Costume Sourcing

I carried on with the costume sourcing again today and found tights and underwear. I now don't have much left to get which is really good as I can focus on carrying on with Part 1 of the project and assisting the other film. I feel very in control and pleased with the progress I have made.

Costume Sourcing

Today I carried on with the costume sourcing. I went to pick up cowboy boots and a poncho that the Set Designer, Dec, offered to lend me. I am thrilled with both of them. I remembered a leather hat my Dad has and he has leant it to me. It goes perfectly with the cowboy boots. I also went charity shopping and found two chemise options for Belle that I am going to bring to a fitting I will arrange before the shoot.

I am very pleased with my progress so far with the costume sourcing and feel I am doing a really good job with keeping the Producer, Director and Set Designer up to date with everything I am doing.

Costume Sourcing

I met with Bunny to discuss the costumes I still had left to source, and after sending an email round to my course I managed to already source a corset. I am very pleased with it and it is exactly what I was looking for. It is the perfect colour. Being organised is really paying off as I am very in control of the situation and have sourced a lot of the costume components already.

Costume Sourcing

I went to the uni costume store to see if they had any relevant and appropriate costumes. I am really pleased with the costumes I managed to source as after I had gathered all of the costumes I had a production meeting to show them to the producer, director and set designer and they were really happy with what I found. They assured me that they would post the actors measurements on Dropbox in order for me to ensure the costumes I have already sourced will actually fit, and that what I have left to source will fit.
I am very happy with my progress so far with this project and feel very in control and not too overwhelmed.

Audition Monologes and Character Breakdowns

I have done some character analysis and breakdowns from the audition monologues which have really helped me in working out what the personalities of each characters are. I feel that this was really important for me to do before sourcing the costumes as I need to know who the characters are. This work is in my film file/production journal. These character breakdowns, along with research I have done in my sketchbook into the era etc have helped me to do initial sketches of ideas for the costumes. I feel very positive about this project still and I am now ready to start my costume sourcing.

Shoot Day- Ophelia

Today I was assisting on the set of Ophelia for Danae. It was a very interesting experience but was extremely long. The shoot was 15 hours, despite the fact it was only supposed to be 10 hours. For a HUGE amount of the time we were sitting and waiting. We had Harriet, the actress, ready, in costume by 11am after arriving on set at 9am. However, we did not actually have the first take until 11.30pm. The lighting and focus took several hours to set up and then was all lost and had to be all set up again, hence the lenght of the day! Due to the fact that the filming took so long to set up, instead of several takes, there was only infact one which meant our jobs were easier as we didn't have to make sure the costume was clean and dry ready for the next one.

Once the shoot was over, Harriet was cold, muddy and very wet. It was a huge task to clean her hair, wash her body and dry her off, clean and dry the costume and make sure she was warm and comfortable. This was the part of the day we were most busy.

The shoot was definately an experience that I have learnt from but, as with most shoots, was a lot of waiting around which was quite boring and frustrating.

I think I did a good job but I would have liked to have more to do and have more responsibility.

Colour Scheme

I looked on the Dropbox folder to see if any new documents had been added and found the images for colour scheme inspiration, a colour scheme pallet and the set design had been added. This is absolutely fantastic as it is really helpful for me in designing and sourcing the costumes for the characters. The colour scheme is really nice; warm, Mexican tones, which contrast with cool tones. I will easily be able to work with this colour scheme. I need to know a little more about the characters and the actors measurments etc before I start to source costumes.

Production Meeting

Today I had a production meeting with the Producer, Director and Set Designer for the film I am designing for. I showed them research I had done over the past few days and they showed me some ideas they had. They loved the research I had done which was really promising. I am very happy with how the production meeting went, they respected me and valued my ideas and thoughts. I did not feel at all taken for granted and they were very apologetic for the changes they had made as they realised this was going to effect my job. I took notes from the meeting and after I have gathered a bit more information I will start sourcing again. I am confident that I will be able tot get all of the costumes and accessories together in time.

Script and Character Changes

Due to the changes in the script, I am going to have to start all over again with the costume souring. This is quite frustrating, but I feel the new location for the script is much more interesting for me to work with. I will start again with the costume sourcing by researching the era and location again. I will analyse the script again and look at any information the film crew has posted in Dropbox. My motivation for this project is still strong; despite this setback I feel I am more than capable of sourcing everything in time for the film shooting.

Film Meeting

Straight after the film pitches were assigned to each of us, I immediately went to find the producer for The Combing of the Hair; the film I will be designing for. We briefly discussed their basic idea for the film. My brief was:
*red, oranges, terricottas- Spanish colour scheme
*1940's
*Set in Spain- look into historical elements of the time

The first thing I did was to have a look on the internet to get an idea of what the fashion was like during the 1940s in Spain. I then went to have a rummage in the costume store to see what costumes were available. I found several costumes that fitted the brief I had been given and put them on a rail and immediately called up the producer to see if he could have a look at them to see what he thought. He was really pleased I was so on the ball and was happy with my selections. When I get back after my easter holiday, I will continue to source costumes etc.

I feel that I have already started to gain a relationship with the producer for the film. I feel I conducted myself well and have shown that I am hardworking and willing. So far, my organisation has been really good. I will have to ensure I conduct myself correctly and fight my corner if I feel that I am being taken for granted or being used to do jobs other than my own, but so far I feel that this project is going really well!

Film Pitches

This morning we went back to the seminar room to find out which pitches had been chosen by the tutors. I was really pleased with the choices; only one of the nine i wasn't keen on working on. We then discussed in our group of six, with Bunny, which pitches we 1. wanted to design for, 2. wanted to help assist and 3. wanted to co-create. Due to timetable issues with filming there had to be a slight change to our first schedual but I got to do the three I liked the most which is a total result! Due to the schedual change I am assisting two films and designing for one. These are:

1. Van Gogh's Chair by Vincent Van Gogh (ASSISTING)
The film is based on the idea that the chair is an animate object. It is pining for attention from an artist who is trying to paint still lifes and is nudging into every one, attempting to be painting. Eventually the artist gets fed up and attempts to bury the chair and then decides that actually it might make a good subject. The chair is then painted and is happy. The closing shot is the artist getting back to painting his still lifes and then the table slowly nudging forward. (in the studio)

2. The Combing of Hair by Edgar Degas (DESIGNING)
This film is about lust. The maid combing her mistresses hair is deeply in love with her. She is passionately combing her hair. We see flashback style intimate close ups of body caressing which we assume is a lesbian love affair. The combing becomes more agressive until we see the mistress in pain due to the tugging. We then see last nights passion is between the mistress and her male lover, not between the mistress and her maid, she is meerly peering through a crack in the door. (in the studio)

3. Ophelia Among the Flowers Odeon Redon (ASSISTING)
This is the painting that I have been recreating for the first half of this project! For this, the plot so far is just that Ophelia is reaching for some flowers whilst balancing on a tree branch and then falls into a stream and dies (on location).

I feel, for each of these pitches, I will be able to bring specific skills to them. I would love to work on location and I feel my organisation skill would really come into their own on such a project. I am also really looking forward to working on these films and forming relationships with the film crew.

Film Pitches

Today we sat and watched 4 1/2 hours of film pitches. The pitches varied in development stages but were all quite interesting. Most were inspired by paintings at the National Gallery but some were documentary ideas. There were some which were very much recreations of the paintings or very literal interpretations of paintings. Others, ones I found more interesting, were more abstract and creative. FOr example the 31st pitch was one inspired by Van Gough's chair painting. The chair would be an animate object which was pining for an artists attentions. The artist tries to paint still lifes etc but the chair keeps butting in and stopping the artist from doing his work. Eventually the artist tries to bury the chair to get rid of it but then decides it might make a nice subject and paints it. The chair is now content but the closing shot is that of the table edging closer to the artist. I like the cyclical element of this... it may never end! I also really liked an idea but I am concerned with how hard it may be to actually create. The idea was pitch 16 and is inspired by MY painting!!! Ophelia Amongst the Flowers by Redon. The idea is that a camera pans over a body of a woman in a stream and is one continuous shot. The camera focusses on specific important areas of her barely clothed body which is half submerged and surrounded by flowers which are highly symbolic. The idea would have to be part/ mostly created in the studio as no actress would be able to stay in freezing cold water for long enough to get a perfect shot. Another idea I like is inspired by a painting called Interior (I'm unsure who it is by) which was the 5th pitch. The idea is that you see a woman in a black dress (as in the painting) and we watch her comfort, what we assume to be a baby crying and wailing. We never see the baby though. We see her wandering around a baron landscape making comforting sounds and comments. The camera then pans to a small grave which has been pre dug which a shovel next to it. We see her bend down and place something into the grave. She turns to face the camera and we see her face for the first time and hear that the screams and wailing were all being made by her, she walks towards the camera with the shovel, raises it high, brings it down and then the camera goes black. This pitch idea is very gothic and nightmarish. I think it would be great fun working on location and creating such a chilling piece.

I will be interested to see out of all 31 pitch ideas, which will be chosen. None of the ones I like will probably be chosen!!!

National Gallery Trip Round 2

Yesterday the 6 of us doing the National Gallery option for SDP went to the National Gallery again, but this time with the Film and Acting department. I had to get up at 6.30 to ensure I was at the coach station on time at 8. The trip looked to be successful and helpful to not only us but also the Film department as we could give them our feedback and ideas on their chosen paintings. However, we were sort of just left to mingle ourselves for most of it. We approached the Film student and asked them what they were thinking of doing but none of them really seemed to have a clue, despite being given time to research the paintings in the gallery for several weeks before this trip. It was really frustrating as we felt more of a hindrance and annoyance that a help or guidance to the students. They didn't even know what THEY wanted to do let alone have thought about COSTUME! After meeting back at the entrance, we were assigned groups which each had a tutor in which we should follow. We went to each painting each student in the group was interested in turning into a 3 min film. I asked lots of questions about what period they wanted it to be set and gave advice the best I could. I liked several of the ideas but they were so undeveloped I'll be suprised if they actually have anything to pitch today! After that group session we were told to just go shopping (NOT what we came to do).

We were all really disapointed with how little we were wanted there and how unimportant not only the students but also the tutors made us feel. I was compared to a Fashion student by one of the tutors who also commented that "You do the same kind of thing". I thought this showed a great deal of disrespect and ignorance for what it is that us Costume students really have to do. Another girl was told that she should just make several donkey costumes over the Easter holidays if the pitch was chosen! On what budget and in whose time exactly?! Students expected unrealistic costumes to just magically be made for their films in time on no budget which shows such a lack of understanding and is quite insulting.

All in all the trip felt like a real waste of our time which was really disheartening.

Machine Embroidery and Felting

For the past few days I have been making felt by hand from the wool fibres I received in the post from Wingham Wools. It took about 4 attempts to actually perfect the making of the felt as each time I either did not rub the fibres together enough so they did not bond, add enough water, add enough washing up liquid or layer the fibres thick enough.

To create the handmade felt you have to:
1. Lay out a long piece of cling film
2. Layer fibres vertically
3. Layer fibres horizonally
4. Layer fibres vertically again
5. Spray the fibres with warm water and sprinkle some washing up liquid over them
6. Wrap the remainder of the cling film over the wet fibres and rub continuously with fingers. Also use a rolling pin to flatten the fibres.
7. Rinse out in a bowl of very cold water
8. Put inside a pillow case and tie a knot in the pillow case
9. Put on a cycle in the tumble dryer

Notes:
*You can also use bubble wrap instead of clingfilm.
*When laying out the fibres you can choose more than just one colour, you could layer several colours.
*Felt shrinks dramatically after being in tumble dryer.

I really like how the felt samples have turned out, some are thicker than others, in some the fibres are meshed together better etc but I like the diversity and different textures created.

I have been using my mums 30 year old Bernina to start my free machine embroidery. It is very clunky and slow in comparison to my Bernina Artista 615 which is AMAZING! I have pinned the felt samples onto the cloak and started to embroider onto them to not only secure them in place but to also create really interesting swirly patterns using different type and colours of thread. So far so good... just need to keep up momentum and carry on with the embroidery and creation of different fabric textures and techniques.

I am very pleased with how the samples have worked; this kind of embroidery and textile technique work, i feel, is my forte. Not only do I enjoy it but it is something I am good at due to being innovative and imaginative.