1. Flower pots
Chae Kyoung Sun said that she cried after reading the script for the episode “Gganbu” in “Squid Game” season 1. She was very interested in creating the scene of this episode. Although this was also the episode that took the longest time to make.
One specific detail that the audience might not have noticed is the flower pots in the scene between the two players Kang Sae Byeok (Jung Ho Yeon) and Ji Yeong (Lee Yoo Mi).
The art director arranged the flower pots behind the two players. The pot on Sae Byeok's side had fresh flowers, while the pot on Ji Young's side had dead flowers. This foreshadowed which character would die in the game from the beginning.
2. Shape hierarchy
If you watch the final episode of “Squid Game” season 1 carefully, you may notice that the circles, triangles, and squares used throughout the series are taken from the “board” of the squid game.
They are also the characters "ㅇ", "ㅈ", "ㅁ" in the Korean title: “오징어 게임”. However, there is another detail about the shapes.
According to Chae Kyoung Sun, all guards in the game are ranked by rank, and this is represented by the shape on their masks.
The shape with the most vertices (squares) represents the highest ranking guards, while the shape with the fewest vertices (circles) represents lower ranks.
3. The meaning of colors
Players in “Squid Game” wear green tracksuits because they resemble those used in a South Korean political initiative in the 1970s — the “new rural movement.”
At that time, school children were dressed in green tracksuits, with the aim of the movement being to bring rural areas up to speed with urban life.
However, the South Korean government has been criticized for the way the movement suppresses and destroys local culture, traditions, and beliefs.
Pink was also chosen as the main color in “Squid Game,” appearing in the maze-like corridors and gift box-shaped coffin bows. Pink was chosen because it often appears in fairy tales.
Additionally, pink and green are opposite each other on the color wheel, reflecting the contrast between the guard and the player.
“Green is very afraid of pink, because pink monitors and suppresses green,” said art director Chae Kyoung Sun.
4. "Fake" background
In “Squid Game” there are many scenes that are built to look “fake” in an inexplicable way. For example, in “Red Light, Green Light”, the scene of the field and sky is crudely made and it is easy to see that it is not real.
These fake designs actually have their own intentions. Chae Kyoung Sun explains that in the original script, the lack of realism in the setting was used to confuse the player between reality and fiction.
“When players first enter the Red Light, Green Light setting, everything seems fake and artificial, which makes them deny the fact that people will actually die here,” the art director added.
5. Tug of war
In the tug of war game, the grey, mottled floor is made to look like a road. Yellow road markings and a faux street backdrop are added to complete the theme.
According to Chae Kyoung Sun, because players are stuck with a mountain of debt with no clear path forward, the art direction team decided to use an unconnected path for this game's setting.
This reflects the situation of players having "nowhere to go" in their lives.
