vol. 9, issue 4
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FEATURES Costume Design at the White House . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Meet Our New President and Vice President . . . . . . . . . 18 Legacy: Shannon Litten . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Edith Had It Easy—
How Costume Design Collides with the Law in Technology and Social Media. . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Dialogue: Trish Summerille and Phillip Boutté Jr. . . . . 26
DEPARTMENTS COSTUME DESIGNERS GUILD 11969 Ventura Blvd., First Floor Studio City, CA 91604 phone: 818.752.2400 fax: 818.752.2402 costumedesignersguild.com GENERAL CDG CORRESPONDENCE cdgia@costumedesignersguild.com COVER CD Trish Summerville and Illustrator Phillip Boutté Jr. photographed by Robert Reiff at Magiclight Studios. Makeup by Lisa Nash-Jones, hair by Beatrice DeAlba. TOC Photo: Parkland. CD Kari Perkins. Photo: Claire Folger ©2013 Exclusive Media Entertainment, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Editor’s Note . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Contributors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Union Label. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 President’s Letter Executive Director Labor Report
The Costume Department. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 History of Dress
What’s On What’s In. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 In Focus. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Boldface Names
Scrapbook. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Fall 2013 The Costume Designer
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EDITOR’S NOTE Perhaps the Costume Design star is ascending? You must have noticed that Google honored one of our founders and possibly our most famous member, Edith Head, with a google doodle on October 28, in honor of her 116th birthday. It was a lithe watercolor of Head in front of six notable creations. On the theme of recognition, I recently received a charming email from Fong Sam, the President of Blacksparrow Auctions. While it was too late for an article, it certainly deserves a mention that his company is auctioning one of our Career Award winners, CD Judianna Makovsky’s costumes from the first Hunger Games. Intrigued, I inquired what motivated him. Sam replied, “Judianna took what already had a large fan base and delivered costumes that satisfied the imagination of those fans … her costumes in this movie range from simple to stunning, which epitomize her characters’ transformation. The care and thought that she used to create these costumes showcases her talents as a designer. She does not get enough credit for her work, despite the many accolades she has received. In putting together this auction and catalog, it is Judianna who we are really celebrating.” I simply couldn’t resist sharing this marvelous thought with all of you, because it means your work is not only being recognized, it is being valued. Speaking of The Hunger Games, having been an illustrator for many years, I am delighted to delve into the dialogue that takes place between the Costume Designer and the illustrator. CD Trish Summerville and Ill. Phillip Boutté Jr. indulge us with an intimate look at their dynamic for the second film in the series, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. Their rapport is evident and inspiring, as they describe an experience, which is both hair-raising and thrilling. They also grace our cover. We cast our eye toward illustration throughout this issue. Christine Cover Ferro tackles the formidable topic of copyright law from sketches to tweeting. The History of Dress has had a slight evolution, Robin Richesson and Marcy Froehlich, bring their many talents to the new format. We also breathed a bit of room into Bonnie Nipar’s baby, “What’s On What’s In.” Additionally, two new illustrators, Asha Randeen and Jerad Marantz, were kind enough to create some pieces for us. Notably, two of our members, CDs Colleen Atwood and Ruth Carter, spoke at the first White House Career day, Valli Herman from the Lippin Group gives us the scoop. I don’t know about you, but hearing those ladies muse about Costume Design would enrapture me at any age. A heartfelt thanks to them all as they make our publication possible through their diligence and enthusiasm. Personally, I love to see all the small, but significant signs, that not only do we care deeply about what we do, the audience does as well.
costumedesignersguild.com EDITOR-AT-LARGE
Anna Wyckoff
ASSOCIATE EDITORS
Bonnie Nipar Christine Cover Ferro PRESIDENT
Salvador Perez
sperez@cdgia.com VICE PRESIDENT
Cate Adair
cadair@cdgia.com SECRETARY
Terry Gordon
tgordon@cdgia.com TREASURER
Marilyn Matthews
mmatthews@cdgia.com EXECUTIVE BOARD
Julie Weiss
jweiss@cdgia.com
April Ferry
aferry@cdgia.com
Mary Vogt
mvogt@cdgia.com
Christopher Lawrence clawrence@cdgia.com
Felipe Sanchez
Costume Illustrators Representative fsanchez@cdgia.com
Brigitta Romanov
ACD Representative bromanov@cdgia.com LABOR REPRESENTATIVES
Betty Madden Sharon Day
BOARD ALTERNATES
Ken Van Duyne
kvanduyne@cdgia.com
Mona May
mmay@cdgia.com
Kristin Burke
kburke@cdgia.com
Jennifer Soulages
jsoulages@cdgia.com BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Jacqueline Saint Anne
Anna Wyckoff awyckoff@cdgia.com
jsaintanne@cdgia.com
Cliff Chally
chally@cdgia.com
Barbara Inglehart
bingleheart@cdgia.com
A special thanks to Gentle Giant Studios Gentle Giant specializes in head, body, and Lidar scanning, and prop building. They offer highly accurate, body scan based measurements for Costume Designers and were kind enough to provide us with a sample 3-D body scan for our article on the subject. On the vanguard of VFX technology, some recent projects include The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, Divergent, Man of Steel, The Lone Ranger, and Oblivion. In early 2014, Gentle Giant will be conducting a class in 3-D technology for our membership. http://www.gentlegiantstudios.com
ALTERNATE TRUSTEE
Dorothy Amos
damos@cdgia.com EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Rachael M. Stanley rstanley@cdgia.com
Member services ADMINISTRATor
Suzanne Huntington
shuntington@cdgia.com RECEPTIONIST/SECRETARY
Cheryl Marshall
cmarshall@cdgia.com PUBLISHER
IngleDodd Media ADVERTISING DIRECTOR
Dan Dodd 310.207.4410 x236
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Advertising@IngleDodd.com
“THE DIRECTOR’S GLITTERY ADAPTATION OF THE NOVEL IS AS STRONG AN EXAMPLE OF AUTEUR CINEMA AS HOLLYWOOD CAN SUPPORT – THE DIRECTOR HAS REINVENTED IT AS ONLY HE COULD.”
– PETER DEBRUGE, VARIETY
“CATHERINE MARTIN’S COSTUMES ARE STAGGERINGLY BEAUTIFUL.”
– PETER TRAVERS, ROLLING STONE
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION
BEST COSTUME DESIGN CATHERINE MARTIN W W W . WA R N E R B R O S 2 0 1 3 . C O M
“AMONG THE UNIFORMLY ACCOMPLISHED TECHNICAL CONTRIBUTIONS, CATHERINE MARTIN ONCE AGAIN STANDS OUT FOR HER PRODUCTION AND COSTUME DESIGN.” – SCOTT FOUNDAS, VARIETY
CONTRIBUTORS
Describe the moment you fell in love with film or television? DIANA EDEN (Legacy) Growing up in England and Canada, TV and film were not part of my everyday life. I didn’t really fall in love until I co-starred in a film in the mid-’70s. I LOVED being on a film set: from the eclectic community and the adventure of every day being brand new. Forty years later, I still do.
jerad marantz (The 3-D Scan, Writer and Illustrator) I cannot remember a time when I wasn’t in love with movies and TV. As a child, if I wasn’t drawing or reading comics, I was watching a favorite show. If I had to narrow it down; Star Wars, Batman, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were my biggest influences. Those films looked like they were so much fun to make and I knew I had to be a part of making films like those.
Bonnie Nipar (Associate Editor, What’s On What’s In) The moment I began my love affair with movies was seeing To Kill a Mockingbird at a young impressionable age. Enthralled, I identified with the relationship between Scout and Atticus. Most importantly, I experienced the power of film to instill life lessons about prejudice, discrimination, and empathy that I still value today.
valli herman (Costume Design at the White House) Like a big thump to the heart, seeing The Wizard of Oz for the first time brought the world of visual storytelling to life for . me—flying monkeys, sparkly shoes, greenfaced witches and that little dog, too. The movie still makes me yearn to fly off in my own twister and be dropped directly into Oz.
Robin Richesson (History of Dress, Illustrator) Growing up with both, I would say “to know them is to love them.”As kids we felt deprived if we had to miss Saturday-morning cartoons, and the first live-action film I saw in a theater was Mary Poppins, that was definitely love.
Marcy Froehlich (History of Dress, Text) It’s hard to remember exactly when this happened, but perhaps seeing the magical green costumes in The Wizard of Oz and the lush period costumes of Gone with the Wind sealed my fate at an early age.
Christine Cover Ferro (Associate Editor, Edith Had It Easy) My path in life may very well have been set in stone the night my parents took me to see Flash Gordon.
Stacy Ellen Rich (Co-contributor to Boldface Names) I can’t recall there being a moment when I did not love film and television, it was an integral part of my existence. As a child of the ’70s, my world revolved around watching shows like Alice and Welcome Back Kotter, going to the movies, Saturday-morning cartoons, and watching old movies on Sundays. Dead End (1937) was always one of my favorites.
asha randeen (Edith Had It Easy) Perhaps nothing was more fascinating to a little girl from the Caribbean as mermaids. At 9, I was introduced to the character of Madison in Splash and was captivated by this mythological creature, the fact that for two hours I could escape my reality and live in hers, beneath the ocean. Ever since, I have loved movies capable of whisking me away to their world of fantasy and make-believe.
Suzanne Huntington (Co-contributor to Boldface Names) I don’t know a singular moment, but to this day I remember I couldn’t miss an episode of I Love Lucy because I was fascinated to see what Lucy could possibly be embroiled in next. I can think of plenty that I fell in love with on TV: Shaun Cassidy, Donny Osmond, Bobby Sherman … but that wasn’t your question?
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BEST COSTUME DESIGN BOB BUCK ANN MASKREY RICHARD TAYLOR
FROM THE DIRECTOR OF ‘THE LORD OF THE RINGS’ TRILOGY
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union label PRESIDENT’S LETTER Costume Designers are finally being recognized in the marketplace beyond what they design for film and television. From our cover subject, Trish Summerville’s new line for Net-a-Porter, to Janie Bryant’s and Eric Damon’s fashion lines hitting the market, retailers have finally realized the value of our work—we are setting trends and creating characters and looks that audiences worldwide want to emulate. In the past, a fashion designer would have been hired to reinterpret our work. Having the Costume Designer who originally created the look, take their vision to the public has been a huge success and is finally becoming the standard, rather than the exception. The visibility and press we are receiving is a great opportunity to reinforce that not only are we the artists who initiate a look or a world, we can translate that vision into real-world value. With this new voice, we also need to use our power to strengthen our union. I recently attended the IATSE Labor Movement Seminar, where I was very proud that we had a strong turnout of CDG members. It was quite informative, but one of the items which struck me, is that our strongest power is our wallet. As Costume Designers, we buy vast amounts of clothing and goods every week, we should be aware of where our dollars are spent. Let’s be conscious and only support worker-friendly brands. We are a dynamic, creative organization, but in order for us to be powerful we all have to bring our talents and time to the table. I encourage you to call the office and lend a hand, or join a committee. It may surprise you that an office of three people, spearheaded by our Executive Director, Rachael Stanley, runs our entire Guild. Volunteering is necessary and it can be a great opportunity to get to know and be inspired by your fellow members. I began as a volunteer two decades ago and I am still a volunteer, but it is my greatest honor to represent you. The worlds we create may be incredible, but in the real world, we have to be ready to fight as a united front, because the opposition is firmly in place against us. I always hear the question, “What does the union do for me?” and I ask you, “What do you do for your union?” Salvador Perez sperez@cdgia.com
We appreciate the ongoing support of our corporate sponsors Diamond Level
Sapphire Level
EMERALd Level
ruby level
Betty Madden is arrested for protesting Walmart’s treatment of workers on Nov. 7, 2013
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union label
Dear Members, Happy fall! Cooler temperatures are welcome after a long hot summer. Everyone seems more invigorated and change is in the air. Along with the weather, we also have a change in our Guild leadership with our newly elected Executive Board headed by President Salvador Perez. This marks the third President and Eboard I will have had the privilege of serving with. Each regime has brought its unique perspective and left its mark on the Guild. President Deborah Landis led us into a new era of member growth and increased our visibility with the public and the entertainment community. President Mary Rose focused on member education and training to help members be better equipped for our rapidly changing business. President Salvador Perez has already put his plan into motion to help modernize and equip us for the technical, digital age of the entertainment business, while still continuing to educate the public and the rest of the industry about our artistic contribution to film and television. Your newly elected Board is coming up to speed and diving right into important issues that affect our members and their work. Our Guild is actively involved in helping to bring about tax incentives to help keep our jobs here in California, Our Education Committee is in full gear planning exciting new classes and our labor leaders, Betty Madden and Sharon Day, are busy helping us to organize and educate our members about the importance this union holds in their lives. Your CDG office is always looking for ways to serve the members better and more efficiently. The website is becoming the valuable resource that it should be and is user-friendly and beautiful to look at. Our directory is the envy of other locals and our magazine is sought after not only within the industry but by the public as well. I am excited about this next part of my journey serving the members of this Guild. I hope that every member will begin to look at the way they work and reevaluate how to grow their talent and skills. Times are changing and we need to change with them. Embrace the future and dive head first into your exciting career.
-Janie Bryant, MadMen Costume Designer to Orlando Magazine
In Solidarity, Rachael Stanley rstanley@cdgia.com
2013/2014 CALENDAR November 4
Executive Board meeting
November 9
Labor Training Class
November 17
Artisan Bazaar for MPTF
November 28 Office Closed Thanksgiving & November 29
407-599-7225 2117 West Fairbanks Winter Park, FL 32789 |
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December 2
Executive Board meeting
December 7
CDG Holiday Party, Paley Center
December 24 CDG offices closed –January 2 January 6
Executive Board meeting
January 25
MPTF Day at the Races
February 22
CDG Awards Event
“ THIS IS A MOVIE TO BRING HOME AND LIVE WITH, TO KICK AROUND IN YOUR HEAD AFTER IT HITS YOU IN THE HEART.
IT’S DAMN NEAR PERFECT.”
DIRECTED BY
ALEXANDER PAYNE WRITTEN BY BOB NELSON
“What is most impressive about costume designer Suzy Benzinger’s work on ‘Blue Jasmine,’ is how impeccably it conjures the here and now. With an anthropologist’s eye, Ms. Benzinger brings to the screen that exotic species called the Upper East Side Socialite.” -Guy Trebay, THE NEW YORK TIMES
“Suzy Benzinger crosses off all of the appropriate designers: the shoes, the bag, and the jewels are right on the money, so to speak.” -Alexandra Macon, VOGUE
BEST COSTUME DESIGN SUZY BENZINGER
“MARVELOUS.
FLASHBACKS ARE HANDLED WITH THE GREATEST OF EASE – NEVER LOSING THE AUDIENCE ON THE TIMELINE. AS A PERIOD PIECE, MICHAEL O’CONNOR’S COSTUMES EARN TOP MARKS.” -Courtney Howard, VERY AWARE
BEST COSTUME DESIGN MICHAEL O’CONNOR
BEST MAKE UP JENNY SHIRCORE
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN MARIA DJURKOVIC
THE INVISIBLE WOMAN FOR SCREENING INFO VISIT WWW.SONYCLASSICSAWARDS.COM
LABOR REPORT
A big thankyou to all of our members for ever moving forward and expanding our understanding of what is needed to improve the lives of working families, from our own to those in our community—throughout District II and across the country. Much has happened. Here are some highlights of the CDG taking action: • 2013 CDG election slate of candidates was impressive. All winners! How wonderful for us in the CDG. All the best to the newly elected. • CDG organizing success is a direct result of our members’ willingness to be the front line organizer on every production. • Activism is on the rise among our membership. Two recent IATSE labor union history presentations were well attended and there are more to come, as we all have questions about what the union does and how it functions. • Our CDG office’s loyal and hardworking staff supports our membership daily. • More CDG members are turning out for the larger labor movement actions like Immigration Reform, Our Walmart Workers Campaign, and The Homeless Vets Walk, which helps our veteran women with children. We organize one by one by one as Cesar Chavez showed us—go out and organize! In Solidarity, Betty Madden CDG Organizer/Labor Rep bmadden@cdgia.com
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THE COSTUME DEPARTMENT
History Of Dress What do Dick Tracy, Rick Blaine, Holly Golightly, Neo, and Morpheus have in common? The trench coat.
D
eveloped for the British military in WWI (imagine Burberry in the mud?) to keep weary officers dry and not smelling like soggy sheep while in the trenches, the coat still retains its soldier’s heritage. Design details are not just fashionable, but also utilitarian: shoulder straps for epaulettes, a double yoke for rifle butt padding or merely to shield the rain, a D ring for hanging your sword or hand grenade. Over time the classic design has transformed from uniform to wardrobe staple, gracing many iconic screen characters in the process.
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Illustrations by Robin Richesson rrichesson@cdgia.com Text by Marcy Froehlich mfroehlich@cdgia.com
Costume Designers at
Historic White House Film Symposium
By Valli Herman
Michelle Obama and Ruth Carter 16
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and informing young adults about the opportunities and process of costume design,” Atwood said. “The enthusiasm and heart they put into their sketches were really something that I will treasure.” Other departments like animation, Colleen Atwood special effects, makeup, directing, music, and sound effects were also represented. In an address that emphasized the importance of education, The First Lady spoke to the attendees and a panel of industry leaders, which included Whoopi Goldberg, Naomie Harris, Ryan Coogler, David Frankel, Blake Lively and Gayle King. “These folks know that it doesn’t just take technical knowledge to succeed in the movie business,” Mrs. Obama said in her address. “That’s one of the important points we want you all to take away. It’s not just about being a good actor or knowing how to create the best special effects. It’s also about things like grit. It’s about determination, resilience. Because all of those character traits—the ability to overcome adversity—all of that are some of the traits and skills that have made the folks on this stage successful in life. And that’s what I want you guys to understand.”
Photo of Michelle Obama: Derica Washington
Photo: Weinstein Co.
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n November 8, the White House invited Costume Designers Colleen Atwood and Ruth Carter to participate in the first-ever White House Careers in Film Symposium. The designers brought behind-the-scenes Hollywood knowhow and copious enthusiasm to the invited groups of high school students from Washington, D.C., New York and Boston. Producer Harvey Weinstein invited Atwood and Carter and initiated the historic educational seminar in tandem with the White House. Carter, who earned Oscar nominations for Malcolm X and Amistad, created a hands-on seminar that showed costumes from concept to completion. She showed sketches and costumes she designed for Lee Daniels’ The Butler, and had Western Costume Company ship costumes that were inspired by The Hunger Games, and a slate of vampires and zombies. “I personally felt like I was honored, but also wanted to extend that honor to other Costume Designers by bringing costumes that I felt kids would relate to, and enjoy seeing and touching,” said Carter, who just wrapped Oldboy with Josh Brolin. Atwood, who has 10 Oscar nominations and three wins, presented a complementary seminar that had students drawing sketches and selecting fabric swatches to create a character. She flew in from the United Kingdom, where she is designing Into the Woods, to attend. “I was honored to be part of the symposium encouraging
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Meet Your President & Vice President President SALVADOR PEREZ
Born and raised in Central California, President Salvador Perez moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in fashion, studying at FIDM. Already an accomplished draper and sewer, his plans were subverted when Costume Designers discovered his talents. Perez gained a deep understanding of the Costume Design process working his way up from stitcher to costume manufacturing foreman (joining Local 705 in 1993) to assistant designer, then to designer. In 1995, Perez joined the Costume Designers Guild, and has always been a passionate advocate of the organization since. Immediately upon becoming a member, Perez realized, “The only way to see change happen was to be actively involved in that change.” His impulse has always been to volunteer wherever he saw a need. He worked on numerous committees, then he tackled the directory, and worked on the creation of the CDG website. Perez has served on the Executive Board for nine years, most recently as Vice President. We spoke to him about his vision for the CDG: “I actually take a lot of pride in what I’ve been able to do for the Guild, because it sort of helped bring us to the modern, hip organization that we are today. We’ve come miles from where we were a decade ago, but there is still more to do. We’re more than throwing a party—we’re a labor union and we need to fight for our rights. And with many people fighting against unions, we need to protect ourselves and become a stronger organization. My biggest goal is to increase visibility for Costume Designers. People think clothes just happen, and the reality is, we define the character. There’s not always a union requirement to have a Costume Designer on a show, it’s become the practice because producers and the audience expect more from costumes. We help create the vision of a television show or a film, and many people tune in just to watch what we do. That’s one of the reasons I think the PR and media are so important to our Guild, because they play a huge role in informing the public about what the nature of our work is. Where is our organization going to be at 50 in 10 years, I ask myself? We need to make the investment in ourselves, from buying a building to understanding our rights as union members. During the campaign, I spoke to so many members, I had my vision and reasons for running for president, but speaking to them solidified it. As much as we’ve done, and we have made great progress, we still have a long way to go. I want to be completely accessible to the membership, my email and cellphone are listed, don’t hesitate to contact me. Just recently I had a member call with a contract issue, 18
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we met with our Executive Director, Rachael Stanley, and are working on a way to resolve it. Many acclaimed Costume Designers don’t know our contracts. I spoke with a few who did not know they were entitled to idle day pay on location—it’s a union stipulation and they’re not getting paid for it. We need to educate our members as much as possible, as to what their rights are as union members, that’s our job, and it is very important to me. Also, the industry is changing and it’s going digital, we need to be at the forefront. We have members designing animated films and video games. I would like to give all of our members the tools they need to compete in that world. I want our members to feel that they’re part of the change, that they are involved, and that they’re part of the movement. I can’t do it all myself, I need our members to volunteer and be actively involved. I’m inviting them to take charge of their future, because individually we’re not very strong. But the idea of having a union is being powerful as a group, having negotiating power, and being able to create the future that we envision for ourselves rather than just sitting on the sidelines and letting whatever happen, happen. Choosing your future involves actively participating and letting your voice be heard. The more visible we are, the more sound bites we make, we get our message out, not just for the Costume Designers Guild, but for the industry in general. Every time there’s an article about us, it’s great because people are reminded what Hollywood does, and how that transformative power captures the imagination of our audience.”
Photo: Emily Berl
Vice President Cate Adair
From a very young age, Cate Adair sewed. She was fascinated by the fabric, lace, and trim shops frequented by her godmother, a children’s dress designer in England. At 7, her parents took her to see a production of Peter Pan in London, in a jewel box of a Victorian theater, and she was captivated by the world of fantasy. In art school, Adair specialized in theater sets and Costume Design, but realized her bias was always toward costume. Her education was rounded off by apprenticeships at regional theater and in London. When Adair’s parents immigrated to the United States, she found herself with a green card as a 21st birthday present. In the United States, Adair had a brief foray into fashion, but settled into Washington, D.C.’s world of theater. Eventually, she became known to film or television crews which worked in town. CD Molly Maginnis took Adair under her wing and eventually encouraged her to make the leap to Los Angeles, and quite memorably, she did. We caught up with Cate to talk about her latest role as Vice President. “I’ve been very fortunate along the way—people have recommended me for jobs. For example, Deborah Landis recommended me when her husband was directing Beverly Hills Cop III and she was busy. The Guild has always quietly been there for me and members of the Guild have always been generous sharing their knowledge. The truth is, if it wasn’t for the Guild, I wouldn’t be where I am today. Several people approached me about running [for office] and I felt I needed to put myself forward, because the Guild has given me a home, a community, and an identity; and I felt that I needed to offer my services to give back. While perhaps I couldn’t come up with anything anybody hasn’t already thought of, because I know how hard the members of the Executive Board have worked, I thought, well, at least maybe I might come with a different angle. After eight years of Desperate Housewives, deep in the trenches where you keep thinking it’s going to get easier, and it doesn’t, it just gets harder. It’s going to get easier because they’re giving us more money. It’s going to get easier because the girls are going to get to feel safer. It’s going to get easier because the scripts will come on time, and none of that happens. None of it. Scripts come later. Your actors feel less secure because they keep getting more and more press. I thought maybe, just maybe, I’d come at issues from a slightly different perspective that might be helpful.
You think of the influence that Milena Canonero had with Out of Africa—suddenly, everybody was doing cream and linen and hats. But no one really stood up and said, ‘Wait a minute. Ralph Lauren has done a 180-degree turn because a Costume Designer took a vision and took a piece of storytelling and romanced it and told it so beautifully with a group of collaborative cinematographers and production designers and actors that it has changed how people on the high street are dressing.’ I don’t need to go to a film as big as Out of Africa or a television series as big as Desperate Housewives or Mad Men—especially now that people stream everything on their tablets. We all have those stories and frankly, if we can communicate that, then I think we’ve arrived. In the future, I would like to see us taken even more seriously. I think that we’ve come a long way in the last 15 years, but I think there’s still a perception that we just run out and shop. We’re making inroads because of social media, but I think there needs to be a stronger correlation of recognition of how we influence trends and how our storytelling in these wonderful worlds that we create then changes and manipulates and morphs into how people in everyday life are being and living and what they are wearing.
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egacy: Shannon Litten
Photo: Ron Galella/Getty Images
By Diana Eden
Above: Sharon Gless at the 39th Annual Emmy Awards in a gown of Shannon Litten’s design. 20
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It seems Shannon Litten was destined to become a Costume Designer. She grew up in an artistic family in the San Francisco Bay area with her two sisters and was deeply influenced by her mother, a painter, and her father, who was a musician. Following high school, Litten signed up for art school, but also applied for a position in the Universal Studios costume department. Suddenly, while still a teenager, Litten was thrown into the thick of it, starting at the bottom, sorting shoes, and pinning in dress shields on the “women townsfolk” while filming Westerns on the back lot. In fact, she tells the story of being sent to the honey wagon and having no idea what such a thing was. Litten worked under CDs Helen Colvig, Kay Hayden, and Grady Hunt on shows such as The Virginian and Laredo absorbing all that she could and realizing she wanted to continue pursuing a career in Costume. After spending what she considered too much time on the dusty back lot, Litten decided that if she dressed up, she might land a contemporary show. Her hunch proved correct, and she was hired by CD Leslie Hall for The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Litten moved to Twentieth Century-Fox and worked as a key costumer on the period show A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, then moved swiftly from one television movie to the next. Room 222 was her first project in the top position. Afterward, Litten designed Rhoda for four years, then went on to Cagney & Lacey, both experiences she relished. By now she was certain she wanted to be a Costume Designer and arranged to take art classes in-between work and to join the Costume Designers Guild. “The best show I ever did was The Trials of Rosie O’Neill from 1990 to 1992,” remarks Litten. The show was produced in a studio in downtown Los Angeles where Litten had a workroom and was able to design and build many of the costumes for actress Sharon Gless, for whom she has nothing but praise. “Sharon was never a fashion plate, but had a style of her own and was more interested in becoming her character.” Litten says, “In period design, there are rules to abide by … but with contemporary design, there are no real limits. I could go outside the lines. I think there is more artistic freedom in contemporary design, and it is quite underrated at award season.” However, after four seasons designing Murder, She Wrote, Litten was so exhausted from the grueling schedule of outfitting multiple guest stars in six to ten changes per episode, that she decided to retire from Costume Design. When asked if she misses it, Litten responds, “I miss the creative parts: I never got tired of shopping, of fabrics, and colors and creating a beautiful palette in a scene. After all, my roots were in art.” Litten says, “I never wanted to be famous. I just loved my job.”
Edith Had It Easy: How Costume Design Collides with the Law in Technology and Social Media By Christine Cover Ferro
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he intersection of technology and media has become a virtual Wild Wild West. As the lightning-speed evolution of the latest tech innovations creates seemingly limitless opportunities for those savvy enough to understand how to exploit them, Costume Designers are faced with a fresh set of challenges. As with any new world, the rules have been undefined, but as they come into focus, it becomes clear that an innocent misstep can carry legal reper-
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cussions. As our Guild works hard to raise the visibility of the collective membership, and as more and more of our members are becoming public figures in their own right, and it is crucial to recognize with increased exposure comes with increased vulnerability. Understanding how these technological tools can be applied, along with their potential pitfalls, is a necessary conversation for Costume Designers and illustrators to have in order to anticipate potential liabilities.
Designers of all stripes, along with the rest of the entertainment industry, have successfully taken on social media sites as marketing tools for both their own brands and projects. Crew and cast alike on popular shows like Scandal, Sleepy Hollow, and Castle treat their viewers to a running commentary of their time on set and in the workroom, offering a deeper insight into what goes on behind the scenes. Costume Designers interact directly with fans, fielding questions on everything from the provenance of a fabulous article of clothing, to their thoughts on the creative process, and their own professional paths. In late spring of this year, the sci-fi blogs collectively swooned when the first production images from one of the sci-fi tentpoles came, not from paparazzi shots of the production, but from a director’s own Twitter account. More and more, media-savvy producers are recognizing how this can benefit a project’s brand. However, the electronic intimacy created between the creators and the audience becomes a double-edged sword, blurring the lines between brilliant marketing and a fireable violation of the Non-Disclosure Agreement.
The 3-D Scan: An Interview with Illustrator Jerad Marantz The first images are a generic three-dimensional model which have been sent to us courtesy of Gentle Giant. For Costume Design purposes, this first figure would be a three-dimensional scan of the actor that would result in it having their precise measurements. It’s an intricate process to transform the raw scan into a finished illustration, it begins with giving the model a stance. In Zbrush, I can pose the figure in any position, paint and render it. For an illustrator it serves as an accurate and fast base to begin costume illustrations. Then the figure is painted with skin and the features of the actor. In the final steps of painting, I light the image, then seamlessly alter and blend the features. At this point, I can make drastic changes very easily from the hairstyle, eye color, and the skin tone. If the Costume Designer wants a photorealistic finish to the portrait, I add photos on top of the 3-D model in Photoshop. Finally, the figure is dressed in the costume and is completely transformed into the character. The costume can actually be sculpted onto three-dimensional form and sent around the globe for fabrication. This technique has its benefits when making multiples because proportions can be perfectly scaled to stunt doubles. jeradsmarantz.blogspot.com
Illustration by Jerad Marantz
Social Media
3-D Model: Gentle Giant Studios
Illustration
Prior to the Shepard Fairey lawsuit over President Barack Obama’s “Hope” poster being finalized in 2012, the general belief was that adapting or interpreting an existing work was not a violation of intellectual property laws. For example, if photorealistic illustrations were required for a project, it was considered acceptable, and, more importantly, legal for the designer or illustrators to use actor headshots or publicity photographs as a reference if the source was obviously altered, by redrawing or digitally painting over it. The verdict of the case established that stylizing an image is not enough to sever its connection to the original source Costume sketches are being used for far more than construction purposes and are increasingly being seen in more types of media from books to popular websites. Designers should assume that any artwork created for a production will eventually become public, and that rights to any references used for the sketch need to be approved, prior to use. Some illustrators sidestep this issue of clearances by asking to take their own reference photos during fittings, having the studio provide approved images, or working from body scans. There will be times when it is necessary to work with references from other sources. Because the laws surrounding intellectual property are particularly complex, securing clearances is best left to parties with know-how in the field. The safest route for the Costume Designer or illustrator is to have the legal team from the production company or studio handle securing rights.
On projects of any size or scope, it is best to be crystal clear with what the production’s expectations are. Some projects will want all information kept on lockdown, with even the mention that you’re working on the project prior to release considered unacceptable, while others will delight in everyone on the team taking part in building momentum for the project. Know beforehand the tone of your project, and always beware of giving away a spoiler.
File Sharing The electronic band the Postal Service got its name from its members’ production process: instrumental tracks and vocals were edited and layered on digital analogue tapes sent back and forth via the U.S. mail. Had their first album been recorded today, the collaboration might have been titled Dropbox or Drive. File-sharing services are another piece of technology quickly becoming an industry norm. The benefits are substantial: because they work like a virtual hard drive, subfolders and all, they’re a far more organized alternative to sending individual emails, and, with custom settings on synchable apps, files and pictures can be shared from a smartphone in real time. As it becomes more and more rare for all the decision makers to regularly be in the same room or sometimes even the same continent, the option to share large chunks of data so quickly saves everyone involved inestimable amounts of time and is key in clarifying communication. Something perceptive designers have realized is that posting a document in a shared file, despite required logins and encryption technology, can be, in a worst-case scenario, only slightly less secure than posting online. Once the file is uploaded, especially when someone else controls access or sharing permissions, there is very little that can be done to keep another party with access from passing the file on, accidentally or otherwise. Protecting files with a password acts as a safeguard, but it’s not foolproof. In the case of fitting photos, some designers opt to protect their actors, their likeness rights, and, potentially, plot lines by either cropping or digitally covering the actor’s face on shared photos, or taking shots with the actor’s face turned away.
Conclusion Each era has had its own set of challenges. While our artistic ancestors Edith Head, Helen Rose, and William Travilla might be envious of some of the current tools that streamline and expedite our process, we know them to be a blessing and a liability. In order for us to navigate today’s electronic wilderness with confidence, one must keep in mind that asking for forgiveness will almost never be easier than asking for permission.
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I c o n I c F a b r I c s a n d a c c e s s o r I e s F o r s ta g e a n d s c r e e n
Gladson Ltd. | 1-800-227-1724 | sales@gladsonltd.com | www.gladsonlegends.com | www.gladsonltd.com
Dial
Costume Designer Trish Summerville and Illustrator Phillip Boutté Jr. Concept Summerville: I began the design process by having many conversations with [director] Francis Lawrence, figuring out our vision and what we could bring to Hunger Games, while still honoring the fan base, and author Suzanne Collins’ intentions for each of the characters. I was the new person on the team, so what the actors thought, and what their feelings were for these characters meant a lot to me, because they’d all lived it before. Boutté: We had one really big meeting, and for an illustrator, when your boss is going to a meeting, it’s like sending your kid off to school with their lunch and you’re trying to make sure they have everything. We did tons of boards, and we put our sketches with the art department sets so the studio could see the full visual range of the movie. Summerville: We made vision boards for everything from the costumes, to hair, makeup, and the environment. It’s an intense story—there are levels that are light and jovial, because the colors and some of the characters are quite over the top, and because of what Panem looks like. I wanted to continue to have that element, but I also wanted to show the real underlining story, and it’s very dark—it’s an uprising and it’s a rebellion. So, I chose to go a bit more serious than the first film. I did this with the Peacekeepers and with President Snow, I made him much more buttoned up, authoritative, and a little more menacing, I felt like he needed to be feared. I wanted to show the progression of the escalating evil and of Snow also feeling that his authority was being threatened. I was trying to give an overall darkness to the feel of the film, while still keeping the individuals in Panem, like Effie Trinket and Caesar Flickerman as the candy—those are the bonbons for you to look at.
The Beginning Summerville: Phil and I had to get in a groove, because we hadn’t worked together before. I can say blue, but what I think is blue, and what Phil thinks is blue is totally different. We would laugh because I would ask, ‘Where’s the Pantone book?’ Was it Katniss that we started with? The chariot? Boutté: It was the chariot.
ogue The Hunger Games: Catching Fire Summerville: We had one concept, which was amazing. But the response was that she looked too much like a superhero, so I had to scale that back, then there was a body suit I made for her, really intricate and beautiful, but they decided she should be in a dress. So we shifted our mindset, and it was really cool. We found an amazing fabric and Phil drew several variations. Boutté: Costume Designers work in different ways, Trish always has a plan or a direction, there’s a decisive quality, but there’s also room to expand. There was never a character where I didn’t know what she wanted and where she wanted to go, then we would get into more detail.
Illustration: The Mockingjay Dress, Phillip Boutté Jr.
Timeframe Summerville: We had a short timeframe—about two and a half months—with over 5,000 extras that we made clothing for in addition to the leads. Katniss alone had 45 changes, Peeta had 40, Haymitch had at the high end of 30 changes. It was just a lot. All the games uniforms, the Avox, President Snow’s men are built, we had 24 tributes from the districts that we see in both summer and winter. So, it was just kind of endless. I have a creative mind, but I also have a very organized business side to me. However, with such little time, it was a challenge just trying to also figure out scheduling. Boutté: And I will say, too, for that process, I think that it made it easier to work because Trish, like she said, has a creative side and business side, and they mesh well together, but she also trusts her crew. There were times when she got busy and would give me direction, but I knew she trusted me to carry through, so it made me even more creative. I felt very much that we were all able to be a part of the team and work together, and that really was a big deal. Summerville: I’m thankful because I had a really great team of people who worked hard and gave it their all. At one point in Atlanta, we were fitting 106 people a day, while shooting for 30 days straight. I would get headshots of every extra and my team would write their sizes on it, then I would stay after at night until two o’clock in the morning in the warehouse pulling changes,
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three options per person, and line up about 50 people at night so I could shoot in the morning and my crew could start the fittings. Then I could return to do the rest of the 106 people for the rest of the day. It was really a tough show.
Characters
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Donald Sutherland as President Snow.
Then, for each of the other districts, I tried to incorporate exactly what they’re supposed to do for the Capitol. For example the luxury district had nicer clothes, embellishment, trims, and jewelry. In the transportation district, was more of like a Goth kind of a community, there’s a lot of morphine in their community—which they call Morphling— so, they had just kind of a dirtier, grungier feel. Beetee’s district is electronics, but is definitely not Steampunk because there’s not the Victorian aspect to it. Beetee just collects little gears and gadgets as he works in the factory, and puts them on his clothes. Then we had the liberty of the fishing district, and I wanted it to be the cool colors of ocean and sunshine, so it’s a lot of like creams, yellows, blues and greens. I used fish pelts, hides and seashells, I was just trying to show the variation of each district. When we worked on Katniss’ Mockingjay dress—the wedding dress kind of burns away and then she becomes the Mockingjay. I found different birds like bluebirds, blue jays, and pheasant peacocks that all have these iridescent blue tones, and I would send Phil pictures of birds and then he’d research and find similar birds and lay out like kind of all their wings and patterns. I wanted the bodice to be like literal shape of feathers put together and the skirt to be kind of organic feathers. After we got the shape of the dress and what we wanted, and then we worked with the cutter/fitter Ruth. Phil worked with her and with graphic designer Trey Shaffer on the pattern pieces and he would, in his crazy, madcap brain figure out how each
Photo: Lionsgate
Boutté: Trish is very tech-savvy. There were two illustrators—Constantine Sekeris and I, and we had a Dropbox. She set up folders for us, which had all of her tear sheets of inspiration for each character. So, when I got to work, I already had a large folder of research I could pull from. This kept us on the same page. We were able to say, this is what she wants for jewelry, this is what she wants for Haymitch, this is what she wants for Katniss. Then I would go home and pull images for Trish, and it was fun because we could go back and forth. Summerville: One big challenge was the Games Costume because it was tricky and so prevalent in the film. One of the leads was 78 years old, so we had to figure out what looked good on both male and female body types, that they can swim in, run on lava rocks, and in the jungle, and shoes which accommodate ankle wraps. We made the final costume using modular pieces because it had to fit 24 different body types total... Boutté: …from an older woman, to a big muscle-bound guy, and a kid. We went through several variations until we landed on that last one. Summerville: And I have an issue with seeing pads under clothes—when all of the sudden someone is six inches wider through the back because there’s a stunt pad shoved under the costume. So, I wanted to do modular padding on the outside of the garment, so it became part of the design aesthetic. Phil really helped me to key into different fan sites, because I was very concerned what the fans of the book wanted to see, what is important to them, and what didn’t matter. Your imagination is the greatest creation you have, but not everything you can think of works on the body, and not everything translates to a film. At Comic-Con, Phil saw different people dressed, for example, as the Effie Trinket crew. He brought all that to me and showed me photos of what people were responding to. Seeing how kids created their own costumes was really interesting. When I read the books, my mind didn’t instantly go to the Dorothea Lange dust bowl Depression Era feel. And of course, my logical side thought, well, right now, if I had to costume 1,500 people—because in the districts, there’s supposed to be 1,500 to 3,000 per district—I couldn’t find 3,000 complete costumes anywhere that would have a 1930s, 1940s look. If it’s 75 years from today, where did all those clothes come from? Where were blue jeans? I chose to integrate jeans and more work wear. Also, I didn’t stay tied to the Sunday-best reaping wear. Everyone knows who’s getting reaped, no one’s dressing up for it, they’re angry about it, so they come in their dirty clothes. So, I was also able to age garments down more, bring in more contemporary pieces that showed a timelessness, rather than the dedicated 1930s or 1940s look that was there.
pattern piece had to have the design on it so that it all mitered together. Instead of printing yards of fabric and then cutting it and laying the pattern pieces ... he placed the print. It just worked out beautifully.
Photo: Lionsgate
Cultures Summerville: When we got to Panem and the Capitol, while there are definitely fashion trends, I did not want it to look like everyone was shopping at the same store. For me, it was a United Nations of the rich. I needed to have color in skin tones, I needed to have ethnic, I needed to have a vast variety because I wanted it to feel like we’re looking at where the world is going. I wanted it to look like there is an African influence, an Indian influence, and a Chinese influence. It was a melting pot, because that’s what America is. Boutté: I will say, I so loved that. Summerville: We draw so much from other cultures, and I saw this is the opportunity to show that. So, in the textile district I even asked the hair and makeup people, ‘Can you dye some of the people’s hands, stain their hands because they’re the ones who’s dying all the fabrics for the Capitol, so their hands would be dyed.’ I dyed some Middle Eastern pieces and a lot of brocades and tapestries, I also had burqas that I tied up into head wraps. Because I like the mix of the high and the low, I used fledgling designers and high-end designers. I also wanted the design to be more vast. In the Capitol we did trends—there were the florals or crazy houndstooth of all varying sizes, as though there’s a houndstooth craze. Some brands we approached told us that the film wasn’t their demographic. It was nice to send boards to House of Worth, Iris van Herpen, McQueen, and Tex
Saverio, and then get a positive response. Because I asked about the more extreme pieces, they were quite piqued and interested. We were so lucky with the people that chose to help us and participate. We found a great milliner, Daniel Vie, who makes hats out of origami, I also found a fantastic knitter, she made long, long cardigans for Haymitch that we then dipped and ombréd and aged.
The Tribe Summerville: I know it takes a village. I’m not creating everything on my own and I’m not making it all happen on my own. I like that family feel. I always say it’s my tribe. And I’m really thankful when I have people that want to be a part of that tribe, and want to work as hard as I do. But I don’t expect anybody to ever work as hard as I want to work, because at the bottom line, I know it’s mine. Boutté: Our department worked well together. There wasn’t a lot of the internal conflict. Summerville: Totally. There were even times when some of the production would joke, ‘You people are all so happy.’ But I love what I do—even on the toughest days—I love what I do and I’m really grateful.
For this article, Lionsgate did not permit any Hunger Games: Catching Fire illustrations to be used with heads, because of an issue with clearing the faces of the illustrations with the actors. Because as Costume Designers we are “work for hire” and do not own the end images of our design, we had to comply with their request. To read more about copyright issues as they pertain to Costume Design, see the related article on page 22. To view Phillip Boutté Jr. illustrations, please visit phillipbouttejr.carbonmade.com
Stanley Tucci as Caesar Flickerman and Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen.
what’s ON Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Costume Designer:
Ann foley Illustrator:
Almost Human Costume Designer:
The Crazy Ones
Assistant Designer:
Olivia Miles Payne
Jenni Gullett
Costume Designer:
Sheena Mair
Assistant Designer:
BrYan kopp
Illustrator:
Ron Turner
The Goldbergs Costume Designer:
Keri Smith
Assistant Designer:
Jennifer Marlin
Hello Ladies Costume Designer:
Susan Michalek
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Masters of Sex Costume Designer:
Ane Crabtree
Almost Human/FOX; Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D./Justin Lubin, ABC; The Crazy Ones/Richard Cartwright, CBS; Masters of Sex/Craig Blankenhorn, SHOWTIME; The Goldbergs/Ron Batzdorff, ABC; Hello Ladies/Jaimie Trueblood, HBO
Phillip BoutTĂŠ Jr.
Compiled by: Bonnie Nipar
Reign Costume Designer:
Meredith Markworth-Pollack
The Originals Costume Designer:
Assistant Designer:
Jennifer L. Bryan
leslie kavanagh
The Originals/Bob Mahoney, The CW; The Millers/Cliff Lipson, CBS; Reign/Sven Frenzel, The CW; Mom/Monty Brinton, CBS; Perception/Trae Patton, TNT; Sleepy Hollow/Brownie Harris FOX
Illustrator:
CIara brennan
The Millers Costume Designer:
Robin Kennedy
Sleepy Hollow Costume Designer:
Mom
KRISTIN M. BURKE Assistant Designer:
Costume Designer:
BRAD WATSON
Elizabeth Palmer
Illustrator:
Christian cordella
Perception Costume Designer:
julia schklair
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what’s IN Costume Designer:
Wendy Chuck
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
Parkland
Costume Designer:
Sarah Edwards
Costume Designer:
KarI perkins
Assistant Designer:
Emily Gunshor
12 Years a Slave Costume Designer:
Patricia Norris Assistant Designer:
Patrick wiley
Oldboy Costume Designer:
Ruth carter
Assistant Designer:
Bijoux Coates Illustrator:
Chloe Ji Yoon 32
The Costume Designer Fall 2013
The Fifth Estate Costume Designer:
Shay Cunliffe Assistant Designers:
Tom Campers Catherine Van bree
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty/Wilson Webb, 20th Century Fox; Nebraska/Merie W. Wallace, Paramount Vantage; Parkland/Claire Folger, Š2013 Exclusive Media Entertainment, LLC. All Rights Reserved; The Fifth Estate/Frank Connor, DreamWorks Pictures; 12 Years a Slave/Francois Duhamel, Fox Searchlight Pictures; Oldboy/Courtesy of Film District
Nebraska
Compiled by: Bonnie Nipar
Romeo and Juliet Costume Designer:
The Wolf of Wall Street
Carlo Poggioli
Costume Designer:
Assistant Designers:
Sandy Powell
Anina pinter salvatore salzano
Assistant Designer:
Christopher peterson
Illustrator:
The Wolf of Wall Street/Paramount Pictures and Red Granite Pictures; Inside Llewyn Davis/Courtesy of CBS Films; Romeo and Juliet/Š2013 R&J Releasing, Ltd. All Rights Reserved; Saving Mr. Banks/Francois Duhamel, Walt Disney Pictures; Last Vegas/Chuck Zlotnick, CBS Films; American Hustle/Francois Duhamel, Sony Pictures
Stefania borrellI
Inside Llewyn Davis Costume Designer:
Mary Zophres Assistant Designers:
Amy roth Terry Anderson
American Hustle Costume Designer:
Saving Mr. Banks
Michael wilkinson
Costume Designer:
Assistant Designers:
daniel orlandi
J.R. hawbaker meGhan kasperlik
Last Vegas Costume Designer:
Dayna Pink
Assistant Designer:
anita cabada
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The Reading List Hollywood Sketchbook
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hile you are contemplating costume illustration, it might be time to revisit the vitality of our history. Dr. Deborah Nadoolman Landis, of V&A costume blockbuster fame, and several gamechanging tomes, released Hollywood Sketchbook last fall. If you haven’t seen it, it is a must. Gorgeous images are peppered with anecdotes from the trenches, casting a spotlight on the art of Costume Design.
A DAY IN THE LIFE
ACD Michael Crow
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figuring out with the supervisor the fitting schedules and what is needed. Every show is different. On my first job with Julie Weiss, there was a night shoot and some of the actors wanted disguises for their “robbery.” They decided at the last minute to be the Blues Brothers, so I had to find a store open at 10:30 p.m. I finally found a couple of suits and fitted them and brought them to set, all in, maybe a couple of hours. I’ve worked on shows where once everything was established, I’d have time to go to the costume house and pull, or go shopping. But on the last show, there was so much to do, it was so big, with so many establishing changes, that there was no way to leave. We had a key costumer that shopped, and a key costumer that pulled from the costume houses—all day long. There are plenty of days when I think I’m going to get everything done, and be able to go shopping or go pulling, and it just doesn’t happen. At the end of the day, as long as there aren’t any emergencies, I’ll head back to the office to check in, meet up with everyone, and find out what is still outstanding, and relay that information to the designer. Many times he/she is stuck on set establishing and unable to leave. I try to decompress a little at the office, before I head home. By the time I leave, there’s not too much traffic. I have a glass of wine and my partner usually has dinner ready for me, which is fabulous. But the nights that I have to fend for myself, it’s a cheese, salami, and bread night. I am awake for only an hour-and-a-half before I go to bed. I watch whatever television my partner is watching, but we don’t share the same taste. He watches Scandal, Project Runway, or I can’t remember what it’s called—old divas on Lifetime? I save all of my TV for the weekend so that I can get up early in the morning, before he’s up and just browse—that’s when I really get to decompress.
Photos: Christine Cover Ferro
hree days a week, I get up at 5:30 a.m. and go to the gym to swim or do resistance training. At 7:30, I head into the office, but when we’re shooting I leave much earlier. There is a coffee run before I get to the office, because once I get there, there’s no time to drink it. Usually, I toss back a grande black coffee from Starbucks and that’s it for the day, unless it’s a long shooting day, then there’s plenty more coffee. When I get to the office, I catch up with the Costume Designer. I just finished working with Deborah Hopper, so I’d fill her in on what happened at the end of the previous day. I’d also find out what she wants to accomplish, then I proceed to make phone calls, swatch, attend meetings, fittings, all depending on what happens to be on the menu for the day. When we’re shooting, I make sure that the costumers have everything they need, and that their questions get answered. Also, I confirm that the designer is aware of what the background is wearing. This varies with different designers, for example, when I’ve worked with Julie Weiss, she likes to dress as much of the background as possible. Lunch depends on who I’m working with. Basically, I keep healthy snacks in the car and at the office, because if I get low blood sugar, I’m a little grumpy. Generally, I’ll sit down and have lunch—I mean, shovel it in, it is not a leisurely lunch—usually 15 minutes, then back to work. Next, I focus on the upcoming day to make sure we have everything necessary. With Jersey Boys (the show I just finished), I would pull the new costumes, checking if there were any questions that could be addressed, so Deborah could establish everyone on set. I would try to get her back to the trailer to fill in any blank spaces, that way, if she wanted something else, there was time to fill in the gap—if she wanted a different belt, or shoe, or jewelry—little things. Once that is done, then I try to plan two days out, then three days out, or into next week,
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IN FOCUS BOLDFACE NAMES
BFN - Work Although work often keeps everyone on broader borders, CD George Little and ACD Dan Lester have kept busy in LA on the Amazon pilot Bosch, based on Michael Connelly’s best-selling Harry Bosch police procedural book series, starring Titus Welliver. Scripts have been penned and await the green light for a roll out. New CDGer CD Phoenix Mellow has moved up to the role as ACD in support of CDs Janie Bryant and Tiffany White now codesigning the culminating season of Mad Men here in LA. Our two Texans, CD Kari Perkins and CD Stephen Chudej, designing and supervising respectively, are busy at work on Deliverance Creek, a Nicholas Spark’s Civil War era pilot for the Lifetime Channel by director Jon Amiel. The TV adaptation stars Six Feet Under’s Lauren Ambrose and shoots in Austin right up to Christmas.
ries by Emily Mortimer, Doll & Em, produced by and starring Emily Mortimer, now that it’s been acquired by HBO. The comedy series centers on a British Hollywood star who hires her childhood friend to be her personal assistant, with Mortimer as herself. CD Julia Schklair is a few states away in Atlanta busy designing Darren Star’s (Sex and the City creator and writer) new pilot HR for Lifetime, starring Alicia Silverstone, Greg Germann, and Peter Fonda. CD Kathryn Morrison has been in Pittsburgh since August designing Those Who Kill, the new A&E series based on the Danish crime series with this incarnation, starring Chloë Sevigny, James D’Arcy, and James Morrison. Kathryn couldn’t be happier with Pennsylvania and the very professional crew, and will wind things down to a close Kathryn Morrison at the end of the year. (shooting), Chloë Sevigny.
Stephen Chudej and Kari Perkins on Deliverence Creek ILL Liuba Randolph brought to life and the page a few period designs for CD Lou Eyrich’s new season of American Horror Story: Coven.This season’s story arc and location are now centered in New Orleans, welcoming Kathy Bates and Angela Bassett to the cast. CD Blair Levin has taken up residence in New Orleans as well and taken on a similar eerie-themed project with her latest ABC Family spinoff series Ravenswood, shooting until December.
Francine Lecoultre’s designs for The Mermaid Show CD Francine Lecoultre’s latest vivid designs were seen submerged in The Mermaid Show, an Underwater Tale for the Aquarium of the World Trade Center in Dubai and featured Olympic synchronized swimming medalists in an underwater choreographed performance by Stephan Miermont of Cirque du Soleil.
Liuba Randolph illustration, Lou Eyrich design — American Horror Story: Coven ACD Lois DeArmond worked the home front for the new NBC/ Universal swashbuckling series, Crossbones, currently filming through February in Puerto Rico, starring John Malkovich as the illustrious Blackbeard who reigns over the rogue Bahamian island of New Providence filled with miscreants in 1715. CD Diaz, brand new to 892, eagerly awaits a premiere date for her latest minise-
ACD Christine Cover Ferro wrapped up her fifth season with the Wicked Lit Theatre Festival in Altadena, CA. This year’s sold-out run adapted works by Washington Irving, H.P. Lovecraft, Arthur Conan Doyle, and Edgar Allan Poe. CD Tish Monaghan has had a steady flow of projects in her hometown of Vancouver recently: first, wrapping the NBC/Syfy pilot High Moon, featuring her custom-designed camouflage for the American space marines, then, moving straight to In My Dreams, the Hallmark Hall of Fame TV movie wrapping next month. CD Mary Vogt is also in Vancouver designing Wayward Pines, a new FX series based on
Fall 2013 The Costume Designer
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IN FOCUS
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BOLDFACE NAMES the best-selling novel Pines by Blake Crouch, for director M. Night Shyamalan in a story evoking a Twin Peaks, everything-is-not-as-itseems style, starring Matt Dillon, Terrence Howard, Carla Gugino, Melissa Leo, and Juliette Lewis.
Tish Monaghan with High Moon actors CD Melissa Desrosiers finished a spot for Volkswagen, while CD Erin Benach wrapped a Liberty Mutual commercial for director John Hillcoat this October in time to begin prep in LA for her next feature Midnight Special—a sci-fi drama starring Kirsten Dunst and Michael Shannon set to begin shooting in New Orleans this January.
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CD Carol Ramsey is finally getting to sleep in her own bed at home in sunny LA and design the sequel to Horrible Bosses, starring the lovable, bumbling trio from the original: Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis, and Charlie Day.What could the sequel be without appearances by Jennifer Aniston, Kevin Spacey, and of course, Jamie Foxx returning as MF Jones? ACD Jo Kissack Folsom assists Ramsey in the film for New Line/Warner Bros.
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Also thankful to be working at home in LA for a change is CD Trish Summerville, now designing the feature adaptation of the best-selling novel by Gillian Flynn, Gone Girl, starring Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike (Pride & Prejudice), Neil Patrick Harris, with David Fincher directing, and additional shooting in Missouri, due to wrap in February. CD Courtney Hoffman has her teeth in a tightly scheduled thriller since October on The Boy Next Door for director Rob Cohen, here in LA through December, starring Jennifer Lopez, John Corbett, and Kristin Chenoweth in a tale gone wrong of a divorced woman’s affair with a neighboring teenager.
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CD Bonnie Stauch wrapped a couple of documentaries recently, beginning with the Kurt Cobain feature, Soaked in Bleach, shot in LA and Seattle, commemorating the 20th anniversary of Cobain’s death and induction of Nirvana into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014, and then reuniting with Winona Ryder to establish her look as narrator of Spaceship Earth, in a discussion over the devastation of the 9.0 earthquake and tsunami in Japan and the impact it created for the planet and future generations.
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Flanagan/Davis illustrations and concepts for Get On Up ILL Gina Dedomenico Flanagan is having a blast illustrating CD Sharen Davis’ fabu-
Johnny Knoxville with Lindsey Kear
lous and flashy designs for Get On Up, the story of James Brown, the Godfather of Soul, shooting now in Mississippi with ACD Jodie Stern assisting Davis. CD Lindsey Kear no sooner finished designing the promo for her recent feature Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa shot in Sacramento and North Carolina, starring Johnny Knoxville before moving quickly to her next feature Shiva and May, shot and wrapped here in LA, this October.
CD Ellen Falguiere has been on location in Wilmington, NC, and Vegas, now wrapping the golf comedy feature for Screen Gems, The Squeeze, starring Jeremy Sumpter and Christopher McDonald, and CD Hope Hanafin is happy to be back in Clearwater, FL, designing Dolphin Tale 2, reuniting with the original cast, and poignantly welcoming new cast member, baby Hope, a dolphin rescued the night of the first Dolphin Tale wrap party, three years ago. CD Mary Claire Hannan is working on the Twentieth Century Fox movie adaptation of John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars, now filming in Pittsburgh and Amsterdam, starring Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort as two teens that meet and fall in love in a cancer support group, along with Laura Dern, Willem Dafoe, and Sam Trammell (True Blood). 40
The Costume Designer Fall 2013
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CD Astrid Brucker’s collection during New York Fashion Week During New York Fashion Week, CD Astrid Brucker presented her Spring/Summer 2014 Astridland Collection at the Apple Store near Lincoln Center. To view her line, please visit: www.Astridland.com. CD Betsy Heimann has designed the Betsy Bra for Cosabella.The success of a bra and dress combination Heimann made for herself spurred her to approach the lingerie manufacturer. The Betsy Bra is now available at Neiman Marcus and online at Bergdorf Goodman, Nordstrom, and Shopbop. Betsy Heimann’s Betsy Bra CD Trish Summerville prepares to reveal her ready-to-wear line, “Capitol Couture by Trish Summerville,” for The Hunger Games: Catching Fire and Net-a-Porter. The launch is set for November in tandem with the film’s release.
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The Costume Designer Fall 2013
CD Trish Summerville is on a roll. She was included in Elle magazine’s 2013 Hollywood Power List and also was honored at the 10th Annual Style Awards, which kicked off Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York City. There, Summerville received the Costume Designer of the Year Award for film. Congratulations!
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CDs Mandi Line, Janie Bryant, Patricia Field, Tom Broeckner, Jenn Rogien, and Lyn Paolo are but a few of the many of CDG members highlighted in The New York Times Fashion & Style article: “Costume Designers for TV Have a Big Impact on Fashion.” CD Trish Summerville was spotlighted in What the WellDressed Warrior Wears: Costume Design in The Hunger Games: Catching Fire which explores the fashion and fantasy of the film. http://www.nytimes.com
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The Costume Designer Fall 2013
Aggie Rodgers CD Mary Vogt led a workshop at this years’ Rio de Janeiro Int’l Film Festival. Vogt discussed the role of the Costume Designer in bringing character, color, and emotion to a feature film.
Mary Vogt
CD Kristin Burke organized a TEDx Talk about Costume Design, clothing and identity at TEDx Pacific Palisades. It has just become available online at http://www.ted.com/talks. Burke is appreciative of the great deal of support she received from the costume community.
Photo: Kessia Embry/Illustration: Mairi Chisholm
CD Trayce Field was interviewed in the FIDM newsletter. Field is thrilled to be a part of such a fun piece. http:// test.fidmmuseum.org
Trayce Field and her Costume Design
A special 30th Anniversary screening of Return of the Jedi was held September 22 at PIXARAnimation Studios.The event featured an impressive lineup of Jedi veterans, including CD Aggie Rodgers . Author J.W. Rinzler also screened unseen footage that will be included along with his e-book of the Making of the Return of the Jedi where Rodgers’ designs are also highlighted.
Images used in Kristin Burke’s TEDx Talk. CDs Stacy Ellen Rich and Joseph Porro Compiled and written by: Suzanne Huntington shuntington@cdgia.com Stacy Ellen Rich lastace@mac.com
Photos: Susanica Tam
Mandi Line
Photo: Gregory Keith Metcalf
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Lois DeArmond ACD Lois DeArmond has been a member of the Guild since 1985 and is a veteran of more than 70 movies, TV shows, and commercials. Her signature style pairs detailed portraits and traditional watercolor brushwork with a clean, modern feel. This illustration of Leonardo DiCaprio and Armie Hammer from the film J. Edgar was created for CD Deborah Hopper. “The movie was prepped in such a short period of time—as is the norm now—that there was no time to do any illustrations,” notes DeArmond. “This piece, along with several others, was created during wrap. It was a great pleasure to work with Deborah on this project, I had the actual garments to work with, and lots of great photos and fabric swatches available to me to help me create these illustrations.” Recently, DeArmond has been working on Crossbones, Horrible Bosses 2, and publicity illustrations of the costumes from 12 Years a Slave.
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The Costume Designer Fall 2013
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