For her historical work on Amadeus, [Patrizia] von Brandenstein’s artistic background came into play as she chose a “natural but lively palette. The colors consistently seemed vivid and bright, and they appeared wonderfully rich,” she explains. “I have never used primary color in film in my life. I tend to use a tertiary, dark color palette, because the actors look better.” She also felt it was imperative for the sets to exude the life and exuberance of Mozart’s music. “Mozart’s world was reflective, bright, silvery, pastel, brilliant, tingling like crystal, faceted like his music. It was the music that drove the design,” she says.