Chloé Zhao

Directing style

Zhao’s visual style is anchored in eye-level, wide and establishing exterior shots that capture characters against expansive landscapes during the day, night, and dusk. She relies heavily on natural light sources, primarily the sun, supplemented by windows, practicals, and firelight, to illuminate both deep and shallow depth of field compositions. The color palette is predominantly cool and desaturated, shifting between muted earth tones, slate blues, and dark forest greens to evoke a pervasive sense of loneliness and tension across dramatic and speculative genres.