“I want to write something new, something extraordinary and ...

out one of the most dramatic scenes in the film: the moment Tom confronts Gatsby
and demands to know the truth about his past.
“I’ve never experienced anything like when we were shooting the Plaza
suite,” remembers Mulligan. “For days we shot conventional coverage of all of us in
the scene, quite a long scene, quite a sort of ‘dance’ of a scene. Then, right at the
end, Baz took all the cameras outside of the windows of the suite. So, there was no
crew, there were no lights inside, you couldn’t see any technical equipment. It was
like performing on stage, but with no audience. You really felt like you were alone,
but for just the five of us. It was sort of one of the most extraordinary experiences that
I’ve had working, let alone on this film.”
“The Plaza scene, when they are just going at each other, is ten pages of
pure acting that takes place in one room,” explains Luhrmann. “The immersion is
somewhat like theatre, and I really wanted to make the most of these wonderfully
talented actors.”
Beyond the studio, various other scenes were shot in locations in and around
Sydney. The picturesque town of Mount Wilson, in the Blue Mountains, and the
surrounding area, was the setting for Long Island environs. “There’s a beautiful place,
a family property, called Breenhold, and it’s covered in European trees,” says
Knapman. “So, it was very suitable for Long Island.”
Nick’s bungalow was also built there. “Nick’s bungalow is described in the
book as a ‘cardboard bungalow at eighty a month,’” says Martin of her initial
inspiration for Nick’s house. “So, when we did research into the West Egg of Long
Island, which was sort of where the new money went, we realized that there had
been early 19 th century holidaymakers’ cottages sandwiched exactly as was
described in the book between various piles that were built in the early 20 th century.
So, you had this strange occurrence of enormous houses and then forgotten little
bungalows, weekenders, for people that lived in New York. And we felt that
probably was the kind of house that Fitzgerald was describing.”
The Heritage-listed White Bay Power Station in Pyrmont was the Sydney
location for The Valley of Ashes, the dusty badlands where the train to and from the
city passes through, and where George Wilson, Myrtle’s husband, has his struggling
business, all under the ever watchful eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg, Oculist. Using the
power station as a backdrop, the crew carted in tons of ash and constructed a set
that included a road, a disused train-yard, and Wilson’s Garage.
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