Creating a Desert Oasis for Palm Springs , Hulu's Quirky New Rom-Com

When a movie is titled Palm Springs, it feels safe to assume that the location plays a central role in the narrative. In the case of the delightful confection hitting Hulu on Friday, July 10, two guests at a destination wedding—played by Andy Samberg and Cristin Milioti—become trapped in a time loop, and must wake up every morning at a resort in the confines of that sunny southern California oasis.

With so much of the film centered around the unique town famous for its midcentury-modern design, imagine production designer Jason Kisvarday’s surprise when he learned that for financial reasons, the romantic comedy was going to be filmed in the nearby municipalities of Santa Clarita, Agua Dolce, Palmdale, and Lancaster. “The biggest challenge was trying our best to try to make these towns feel like Palm Springs and the surrounding areas without actually being there,” he tells Architectural Digest. “We did whatever we could so nobody could tell the difference. We even brought in palm trees.”

Challenge number two was finding a geographically and architecturally appropriate locale with a pool that could house a bride and groom and their respective families and friends, as well as an outdoor wedding. “It needed to be a paradise,” he says. “Our hero is trying to make the best of the situation after being there for God knows how long.” Kisvarday and his team settled on three different spots, including a sprawling private residence to double as the resort’s main bedroom. With its stripped-back natural color scheme and bohemian decor touches, “I would call it ‘desert hipster,’” Kisvarday says. He adds that he used the midcentury-Americana-inspired interior of Ace Hotel & Swim Club in Palm Springs as a reference.

For the ceremony and party, Kisvarday admits he typed in “desert wedding” on Pinterest and reaped all the photographic results. “We pulled up hundreds and hundreds of images and curated our favorite elements,” he says. Though the gazebo was already built into the location, the team sourced furniture such as the reception tables and chairs, the bar, dance floor and the DJ table from various local wedding supply rental places. Set decorator Kelsi Ephraim—who, fittingly, also happens to be Kisvarday’s fiancée!—took care of the finishing touches, like string lights, table dressings, and a chandelier.

The lush swimming pool area of the fictional resort was filmed at the Santa Clarita home of an optometrist simply nicknamed “Dr. Steve” by the crew. Its prominence atop a hill is significant, as this is where Samberg’s character chooses to accept his fate by aimlessly floating on a pizza-slice-printed inflatable raft and chugging a beer. The deck chair cushions were custom-made, while the recliners themselves “came from a very exclusive retailer called IKEA,” Kisvarday says with a laugh. And that raft? Ordered from Amazon and still available for purchase.

Overall, “this supposed to be a super-nice and fun place to be stuck in,” he adds. But as the two cynical bandits travel outside the resort, “it’s the exact opposite.” He points to the scenery-deprived dusty dirt roads, plus a traditional dive bar, an authentic taco truck stand with hand-painted signage, and a hole-in-the-wall diner. The latter was constructed decades ago for a German film. “There’s no electricity or plumbing in it, so we brought our own props and signage to breathe some life into it,” he says. Indeed (and mild spoiler alert!), the pair find closure when they’re outside their comfort-zone paradise.

And speaking of a happily ever after…? “Kelsi and I were joking that we should just get married at the film location because all the set dressing was already there,” Kisvarday says. “It ended up not happening, but we appreciated the irony.”

Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest