The first thing one may notice in La La Land is the prominent colours, such as blue, red, yellow and green. La La Land uses colour tactically, and every colour has meaning.

The opening scene

In the opening scene of La La Land, set in a LA traffic jam, characters can be seen dancing in bright, primary colours. The brightness of this scene sets a joyful and optimistic tone for the rest of the film. However, reality hits when protagonist Mia gets abruptly honked at by future love interest, Sebastian. The sudden switch from dream to reality is one of depth. The contrast from unusually-upbeat dancing to the mundane honking of traffic suggests that Mia is in an almost trance-like state whilst reading lines for an audition. Being snapped out of it by the incessant beeping and middle finger from Seb, bringing her back to reality.

Mia’s audition

For Mia’s first audition, she is seen in a casual blue coat – used to cover up her white, (now brown) coffee stained blouse. Throughout the beginning of the film she is viewed in blue, symbolic of peace and tranquillity; before Seb comes into her life. As Mia walks out of the ‘failed’ interview, she frustratedly removes her blue coat and is seen marching down a hallway lined with red carpet. Red and blue are two juxtaposing colours, sending subliminal messages of love and sadness, aggression and amity, confidence and empathy. These two colours are repeatedly shown interchangeably between the two lovers, representative of the challenges faced in their relationship.

First meet

Mia and Sebastian’s first (proper) meeting, excluding Seb’s middle finger to Mia, is at the restaurant where Seb plays piano. After having her car towed, Mia is pictured walking through the desolate streets of LA – cast in the dark blue hue of twilight. Upon hearing an intriguing piece of music she stops to listen. As she stops, she is framed in a red-lit rectangle. We see the clear contrast of Mia’s blue dress within the red glow of the rectangle. The repeated use of these two colours so early in the film, create a sense of uncertainty and the audience is left wondering what they are significant of. After a few seconds of piano music, Mia walks in and Sebastian is cast in a spotlight, a blue suit and an orange-red hue from the restaurant lighting. Both characters shown in blue outfits yet surrounded by this obvious red undertone creates a sense of foreshadowing. The start of the turbulent relationship is clear as Seb pushes past Mia as she tries to converse with him about his performance.

The Party

During this scene, Mia meets Sebastian for the third time at an LA party. He is playing the ‘KeyTar’ (a cross between a piano and guitar), and she mocks him for this – requesting the band to play ‘I Ran (so far away)’ by A Flock of Seagulls. After his public humiliation, Seb talks to Mia and admits he was a jerk, and that he is a serious musician. During this conversation they are framed in a rectangle, reminiscent of when Mia first hears him play piano. Seb is dressed in red, and Mia in bright yellow. The yellow dress Mia is pictured in suggests a sense of optimism and happiness, possibly foreshadowing the two’s relationship. Seb’s red jacket imply’s confidence and passion, symbolic of his desire for a musical career. Yellow creates feelings of friendliness whilst red stimulates feelings of excitement and is an attention-grabbing colour.

‘Well, my work is done here’

The colour red is a colour associated with dominance. As Mia and Sebastian’s relationship begins to flourish, Seb’s mentoring nature is revealed. He convinces Mia to write her own play, and helps her become more confident in her acting. In this specific shot Mia is seen wearing a red tote bag, whilst both her and Seb are dressed in neutral colours. The contrast between the two colours automatically draws the viewers attention to the red bag. Using this method makes viewers more aware when Mia is next seen wearing a red jacket. However, she then frustratedly takes it off after a crappy audition. Mia’s desire to wear red comes from her fondness towards Sebastian. She wants their relationship to develop, but it fails to – and this is shown through her failure to successfully wear red in a positive context.

The Break up

Before Mia and Sebastian’s relationship fully starts to blossom, the two go on a cinema date to watch ‘Rebel without a cause’. Mia however, forgets she had a prior engagement – a dinner with her boyfriend. In this scene Mia is dressed in an elegant green dress, whilst Greg (her then boyfriend) is in a rather dreary grey suit. The contrast in this scene is evident, with Mia’s green dress clearly juxtaposing the rest of the table’s black and grey outfits. The dull colours don’t last for long, as Mia leaves her boyfriend and his friends at the restaurant – running to meet Sebastian. As she bolts, the restaurants’ red light’s create a reminiscent atmosphere, recalling ideas of Mia and Seb’s forthcoming relationship. Once seated in the cinema, viewers are shown the contradiction between Greg and Sebastian – displayed by Seb’s outfit. Dressed in neutrals again, empyazing the comfort Mia feels around him.

Montage

After Mia and Sebastian’s relationship is official, the audience is shown a montage of their life together. The two are pictured mainly in bright, pastel colours creating a euphoric atmosphere. Mia is seen in pink, red, and hints of purple – all with connotations of compassion, care and creativity. Whilst Sebastian wears still mostly neutrals, but with hints of yellow – signifying optimism and happiness. Throughout this sequence we also learn that Mia has moved into Seb’s apartment. The tone of Sebastians’ apartment changes as the film goes on however, whilst the two are in the ‘honeymoon stage’ it’s painted in a glowing red light. This lighting uses the colour red, which we have learnt signifies their relationship, as a reminder of how far the two have come. And that they now live together, when just a couple months ago they couldn’t talk without conflict.

Animosity

As the pair’s relationship is put under strain, the two start to drift apart. Sebastian gets a new job playing for a ‘famous’ band, which later goes on tour. Mia is left in LA whilst writing her one-man play (which Seb convinced her to do), and still in the auditioning process trying to get her big break . It’s clear how colour portrays the shift in emotion. From what once was a red-lit apartment, turns green. Bright, primary colours turn into colder, secondary colours. Both characters are seen wearing darker colours than usual, Seb in dark blue and Mia in dark, khaki green. Once Sebastian returns, he plays a gig in LA and Mia attends. The whole concert uses red lights, red set design, red outfits, all symbolic of Mia and Seb’s relationship as we know, but also foreshadowing danger and aggression. As Mia walks home, the blue hue of twilight is overpowering, consuming her silhouette, until she enters the apartment and Seb surprises her with dinner – surrounded in green light. However, the pair get into an dispute, Mia asking how long Seb will be on tour – to which he replies ‘A couple years, at least’. This statement makes Mia realise that this isn’t what they wanted. When she met Sebastian he wanted to run his own jazz club – called Seb’s – but now he’s turned into the type of person he used to resent.

Seperation

The next scene we see is Mia preparing and performing her play – ‘So long Boulder City’. Few people are seated in the audience, and whilst this does not discourage Mia, after her performance she overhears two audience members ridiculing her play. ‘She’s not even good’, ‘One-women shows are always terrible’. To dampen her evening further, Sebastian never arrives. He gets hooked into modelling promotional pictures for his band, again exemplifying how much he has changed. As Mia exits the theatre, and Seb shows up profusely apologising, both are painted in a red/blue light – the pair seen wearing black and white. At the beginning of the film, Mia was seen in blue and Sebastian in red. Red and blue make purple. As their relationship blossomed, purple was seen in their surroundings and outfits. Now, right before their separation both colours are seen again, separate – symbolising how they have become distant.

Reconnected

Week’s after Mia leaves LA, she gets a call back. Whilst initially Mia is still discouraged, Sebastian drives to her house – the one opposite the library – and convinces her to go back to LA, and just attempt her second audition. In the midst of this interaction, the pair are both seen in hue’s of purple. Seb in a deep plum, Mia in a light lilac. As the audience now knows, purple is symbolic of the two’s relationship. Although they have not reconciled, they remain friends.

Five years later

The ending of La La Land once again uses colour to showcase the tone of Mia and Sebastian’s relationship. The two meet, after five years, in Seb’s jazz club – Seb’s. Mia is a successful actor, with a husband and children. Sebastian achieved his dream of owning a jazz club. Both accomplish their goals, separately. The dimly lit club is a mix of blue, purple, and a slight red tint. Once again illustrating their relationship. Whilst the pair are no longer romantically involved, they will always care for each other. It makes for a bittersweet reconnection.

Overall, colour is prominent in La La Land. Highlighting the highs and lows of a relationship, romantically and platonically. Showing how, even if you love someone very dearly, it’s not always destined to be. And that you can still prosper and succeed through heartbreak.