BAZ TAKES HOTEL DECOR IN NEW DIRECTION

If you’re a fan of films such as Moulin Rouge, starring Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor, or The Great Gatsby starring Leonardo DiCaprio, then you’ll know they are the visions of mercurial Australian director Baz Luhrmann.

Recognised for his sumptuous production values, unique visual style and for depicting worlds that are both glamorous and haunting in films such as Strictly Ballroom and Romeo & Juliet, Luhrmann also recently ventured into TV with a Netflix series.

Broadcast last year, The Get Down is a musical history of the New York hip hop scene during the 1970s. Luhrmann has also been dabbling with interior design at a hotel overlooking Florida’s Miami Beach. There he’s designed the interiors of 10 penthouse residences within its two top floors.

His Faena Hotel apartments offer owners cinematic views of the azure coast and interiors worthy of a Moulin Rouge set. Suffice to say red velvet and leopard skin are much in evidence.

The hotel, which used to be called The Saxony and was a favourite of the Rat Pack during the 1960s, now “draws from this DNA” says Luhrmann, describing his designs for the hotel as a “mythical utopia that enthrals and transforms all who come”.

You’ll need a bit more than the price of a cinema ticket to see his latest production.

Prices for the apartments start at $2.4 million or, if you just want to book in for a holiday at the hotel, $20,000 a night.