Fashion and film have had a long relationship. From film’s inception, really, clothing onscreen has played a huge role in setting the mood and defining the characters.Â
It’s become a standard in the movie industry for large chunks of budgets to be dedicated to costume design. Top awards are handed out annually to the men and women whose work is dressing characters in film. Designer clothing is prominently featured in movies like The Devil Wears Prada and the Sex and the City franchise. But where does the distinction between fashion designer and costume designer fall? And can designers be costume designers (or vice versa)? Modern movies often blur the lines between costume designer and fashion designer, titles that have been interrelated in film for longer than initially seems probable.
One of the first films to popularize the collaboration of couturier and film was 1961′s Breakfast at Tiffany’s for which Hubert de Givenchy dressed Holly Golightly. The iconic dress and pearls worn by Audrey Hepburn’s character remains one of the most notorious garments ever featured on the silver screen. Seven years after Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Yves Saint Laurent dressed Catherine Deneuve’s character in Belle du Jour. Around the same time, American designer Ralph Lauren designed the wardrobes for The Great Gatsby (1974) and Annie Hall (1977).
Since then, a plethora of designers have worked on notable films. Giorgio Armani (American Gigilo, 1980; The Untouchables, 1987; Ransom, 1996; The Italian Job, 2003), Nino Cerruti (Pretty Woman, 1990), and Donna Karan (Great Expectations, 1998).
The 2000s saw this become an established practice, but also with increasingly blurred distinctions. Designers have played the part of costume designers, with the most recent example being the Mulleavy sisters of Rodarte designing the costumes for Black Swan. But a new trend has been emerging as well: the inverse relationship. Costume designers have made the shift into mainstream fashion design. Patricia Field, costume designer for Sex and the City and The Devil Wears Prada now runs a successful website selling her creations. In the music side of the business Lady Gaga’s stylist Nicola Formichetti has become creative director of high-end label Thierry Mugler.
Should editors and critics be questioning or embracing this fluidity? On a personal level, we find ourselves drawn to it. As lovers of fashion and the fashion industry, we want to see a cyclical support of any creative venture. Plus, as movies like Black Swan seem to be finding the budgets and demand for both designers such as Rodarte as well as a dedicated costume designer, the collaboration seems to not be hurting anyone in the business, but rather stimulating creativity and publicity. Win-win!
