Role And Importance Of A Costume Designer Film Studies Essay

A Costume designers create the look of each character by designing clothes and accessories the actors will wear in performance. Depending on their style and complexity, costumes may be made, bought, revamped out of existing stock or rented. Their designs need to faithfully reflect the personalities of the characters in the script.

The shapes, colors and textures that a costume designer chooses make an immediate and powerful visual statement to the audience. Creative collaboration among the costume designer, the director and the set and lighting designers ensures that the costumes are smoothly integrated into the production as a whole.

Costume designers begin their work by reading the script to be produced. If the production is set in a specific historical era, the fashions of this period will need to be researched. To stimulate the flow of ideas at the first meeting with the director and the design, the costume designer may want to present a few rough costume sketches.

This is also an appropriate time to check with the director on the exact number of characters needing costumes, as any non-speaking characters the director plans to include may not have been listed in the script.

It is the costume designer’s responsibility to draw up the costume plot. The costume plot is a list or chart that shows which characters appear in each scene, what they are wearing and their overall movement throughout the play.

When the director and production team have approved the costume designer’s preliminary sketches, she or he can draw up the final costume designs. The final designs are done in full color. They show the style, silhouette, textures, accessories and unique features of each costume.

Once the show opens, the designer’s work is essentially complete. Now it’s normally the job of a wardrobe assistant to make sure that every aspect of the production runs just as the designer intended, time after time, until the production closes.

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Fashion Designing Vs. Costume Designing

Though fashion designing is now a day gaining much attention, importance and preference, one more profession which is more related to fashion designing and having a vast scope but not that much gained attention and preference is “Costume Designing”.

The dynamic growth of entertainment media -Television, Cinema, and technology etc., has led to budding of number of TV channels and making of increased number of movies either nationally or regionally. The TV channels have to come up with more number of drama serials, programmers, shows in order to attract more number of viewers.

Every channel whether it is a kid channel, sports channel, news channel or commercial, all have various programmers, specialty shows, drama serials all need a Right Costume rather to say a good costume.

In costume designing, designing is done to the character or story, where as in Fashion it is done to one s own creativity and taste.

Costume designing is more challenging with limited time frames, where as in fashion designing there is no limitation of time.

There is less number of creativity present in Costume Designing, where as in fashion there are no such limitations.

In Costume designing designs should match to the theme of the story, where as in fashion designs should match to the trends

Costume designing needs high cost, fashion designing is not that much cost oriented

In costume designing designs can be outsourced or copied but in fashion designing it should be one s own creativity.

Costume designing needs to interact with many people, but in fashion no interaction is needed.

Costume designing have limited assignments at a particular time, but in fashion no such limitation present.

In Costume designing there is a need for the knowledge of culture, history, places, rituals, social values etc., but in fashion it is not compulsory but it is an additional advantage.

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Style Hunter

It s a new year, and what better way to wipe the slate clean than with a crisp white men s shirt? For spring, designers focused on classic sportswear, and they put that perennial favorite, the button-up, front-row and center.

At Akris and Dries Van Noten, seriously oversized shirts worn as a day dress and over a sequined skirt, respectively riffed on the borrowed-from-the-boyfriend look. Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren based their entire collection on the men s shirt, though in typical V&R fashion, the results were anything but basic: A cuffed oxford paired with black pants seemed simple enough from the front.

There were also plenty of more straightforward options, including Michael Kors untucked take. With so many designers embracing the timeless trend this season, maybe we can live out our Mad Men fantasy (well, one of them, anyway) and keep a stack of pressed shirts in our desk drawer just like Don Draper.

Nothing says New Year s Eve like a look-at-me metallic dress, and Spring gave us plenty of glittery possibilities. We wouldn t have any issues finding a suitor to smooch at the stroke of midnight if we looked like Britt Maren did in Donna Karan s marbleized copper silk.

Ditto Shena Moulton in Thakoon s thigh-grazing electric python dress. But the real eye-opener this season was the way designers cut the shiny stuff into wearable looks that aren t just for after dark.

Paired with an easy flannel shirt and Western belt, Ralph Lauren s silver tinsel skirt delivers a bit of flash with a dose of informality. Tory Burch, left, hit the same note with lam pants and a baja jacket.

We ve seen sheer on runways here, there, and everywhere for the past several seasons. But in 2010, daring starlets like Blake Lively and Emma Watson took transparency to the red carpets, offering fans suggestive glimpses of bare skin.

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Competition in Costume Designing Field

The seldom thought of costume design Oscar category hold perhaps one of the most interesting competitions in all categories. Best Costume Design is the 4th youngest category, even though it s been around since 1948, and is often the spoiler in many Oscar betting pools.

This year s nominees include two eight-time nominees, two first timers, and one four-time nominee. Recent history shows that the historical pieces have been the big winners. The academy has rewarded these types of films for three straight years.

Battling Powell for that period costume reign is Janet Patterson for Bright Star. One of two films nominated in this category that are actually about two real life designers. The contrast of these costumes is what really makes this film.

The simplicity of dress that Patterson has the Keats character in and showing the complexity of design and willingness to make bold choices by the character of Fanny Brawne are what really add another layer of context into this romantic story. Patterson is looking to bring home her first Oscar in her fourth nomination.

Speaking of designers designing for films about designers, say that ten times fast, we have Catherine Leterrier with her first nomination for Coco before Chanel. Chanel is a name that is recognized worldwide for design and Leterrier had her hands full trying to live up to the fame.

She obviously succeeded by earning her Oscar nomination. Leterrier made some similar choices to Patterson in using the contrast in costuming to further the story and understanding of the characters. The clothing only helped define the woman that was behind them and Leterrier hopes to do the same.

The last nominee in the category is my personal favorite designer, Colleen Atwood for Nine. Atwood is a heavy hitter in the category like Powell. The costuming and choices in color are how she was nominated. Nobody knows how to use fishnets like Atwood.

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Red-Carpet Value Of Hollywood’s Stars

The rise and fall of celebrities is a thing that no one can predict, but a number of experts have ranked some of the stars, who they feel will either make it or break it on the red-carpet. The judging panel consists of Fashionista Editor Lauren Sherman, Racked Editor Danica Lo, celebrity stylist June Ambrose and Hollywood Life Fashion Editor Katrina Mitzeliotis.

First on the list is actress Lindsay Lohan, with a score of 4.3, and who was given average style scores by the editors. Next is Carey Mulligan, with a score of 4.9, and experts say her willingness to experiment will definitely earn her style points.

Actress Angelina Jolie got 9.4, and the experts feel she should do away with the drab blacks and greys, and instead go for flavour, attitude and sex. Anne Hathaway earned 7.1 points, and the experts feel that even though she does do well on the red carpet, she needs to get a little sexed-up once in a while.

Kim Kardashian scored 1.5, though the experts feel she tends to pander to the public by over accentuating her assets (boobs and butt) and rarely mixes things up. Where Lady Gaga is concerned, she was given a rating of 10.2, with the experts saying that her growth potential seems limitless.

Actress Halle Berry scored 8.8, and the experts say that her personal life is what gave her red-carpet clout in 2010. Mitzeliotis said whether she’s in a plunging dress or a pantsuit, she never plays it safe.

Actress Natalie Portman scored 15.3, and the experts say her engagement to sexy ballet dancer Benjamin Millepied along with the news that she’s having his baby, has made her the most valuable red-carpet celebrity going into 2011.This is the way Hollywood stars are ranked.

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Type of Costume Designers

Professional costume designers generally fall into three type s first freelance, second residential, and last but not the least academic.

A freelance designer is hired for a specific production by a theatre, dance or opera company, and may or may not actually be local to the theater that he or she is designing for. A freelancer is traditionally paid in three installments first upon hire, second on the delivery of final renderings, and finally opening night of the production.

Freelancers are not obligated to any exclusivity in what projects they are working on, and may be designing for several theatres concurrently.

A residential designer is hired by a specific theatre, dance or opera company for an extended series of productions. This can be as short as a summer stock contract, or may be for many years. A residential designer’s contract may limit the amounts of freelance work they are allowed to accept.

Unlike the freelancer, a residential designer is consistently “on location” at the theater, and is readily at hand to work with the costume studio and his or her other collaborators.

An academic designer is one who holds professorship at a school. The designer is primarily an instructor, but may also act as a residential designer to varying degrees. They are often free to freelance, as their schedule allows. In the past, professors of costume design were mostly experienced professionals that may or may not have had formal post-graduate education.

Both residential and academic designers are generally also required to act as Shop Master or Mistress of an onsite costume shop, in addition to designing productions. In a resident theatre, there is almost always a shop staff of stitchers, drapers, cutters and craft artisans. In an academic environment the shop “staff” is generally students, who are learning about costume design and construction.

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Fashion Shows on Satellite TV

With the new crop of fashion themed shows on television, it’s no wonder that the competition for ratings is stiff. While Bravo’s ‘Project Runway’ has long been the classiest fashion slash reality program on television, now there will finally be some competition.

Long time ‘guilty pleasure’ reality TV show ‘America’s Next Top Model’ is kicking things up a notch and getting an upgrade. While overseas the program has turned out versions of itself in dozens of countries with various levels of taste, here in the United States it’s long been a program that focuses on the drama that happens between the girls, not only amongst themselves but with the judges, photographers and challenges.

Now, looking to be a bit more fashion focused, this satellite TV favorite program is starting by incorporating a new kind of judge, the high profile celebrity.

Part of the refurbishment of the show is a drop in ratings over reason years, and with the number of seasons the program has turned out it is no wonder. The other factor is that up until now, season after season has been more or less the same.

The program relies on the strong, feisty, dramatic and emotional personalities of the less than classy contestants, instead of focusing on the fashion. Changing all that may bring back old fans, and help the show find some new ones.

Even the show’s producer Ken Mok as called ‘Top Model’ and “hidden secret… or guilty pleasure” of fashion, meaning that it’s status is no secret. Hopefully, by giving itself a makeover as the girls are given every season, this satellite TV program can become something that fashionistas the world over are proud to have back episodes of on their DVRs.

Perhaps the judges, with their new celeb A list status will play a more pivotal role.

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Significance of the Red Carpet

Now days, whenever you watch an award ceremony or you watch the news where the President is entering or exiting a building, you always notice that there is a red carpet laid out. A red carpet is used very frequently for all types of award shows, music ceremonies and dignitaries.

Red carpet is used everywhere for important persons as it shows Honor, Hospitality and also for Royalty. It also symbolizes luck and impact of the person in the society.

The red carpet is also a sign of honoring the guest or guests that are entering a building or an event. Commonly used at award shows, the red carpet is where all the stars and guests stand for fans and photographers to see them. Being on the red carpet places them separate from everyone else.

The term receiving the red carpet treatment means exceptional hospitality and service. The red carpet shows respect for the people it has been laid out for. Many restaurants lay out the red carpet to the entrance of the establishment as a way of welcoming patrons. A red carpet gives an air of upper class service and amenities.

The red carpet was also used by train stations, and that is believed where the current use began. Train stations would place a red carpet on platforms so passengers would know which section of the train to enter.

Red and purple has always been a sign of royalty. Palaces and castles have used red carpets for centuries to lead to the thrones of kings and queens. It is also a sign of admiration.

The red carpet has also been a symbol of luck and good fortune. Since the people who walk on the carpet are prosperous, admired and honored, such a carpet has good fortune attached to it.

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Famous Designers of India

Fashion is huge and one of the biggest industry in India. Globalization of Indian Fashion has got a wider platform to display their talents and India has introduced the ‘Sari’ to the world. In past India was always known as a country of jungles and poverty. But this image of India has changed over the last few decades.

There is lot of Fashion Designers in India which made a very big name of them and of India in the whole world. Ritu Kumar, Rina Dhaka, and Manish Malhotra are the name of some famous personalities which not only created a big name in fashion world but represented India several times in whole world.

Ritu Kumar is one of the earliest and reputed fashion diva who has developed a unique style of her own. Her designs reflect the ancient traditions of Indian craftsmanship in a contemporary fashion. She has been designing the wardrobes of the three winning Miss India s and for their participation in International Beauty Pageants like Miss Universe, Miss World and Miss Asia Pacific respectively.

Rina Dhaka is India s leading fashion and is a winner of Yuv Rattan Award. She is counted among the creative and innovative designers of the country and best known for her theme collections like sheer trousers and stretch jersey, woolens and spider web motifs. She held shows in Paris, London, New York, Hong Kong, Singapore, Jakarta, and in Dubai. Her Singapore shows in 2001 and 2002 were major success. International fashion magazines Vogue and Elle also featured her work.

Manish Malhotra revolutionized the fashion scene in Bollywood and his tenure as a costume-designer has seen him clothe most of the leading actresses in the film industry from Sridevi, to Urmila Matondkar, Karishma Kapoor to Kajol, Raveena Tandon to Aishwarya Rai, Rani Mukherjee to Preity Zinta.

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Fashion Shows

A fashion show is an event organized by a fashion designer to showcase his or her upcoming line of clothing. Fashion shows generally organized twice a year, first in Spring/Summer and second Fall/Winter seasons. The most influential fashion week is Paris fashion week.

Typical fashion show consists of models walk in the catwalk style and dressed in the clothing created by the designer. Now days, fashion shows take the form of installations, where the models stand or sit in an artificial constructed environment. The order in which each model walks out wearing a specific outfit is usually planned in accordance to the statement that the designer.

Audience now days not only try to understand what the designer is trying to say but also visualize and deconstruct each outfit and try to appreciate the detail and craftsmanship of every single piece. Now days, many of the designers also use holograms, laser lights and other technology in their fashion shows to make them better and to attract more audience.

A fashion week is a fashion industry event and last one week. It allows fashion designers, big brands or houses to display their latest collections and buyers to take a look at the latest trends. Most important, it tells the whole fashion industry what’s “in” and what’s “out” for that particular season. The most prominent fashion weeks are held in the four fashion capitals of the world that is New York, Paris, London, and Milan.

In these major fashion capitals, fashion weeks are semiannual events that is from January through April designers showcase their autumn and winter collections and from September through November the spring/summer collections are shown. Fashion weeks must be held several months in advance of the season to allow the press and buyers a chance to preview fashion designs for the following season.

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Google s New Fashion Site

Google sauntered into the world of haute couture with the launch of boutiques.com, an online shop that matches hot fashions to women’s tastes.

Style-conscious US women can create their own online boutiques or browse collections “curated by taste-makers” such as celebrities, designers, and fashion bloggers, according to Google Boutiques uses computer vision and machine learning technologies to match a woman’s tastes with clothing or accessories that she might find tempting.

In fashion, there are lots of choices. This site had to be collaboration. Google got fashion trend-setters and spotters to share top picks and to “teach” the website what they liked when it came to styles.

They did this by telling us what colors, patterns, brands and silhouettes they loved and they hated. Google s machine learning algorithms use this information to enable you to shop the entire inventory in the style of that taste-maker, on top of the 50 items they’ve hand curated.”

Boutiques lets people create personalized online shops infused with their fashion preferences. Search tools help solve style puzzles such as figuring out which shoes or handbag best matches an outfit, according to Shah.

As Google is the leader in online industry and with the collaboration levels of Google and a huge database of the fashion industry and people of the fashion industry Google is here to captivate the online industry on fashion with the help of Boutiques.

Fashionistas are funny about food. Then again, this is Google we re talking about, the company whose employees are so famously creative and intelligent that they re working on everything from online messaging to self-driving cars.

How remote and strange the fashion world is when you come to Google s headquarters, employees are zipping around the sprawling campus on scooters and bicycles, so that pretty much eliminates platform shoes and minis.

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Women’s Spring Fashion Trends

Just as the ’50s and ’60s are back, so too are particular elements of the ’70s. There are two main aesthetics: 70s bohemian and ’70s sophisticated glamour. When it comes to the latter, think dresses that fall like shimmering water in the evening and high-waist pants with elegant blouses by day.

As of spring the military fashion trend will have been with us for over a decade. And for that decade it’s been great, we’ve loved it, but 10 years later we have to admit: spring is the time to move on. The question is: what do we move on to? The answer: the trend that’s been living in its shadow, waiting for its moment of glory. And for spring / summer it’s going to get just that because here comes the biker trend.

Another of the thematic trends for spring / summer, punk carries on from last year to become less of a full blown trend and more one of influence – you’ll see its elements impact upon a number of other spring trends. Which can be a danger punk fashion is one trend you can’t afford to get wrong. Read our guide to punk fashion for spring / summer to find out what it entails, what elements you should wear.

The silhouettes of the 1950s and 1960s make a strong return, with shapes that accentuate curves and foster femininity. A hip-hugging sheath dress with a below-the-knee hem is the ultimate in hourglass dressing, while the full circle skirt and dress remain at the core of the trend.

Every season trends evolve, and every season two trends merge. In that regards, spring will be no different from what has come before it. What will be different, however, is the season’s take on a staple for many women’s summer wardrobe: the maxi dress. In spring it’ll merge with another trend favorite to give us the sheer maxi dress trend.

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Fashion Glossary

Fashion World has lot of short terms which are commonly use. Here are few to make you understand what it actual mean.

Baby Doll is a short nightgown with hem that terminates just below the hip. A baby doll is longer than a crop top, but shorter than a chemise.

Baby Doll Dress- Above the knee empire waist dress, modeled according to the baby doll, often gathered at the top and adored with lace, appliqu , ruffles, bows, etc.

Faux- is originally a French word meaning imitation or fake. It is most often used in connection with gems, pearls, leathers, and furs.

Hip-Huggers- are low-slung pants, skirt or belt worn below the natural waist creating the impression of a longer, leaner torso.

Fabric Lining- The inner layer of fabric used to cover the inside of a garment. It is usually made of soft, smooth fabric which adds to the outfit by making it more flattering and gives it extra protection

Natural Waist- describes the natural curve of the body, which is the indentation between the hips and the rib-cage.

Picot- is a row of small loops woven along the edge of a fabric in ribbon or lace for a decorative effect.

Poplin- A finely ribbed fabric, usually made of cotton.

Safari Style- Safari Style Garments adapted from bush jackets worn by hunters on African safaris; including such features as bellows pockets, belting and epaulettes.

Shelf Bra- is a bra that is built into a garment and offers the support without being visible. It provides a smooth, seamless appearance.

Silk- An extremely soft, natural fabric made from the secretions of silkworms.

Vamp- is the upper part of a shoe or boot covering the instep.

Wide Leg- Pants or jeans that are cut extra full through the legs with a wider leg opening.

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Men’s Spring Fashion Trends

They never actually go out of fashion, but they do evolve over the course of several years. We have put together a thorough guide on the modern men’s suit that will take you through cuts and colors, and help you decide all the elements you’ll want in a good quality piece for spring / summer.

Men’s skinny jeans have had their day. That’s not to say they’re out of fashion, but they’ve peaked and as far as men’s fashion trends in spring / summer go they’ve been replaced by a style with quite a large difference. For the first warm season of men’s flared jeans are back.

It’s a trend that’s in for women in spring, and visual elements of the motorcycle look are also in for men. Spearheaded by a number of design houses, including Burberry, the main element of this men’s trend is obviously the motorcycle jacket. For more inspiration on the trend take a look at the men’s motorcycle fashion guide, which goes into some detail about the differences of what s in for men versus women?

With the warmer weather comes the need to update your sunglasses collection with a new and on-trend style. For Spring the best accompaniment to a vintage-inspired look is a shape that screams ’50s/’60s glamour.

They’re something of a yoyo trend: one season they’re in, the next season they’re out. For spring / summer they’re back again, reinterpreted to fuse in many of the season’s other fashion trends.

Stripes are a dominant part of any spring / summer season, though usually, year on year, featuring a variation on the theme. Spring sees stripes with an unsurprising nautical dominance – but it’s a dominance inspired by other key Spring fashion trends.

With skinny pants and jeans now so common that they no longer make a statement it was inevitable that a different style would emerge as a trend.

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Fashion The Movie

The movie ‘Fashion’ featuring Kangana Ranaut is based on the true and tragic story of model Gitanjali who plummeted from the glamour of the ramp to the abysmal depths of drugs, alcohol and many men.

She was one of the top models appearing in the best of advertisements with brands like Lakme. She was a designer turned model who once walked the ramp with Miss Universe 1994, Sushmita Sen, in the 90s and others of same class.

She fell in love and was refuted. Then got married, had a son, turned herself down, tried to live on drugs and is now, struggling to come back to life. She has turned herself almost into a junkie and doesn t know about things happening around her. If she is asked about fashion, it sounds like nuclear fission to her hobbies appears as Calvin and Hobbes.

Her addiction to drugs led her to such condition and she has been disowned by her family as well. In the movie by Madhur Bhandarkar, Fashion Kangana Ranaut will be playing the character of Gitanjali Nagpal. It s a heart rending story of a top model and her road to self-destruction.

Trust realistic filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar to stir up a hornet s nest, every time he touches upon a subject for his movies. That s because he always draws inspiration from real life. After roping in Priyanka Chopra to play the lead role and walk the ramp along Tyra Banks and Kate Moss in his next film Fashion, he has managed yet another big casting coup.

“I saw Gangster and Kangana s powerhouse performance in the film blew my top. I wanted to cast her immediately for my film, but there was no script to justify her talent, finally I m glad I got something,” he states. So what s the next casting coup?

ject for his movies. That s because he always draws inspiration from real life. After roping in Priyanka Chopra to play the lead role and walk the ramp along Tyra Banks and Kate Moss in his next film Fashion, he has managed yet another big casting coup.

“I saw Gangster and Kangana s powerhouse performance in the film blew my top. I wanted to cast her immediately for my film, but there was