and Jean Cocteau, as well as DR. STRANGELOVE OR: HOW I LEARNED TO STOP WORRYING AND LOVE THE BOMB (1964), BLADE RUNNER (1982), and BRAZIL (1985). DePrez earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts from Parsons in 1988 and remained in New York City, where she worked in various capacities for the Off-Broadway ensemble The Cucaracha Theatre. She secured her first film job as a production designer on the horror comedy THE REFRIGERATOR (1992), while her brother worked on the film’s special effects. She then served as art director on CHILDREN OF THE NIGHT (1991), MINDWARP (1991), and SEVERED TIES (1992), the only three films produced by “Fangoria’s” production company, Fangoria Films. While less well-known than other titles in her filmography, DePrez credited her work on these films with teaching her how to design on a low budget, and for allowing her the opportunity to collaborate with the special effects company KNB EFX Group.

DePrez’s next project as a production designer, SWOON (1992), introduced her to many key filmmakers working in New York’s independent film scene. SWOON was Tom Kalin’s debut film and one of Killer Films’ earliest production credits. That year she also worked as art director on Hal Hartley’s SIMPLE MEN (1992). DePrez would reunite with Kalin the following year for the short film GEOFFREY BEENE 30 (1993) and would go on to design for Killer Films on POSTCARDS FROM AMERICA (1995), STONEWALL (1995), I SHOT ANDY WARHOL (1996), and HAPPINESS (1998). Repeat collaborations can be found throughout DePrez’s career, both with filmmakers and various crew members. She designed LIVING IN OBLIVION (1995) and BOX OF MOONLIGHT (1997) for Tom DiCillo and GOING ALL THE WAY (1997) and ARLINGTON ROAD (1999) for Mark Pellington. She worked with cinematographer Ellen Kuras to craft the distinctive looks of SWOON, GEOFFREY BEENE 30, POSTCARDS FROM AMERICA, I SHOT ANDY WARHOL, and SUMMER OF SAM (1999). Costume designer Arianne Phillips worked with DePrez on GOING ALL THE WAY and HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH (2001), a seminal film for both, while Kurt and Bart created costumes for many of Deprez’s later credits, such as PHOEBE IN WONDERLAND (2009), FIGHTING (2009), HOWL (2010), STOKER (2013), and OUT OF THE FURNACE (2013). DePrez was seen as a mentor to many working in the various professions that make up a production’s art department. Set designer Mila Khalevich supported DePrez’s work on BROOKLYN’S FINEST (2010), FIGHTING, and THE DROP (2014), while Derrick Kardos worked in several positions, most often as a graphic designer, on 18 of DePrez’s films.

DePrez resided in New York City for much of her adult life, and filmmakers often relied on her familiarity with the city to bring authenticity to New York-based stories. Many of her films required a designer with knowledge of the city’s geography as well as its history, such as I SHOT ANDY WARHOL, SUMMER OF SAM, HOW TO LOSE A GUY IN 10 DAYS (2003), BROOKLYN’S FINEST, FIGHTING, JACK GOES BOATING (2010), BLACK SWAN (2010), PREMIUM RUSH (2012), and THE DROP. She was also proud to be closely associated with the New Queer Cinema movement, having designed not only SWOON, but Todd Haynes’ DOTTIE GETS SPANKED, POSTCARDS FROM AMERICA, Gregg Araki’s THE DOOM GENERATION (1995), STONEWALL, and John Cameron Mitchell’s HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH. Her other notable credits include HIGH FIDELITY (2000), AMERICAN SPLENDOR (2003), DARK WATER (2005), and MR. MAGORIUM’S WONDER EMPORIUM (2007).

DePrez also ventured beyond film, designing for television, commercials, and music videos. Early in her career she worked as art director on THE BEN STILLER SHOW (1992), and later as production designer on the television movie PATH TO PARADISE: THE UNTOLD STORY OF THE WORLD TRADE CENTER BOMBING (1997). Her commercial work included promotions for Isaac Mizrahi and John Leguizamo as well as an Air France commercial directed by Michel Gondry. In 2002, she designed a short film promoting Laurie Anderson’s “Life on a String” album. A David Bowie fan since her teen years, DePrez was especially pleased to design the stage show for what would be Bowie’s last tour, “Reality,” as well as an accompanying short film. Her work earned Best Art Direction from the Gijón International Film Festival for I SHOT ANDY WARHOL, and in 1997 she served on the festival’s jury alongside Nicolas Winding Refn, Edward Bunker, Juan Bonilla, and Agustí Villaronga. Her films often premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, and the festival awarded her Special Recognition for Superb Production Design on GOING ALL THE WAY. BLACK SWAN garnered the most awards recognition of DePrez’s career with a nomination for Best Production Design from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts Awards and an Art Directors Guild Award for Excellence in Production Design on a Contemporary Film. Her final film was THE DROP (2014), and the following year she was diagnosed with breast cancer. DePrez died in 2017.