*Kathryn Molenaar is both a world-builder and a quitter, in the best way possible. Images c/o Molenaar.*

For Emmy-winning art director Kathryn Molenaar, no two days ever look quite the same. Sometimes “work” means climbing up and down mountains, or on and off boats, or in and out of lava tubes. Mostly, though, it involves building things and then blowing them up (and it’s never easy to dress for this sort of thing...).

From television specials and talk shows like Muppets Haunted Mansion (2021) and Earth to Ned (2020) to fan-favorite series like NCIS: Hawai'i (2021), and The Summer I Turned Pretty (2022-2025), Molenaar’s body of work evolves as her worlds do. When she was working on Mindhunter, a Netflix show that tells the story of the formation of an elite FBI Serial Crime Unit, director David Fincher asked Molenaar if she was a masochist — she always had a smile on her face, no matter how horrifying the story she was telling.

Molenaar’s career path doesn’t fit into the conventional box or follow an easy career arc, yet looking back, there are clear threads that connect the chapters. In college, her art professor gave her some advice that she decided to live by: sometimes in life, you have to quit to move up. So when she found herself as one of the youngest commercial staff production managers in the industry, where the only step up was to become an executive producer, she decided to walk away.

Here at this summit, Molenaar shares how she got to where she is today, including what it took to pull off season 3 of The Summer I Turned Pretty; how her family background informs the way she builds worlds from scratch; and why the best tool of her trade is flexibility.

*Growing up, Molenaar’s family didn’t buy things: they built them. It’s no wonder she found herself doing it for a living. Production designed by Darcy Prevost.*

How do you spend your mornings?

I’m not a morning person, so efficiency is key. I read Tools of Titans, and one takeaway stuck with me: life is easier if you can keep everything within a one-mile radius of where you live. I’ve since applied that to my mornings — all my essentials live in the bathroom and kitchen so I can get out the door fast. As long as I’m presentable and the cats are fed, I’m good.

It must be nearly impossible to dress for the type of work you do. What is your work uniform?

My wardrobe is my armor. Sometimes “work” means climbing up and down mountains…on and off boats… in and out of lava tubes, or something of the sort, so I always dress for the type of day ahead of me. It would be nice to buy seven of the same exact shirt, but being an art director, you are representing the art department, which is a department of tastemakers. So people notice. My go-to attire is a sundress and converse or vans. If I’m wearing army fatigue colors, such as army drab green and black, then it probably means it’s not a day where there is time to be wasted.

How do you structure your workday?

Delegate all tasks that can be done by another member on your crew. Only do the tasks that can only be done by you so you can keep yourself open for any fires that need to be put out.

Also, keep everyone away from the production designer so they can concentrate on designing. They should not be thinking about how much a piece of plywood costs at that moment in time, but about the overall look, feel, design of the sets or locations.

When I was art coordinating, my metric of success was whether the truck left the lot on time. If the paperwork wasn’t in order and it held the truck up, then that was my fault and money was being lost. And if you have time to kill on a job, then you send the PA to the Universal Studios sign shop and see how long it takes them to find it. I personally got lost and ended up at the Jaws ride and Whoville.

*The biggest challenge working on The Summer I Turned Pretty has been keeping the ending a secret, Molenaar says.*

Do you have any playlist favorites?

Anything old-school. I was born in 1980 and I have a Bachelor of Science in Music Business. I love to listen to local radio stations while driving across the country — the local advertising is always the best! And you hear a lot of music you would never listen to, or forgot about entirely, like ’90s country. If I’m around the house, I listen to island music because it makes me happy. The Budos Band is also a go-to for me right now for the same reason. Since my baby arrived, I’ve been listening to Ms. Rachel and Cocomelon sing more than anyone else!

What are the tools of your trade?

My imagination, mostly. A teacher in elementary school told us that adults lose their imagination, and I’ve been very determined to keep mine ever since I heard that. Whenever I asked for something growing up, my parents would respond, “We’ll just make it.” When I needed a bike rack, we built one out of PVC pipe and some other items we had around the house. I needed a lamp, so my dad drilled a hole in the bottom of a vase, turned it upside down, installed a light fixture, and viola… I had a pendant light. From growing up with builders, I learned that you can almost always make do — even if you don’t have access to all the materials. When I was on NCIS: Hawaiʻi, I had to build sets on what was already the most remote archipelago in the world. The best tool of this trade is flexibility.

Describe your dream studio.

The world! There is an old saying: “Travel is the only thing you buy that makes you richer.” It’s true; all my design ideas spring from somewhere I’ve traveled. I also buy jewelry on vacation so I can wear my art pieces, because who has that much wall space, anyway?

*By an off-chance interaction during Covid, Molenaar found herself working on a show on the most remote archipelago in the world.*

What’s one unique thing about your work process?

I’m an Emmy-winning art director, yet I don’t consider myself an artist, per se. My degree is in artist management. I don’t pretend to be the designer, either. I’m there to build whatever comes from their brilliant creative minds. I like to say, “Yes we can build it” before I know how it will be accomplished. There is always a way. You just need time and money — or a lot of either one. And numbers are not creative…. you either have the money to produce what is needed or you need to change the scope of the work. But the most important tool is your brilliant crew. I trust the professionals and try extremely hard not to micro-manage. They are the ones that can build and create anything.

Do you have a mantra?

So many. One is: run toward things that scare you. Another is a piece of advice that my college professor once gave me: you have to quit to move up. Actually, she doesn’t remember telling me that, but I lived by her advice and quit my job as a commercial production manager when I realized there was no way forward at the company. The next step up was the executive producer position, and that was too far-fetched for a 24-year-old. It was a hard realization but I knew I had to pivot, so I quit and I’m so glad I did. My next job was production coordinating on a Spike Jonze music video for “The Yeah Yeah Yeah’s.” And that was eventually how I found art directing.

*Sometimes the magic happens in the most unexpected places…*

What’s the brightest idea you’ve had that has yet to see the light of day?

It will see the light of day. I’m going to create a screenplay about my grandmothers’ lives — they were badasses from opposite sides of the planet: Indonesia and the Appalachian Mountains of VA. My Indonesian grandmother raised children in hiding during WWII, and she was kicked out of Indonesia during the Indonesian Revolution that followed the war because of their Dutch lineage. My Appalachian grandmother was a coal miner’s wife and raised her children where she grew all the food, fed farm animals, canned, cooked, and made all the clothes. I know I can do anything because of them. I named my daughter after them.

What did it take to pull off season 3 of The Summer I Turned Pretty?

The crew was very female-centric in the sense that we had a female creator and showrunner, Jenny Han, and there were a lot of women directors, DP’s and heads of departments. I learned the most from watching these powerful women work together to create Han’s fictitious town, Cousins Beach. It became our world.

I learned how the production designer, Teresa Mastropierro, tells the character’s story through her set design. The summer house kitchen set was so meticulously designed. She thought out what Susannah would have had to upgrade or renovate and what she would have left from the original architecture of the house. You don’t know why you feel at home when you’re watching, but it’s because it doesn’t look staged — it’s because of Teresa and set decorator Beth Robinson. Countless late nights making sure everything was perfectly thought out to transport you back to Cousins.

The hardest part to pull off as a show was keeping everything a secret and not to spoil it for the fans. I know it’s what you really want to ask me right now. How does it end? Team Jeremiah or Team Conrad? You’ll find out on Wednesday!

Nearly every creative has a to-do list item that keeps them up at night. What’s yours?

When juggling balls, you just need to know which ones are glass. I only stay up thinking about the ones that are glass. And only one that is glass is my baby Ruby.

The third season of The Summer I Turned Pretty was also the Summer I Got Pregnant At 45. So, never say never is my best advice. I saw David Letterman had a child late in life, and he said something like it’s the best thing he’s done and doesn’t know why he spent so much time on a TV show. All he wants to do is make his son laugh. I now understand what he’s getting at. I have created a lot in my career, but she is by far my greatest creation, my biggest success.

How “The Summer I Turned Pretty” Art Director Kathryn Molenaar Works

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