Shall We Dance from 1937 has some very stylized sets. Several scenes feature custom designed hotel rooms for each sex, which is common in Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers films. I’m pretty sure that in reality, this never happened. Here’s a list of common design trends used for contemporary film interiors during the 1930s and 40s: padded and/or studded walls, curving walls, lots of built-ins, wall murals, bare-bulb sconces, heavy usage of fluorescent wall and overhead light fixtures. The following photos will show you what I’m referring to.
