Clothes on Film

The study of costume design in cinema and television. Featuring exclusive articles, news, interviews, videos, podcasts, essays and competitions.

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  • Clothes from 1950s,  Clothes from 1960s,  Girls in Films,  Premium

    Shifting Trends: Claire Foy in First Man

    25 Oct ’18 /

    MINOR SPOILERS First Man (2018) is not a movie overly preoccupied with fashion, And why would it be? The focus of the story is astronaut Neil Armstrong (Ryan Gosling) and his journey to become the first person to ever walk on the surface of the moon. Armstrong wears a lot of button down shirts, short sleeve checks, neutral slacks, the odd dark single breasted suit for formal occasions – largely dour attire for a dour man. He also wears a space suit, several of them. However, outside of Emilio Pucci’s involvement in designing the logo for the Apollo 15 flight in 1971, fashion rarely intersects with the requirements of surviving…

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    The Iron Lady: Costume as Distinction, Gender and Protection

    4 May ’13

    Edith Head Sketches for Grace Kelly Costumes to be Auctioned

    11 Nov ’10

    Rear Window: Grace Kelly in Jeans

    8 Jul ’09
  • Clothes from Fantasy & Sci-fi,  Girls in Films,  Guys in Films,  Premium

    Superfly Solo

    18 Jun ’18 /

    MILD SPOILERS Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018) is far and away the most ‘A New Hope-like’ film in the series yet. In terms of tone, sure, but particularly costume. What costume designers Glyn Dillon and David Crossman have so expertly achieved with Solo is making a contemporary looking movie set during the late 1960s. Star Wars: A New Hope was released in 1977 which puts Solo’s timeline around a decade before, or likely just over. But hang on, isn’t this a science fiction movie? What does when it’s made have to do with the space opera world being brought to life on screen? Well the seventies in particular was…

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    Alice in Wonderland: Four Images to Enchant Thee

    5 Feb ’10

    Star Wars Corsets: Force Needed to Get into Them

    8 Jun ’10

    After Earth Trailer Lands: First Proper Look at ‘Life Suit’

    8 Mar ’13
  • Clothes from Fantasy & Sci-fi,  Girls in Films,  Guys in Films,  Interviews

    Star Wars: Interview with Michael Kaplan

    22 Jan ’16 /

    Surely we all know Michael Kaplan by now? Flashdance (1983), Fight Club (1999), Burlesque (2010), Star Trek (2009), and the biggest of the big, Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Versatile is not a generous enough word for his talent; he is literally one of the best in the business, as his CDG (Costume Designers Guild) nomination for Star Wars goes some way to proving. I spoke to Mr Kaplan just after Christmas about his work for The Force Awakens, but due to unforeseen circumstances (basically Clothes on Film HQ flooding), this interview is only being posted now. Still much to enjoy though, and plenty of costume titbits to sift through.…

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    After Earth Trailer Lands: First Proper Look at ‘Life Suit’

    8 Mar ’13

    After Earth: Costume Designer Amy Westcott Explains Life Suit

    14 Jun ’13

    Star Wars Corsets: Force Needed to Get into Them

    8 Jun ’10
  • Clothes from Fantasy & Sci-fi,  Clothes from now

    Woman Inherits the Earth: Femininity in Jurassic World

    19 Jun ’15 /

    There has been an insane amount of discussion online about Bryce Dallas Howard’s character, Claire Dearing, since the release of Jurassic World (2015, costume designed Daniel Orlandi), mostly concerning the ‘running in heels’ sequences. I felt it would be interesting to take a broader look at the costumes of the female leads in both the original Jurassic Park (1993, costume supervised by Sue Moore) and Jurassic World and contrast in the characters. Dr Ellie Sattler the Paleobotanist as played by Laura Dern in the original movie is a hugely underrated feminist action hero. She is allowed to be clever, brave, practical and physical yet display ‘feminine’ traits at the same…

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    Scott Pilgrim vs The World Trailer Arrives on Fire

    25 Mar ’10

    Clash of The Titans Teaser Trailer Hits and Hits Hard

    11 Nov ’09

    King Kong: Naomi Watts’ White Evening Dress

    23 Oct ’09
  • Clothes from Fantasy & Sci-fi,  Guys on TV,  Premium

    Doctor Who: A Contemporary Costume Evolution

    21 Aug ’14 /

    Doctor Who, the quirky British sci-fi television series about a time travelling alien and his friends, premiered in 1963. Since then there have been twelve Doctors (and a War Doctor), each with their own unique looks to match their unique and often eccentric personalities. With the debut of the Twelfth Doctor fast approaching, this post takes a look back at the three Doctors we’ve seen so far (not including the War Doctor) on Doctor Who since it was rebooted in 2005 (or New Who, as some like to call it) and guesses at what we can expect from Doctor number twelve. The Ninth Doctor (Christopher Eccleston) arrived on our screens…

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    Review: Avengers Assemble

    20 Apr ’12

    Now Thor Costume Leaks: Must Be a Trend

    4 Jun ’10

    Game of Thrones Costume Analysis: Sansa Stark

    24 Jun ’13
  • Clothes from Fantasy & Sci-fi,  Girls in Films,  Guys in Films

    The Catwalk of The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

    15 Nov ’13 /

    When you are costuming the biggest franchise release of the year and creating a capsule range to run alongside it for a major online retailer, it is clear a normal approach to the task is not going to work. Ex-stylist and one time assistant for Michael Kaplan, Trish Summerville, one of the fastest rising names in the industry, has purposely sought out what many costume designers shy away from: co-collaborations with new and established fashion designers and, in several cases, pulling clothes directly from the runway. Summerville is smart and savvy with a feel for contemporary trends, though by not designing and making key items for The Hunger Games: Catching…

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    Lord Christopher Laverty 1 Comment

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    Review: Rise of the Planet of the Apes

    15 Aug ’11

    New Trailer for Tenet, aka The Best Film Ever Made

    23 May ’20

    Full The Dark Knight Rises Trailer Hits: Merry Christmas

    19 Dec ’11
  • Costume Stories and Links

    Costume Stories: This Week, Diana & TIFF

    7 Sep ’13 /

    This week this happened in costume… Diana Rush, Alpha Papa and now Diana, costume designer Julian Day is everywhere at the moment (good, because he’s very talented). Here Day explains a little about undertaking what must have been one of the trickiest costume jobs of the year. Revenge All about Emily Thorne’s (Emily Van Camp) wedding dress. Preview: Jill Ohanneson designed it herself. Trish Summerville Video: The 2013 Stylist award winner looks understandably bemused throughout Pop Sugar’s excitable interview. Riddick Helen o’Hara skilfully pulls apart the film’s frankly disgusting misogyny. Northern Costume Social Event Advice for those in the TV/film costume game. Toronto International Film Festival Leaving aside award friendly…

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    Costume Stories: This Week, Downton Abbey & Breaking Bad

    28 Sep ’13

    Costume Stories, This Week: Edith Head and Ender’s Game

    2 Nov ’13

    Costume Stories: This Week, Game of Thrones and Liberace

    11 May ’13
  • Clothes from Fantasy & Sci-fi,  Clothes from now,  Girls in Films

    Net-a-Porter to Launch Hunger Games Capsule Collection

    5 Sep ’13 /

    Must admit, we kind of saw this one coming. The Hunger Games: Catching Fire costume designer Trish Summerville has teamed up with online fashion retailer Net-a-Porter to produce 16 ready-to-wear outfits, leather goods and jewellery tied into the film. These ensembles will available exclusively at Net-a-Porter while being simultaneously promoted through Lionsgate’s Capital Couture website. Summerville, recently honoured as Costume Designer of the Year at the 10th Annual Style Awards, commented she’s “extremely proud of the designs that we created for The Hunger Games: Catching Fire and there’s no partner more appropriate for Capitol Couture than the world’s most cutting-edge luxury retailer”. If anyone can make such a collection work,…

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    Oz the Great and Powerful: Close Up Look at the Costumes

    11 Mar ’13

    The Hunger Games: Catching Fire Teaser Trailer Hits

    15 Apr ’13

    Snow White & the Huntsman Trailer: Atwood Hits It

    11 Nov ’11
  • Clothes from Fantasy & Sci-fi,  Girls in Films,  Guys in Films,  Premium

    Combat and the Croupier: The Costume World of Pacific Rim

    19 Jul ’13 /

    Building character with the costume design of Pacific Rim.

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    The Dark Knight Rises: Costume Q&A with Lindy Hemming

    1 Aug ’12

    Iron Man 3: A Different Kind of Suit

    24 Apr ’13

    Alien Anthology: A Revolution in Sci-Fi Costume Design – PT2

    26 Oct ’10
  • Clothes from Fantasy & Sci-fi,  Girls in Films,  Guys in Films,  Premium

    After Earth: Costume Designer Amy Westcott Explains Life Suit

    14 Jun ’13 /

    Exclusive Q&A with costume designer Amy Westcott about the After Earth life suit.

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    Lord Christopher Laverty 3 Comments

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    Review: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1

    26 Nov ’10

    Some Pics From Toy Story 3: Safari Ken

    25 May ’10

    Now Thor Costume Leaks: Must Be a Trend

    4 Jun ’10
  • Clothes from Fantasy & Sci-fi

    Costume Designer Michael Kaplan Confirmed for Star Wars VII

    19 May ’13 /

    Star Trek’s Michael Kaplan confirmed as costume designer for Star Wars Episode VII.

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    UK Film Review: Terminator Salvation

    23 May ’09

    Interview with 47 Ronin Costume Designer Penny Rose

    2 Jun ’14

    Why is Miss Piggy Wearing a Vivienne Westwood Wedding Dress?

    11 Feb ’14
  • Clothes from Fantasy & Sci-fi,  Girls in Films,  Guys in Films,  Interviews,  Premium

    Costume Designer Michael Kaplan on Star Trek Into Darkness

    17 May ’13 /

    Michael Kaplan gives Clothes on Film the lowdown on his Star Trek Into Darkness costumes.

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    Now Thor Costume Leaks: Must Be a Trend

    4 Jun ’10

    Inception: Costume Style Analysis VLOG

    19 Aug ’20

    Film Review: Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

    14 May ’10
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