Alexis Zabe shot The Florida Project on 35mm film, giving the pastel-colored budget motels of Kissimmee a warmth and texture that digital would have made garish. The palette is defined by the architecture — the purple of the Magic Castle motel, turquoise of neighboring buildings, pink and yellow of roadside attractions, all under perpetual Florida golden light. Zabe shoots primarily during magic hour, making even the cheapest motel look momentarily beautiful. The film sees this world through Moonees eyes — everything saturated with the wonder of a six-year-old. For Fujifilm, Astia captures the pastel saturation without overdoing it.
Recipes
Magic Castle
Purple motel walls in golden hour light, Florida pastels at their most vivid
Film SimulationAstia/Soft
GrainWeak/Small
Color ChromeWeak
CC FX BlueWeak
White BalanceShade
WB ShiftR+1 / B+0
Dynamic RangeDR200
Highlight+0
Shadow+0
Color+2
Sharpness-1
Noise Reduction-1
Clarity+0
ISOISO 200-400
Parking Lot Summer
Harsh midday Florida sun, bleached concrete, childhood in the heat
Film SimulationClassic Chrome
GrainWeak/Large
Color ChromeOff
CC FX BlueOff
White BalanceDaylight
WB ShiftR+1 / B-1
Dynamic RangeDR400
Highlight+1
Shadow-1
Color-1
Sharpness+0
Noise Reduction-1
Clarity+1
ISOISO 200
Shoot this look
These recipes run on Fujifilm's film-simulation engine — any current X-series body will do. A pairing to start from: