Who: Liesl DesLauriers

Where: Enjoying a bit of retail therapy at Locale with family member Alveta Knight, honorary consul to Jamaica for the Commonwealth of the Bahamas.

The buzz… She mentioned two names that are music to our ears: Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex!

And... She’s a Jamaican living in Toronto, Canada, and worked on the set of
Suits from 2015 to 2019

The more... Born in Kingston, Jamaica, Liesl DesLauriers has been working in Canada for over 25 years as a decorator in film and television. She has cultivated an expansive career ranging from action films, like Foolproof, starring Ryan Reynolds, to cult hits like Hedwig and the Angry Inch; from blockbuster horror films, like Saw II – Saw VII, to the popular crime drama Covert Affairs. Her work also extends to period pieces, such as the mini-series
The Secret Life of Marilyn Munroe, starring Susan Sarandon, and the TV movie Salt -N-Pepa, directed by Mario van Peebles. She further showcased her skills decorating on the popular TV series Suits and is currently finishing up Season 3 of Reacher.

Her love for set design… started early in childhood.

I was exposed to many different cultures in life and performances (musicals, plays, television, film…), and so I found myself falling in love with environments, style and design on so many levels. I would involve myself whenever I could (from high school and summer camp events and productions to my parents’ elaborate annual themed parties.

I never imagined landing a job on big a film set, then my sister, who was working as a tutor of the set of a big film, Searching for Bobby Fischer, a 90s movie, about a chess prodigy, with an impressive cast — Laurence Fishburne, Ben Kingsley, Joe Mantegna,

William H Macey, Laura Linney, Joan Allen — was asked if she knew anyone who would like to work as child wranglers (assist in guiding and watching over the children on-set). …and this is the moment where I break in… It was during my time on this show that I took in the many aspects of production. Both my creative and technical curiosity were stoked. I watched, listened and made friends. My first deep contact was not with the set dec department, but with the sound/mixer recordist. He took me under his wing, and along with his boom operator, helped me understand the world of production from their front-row seat.

Being on-set, I began to think about camera angles and framing and things like that, but what I loved the most was being able to spend time on the sets. Then, on one job, where I was working as a child coordinator and 2nd boom operator, I developed a close friendship with the set decorator and she invited me to join her team. I continued to develop my skills as an assistant decorator and then landed a string of work as a decorator, with every project so different from the last.

Liesl worked her way up… through production and further informed her film experience by working in multiple departments. She designed sets and worked in the art department on independent films, music videos and commercials, and on feature film productions, she has spent time working the wardrobe and props departments (both on set and as a buyer).

She also spent 2-1/2 years working as a boom operator.

Her versatility and range establish her as one of the leading set decorators in Toronto.

Yet another Rock Star unearthed in SO!