Evaluation

I chose to work on the Painting for Inspiration route for my SDP project and I am very pleased that I did as I have really enjoyed the whole process. The project has been a challenge in more than one way; I have found the time management side of it quite difficult to organise and I have entered into a new environment; working in film sets.

For the first part of the project, I really enjoyed being able to experiment with textile techniques and use my imagination when it came to how I wanted to recreate the painting. It took on a lot of work recreating this painting as I used only sourced fabric, different samples of hand dyed and machine embroidered fabric and hand embroidered beading. The set up for the photograph took several days, which was really time consuming, but overall I am quite pleased with how it has turned out. There are certain areas of it that I would like to redo but I feel that it is a very successful recreation. It is not exactly the same as the painting, but then again, a lot of the recreations I researched at the beginning of the project are not either. I am pleased I used Photoshop to touch up certain areas and to make the background look more swirly and painterly- exactly the look I was going for. It was a challenge using Photoshop again as it has been a while since I last used it and having to recap on the tools took a while to do. I have created a strong sketchbook to support this project, showing all of my research and my design process, which I am really happy with. I would like to have spent more time on this sketchbook but overall I am pleased with it. My time management was not great for this part of the project; I had not completed it whilst working on the second part of the project, so after the filming I have had to cram a lot of work and time consuming tasks into under two weeks which has been a real challenge.

The second part of the project, I found the most exciting. I assisted for two films and designed for one. Just being part of the film team was a new experience and I felt it is really going to help me, as it has been a nice introduction into this world. I will be embarking on work experience in the summer in New York (the placements are yet to be confirmed) and may be working on a film set, so it was really helpful to have gained at least a little but of knowledge before embarking on such a daunting venture. I loved designing for Fair Belles; I also enjoyed sourcing and adapting/ breaking down the costumes. I had to not only go to high street shops but also to charity shops and also the costume store at Uni. The film department, despite the fact we were warned of their often negative attitude towards the costume department, were really fun to work with and very much respected my design decisions and my role as the costume designer. Just being on the different sets showed me how differently shoots can go and the different styles directors like to shoot with. Despite these differences, time management on all films were very much the same: ‘running late’! With Bunny’s permission, I have created a strong film file/ sketchbook collaboration (as opposed to two separate books) in which I have evidenced all of the paperwork, my research, design process (including sourcing and adaptations) and photographic evidence of working on all of the different films. I feel this film file/ sketchbook is very thorough, clearly laid out and informative and I have spent a lot of time ensuring I included every aspect of my journey through this part of the project.

Overall, I am really happy with how both parts of the project have gone; I feel I have gained new, really useful skills which I will be able to translate into a work experience and hopefully eventually a work environment. This, surely, is one of the most important aspects of this course; gaining experiences which you can eventually use in a work environment. I have gained contacts and connections with people on the film course, some of whom have asked me to work with them next year on their Grad films, which is a really exciting thing to look forward to.

Photograph

Today I took the photograph of my painting recreation and I am really pleased with it, especially as I also imported it into Photoshop and tweaked the colours and blurred area of the background to create more of a painterly effect. I am really happy with how well this painting recreation has gone and, despite their being certain parts of it that I would like to redo, I am very happy with the final outcome.

Photograph

For the past few days I have been setting up the backdrop and cape to be photographed. It is a very time consuming process and I have to pin a lot of different fabrics and details to the backdrop and keep having to refer the the photograph to ensure that the composition is the same/ very similar. I have enjoyed the process but it has taken such a long time!

I sourced a lot of the fabrics in charity shops and also the model's outfit was sourced and the headband was handmade by myself.

I am really hoping this photograph come out well, I have invested a lot of time in ensuring it is accurate to the photograph. I have really enjoyed the process of creating this piece as it has encompassed a lot of my different skills.

Shoot Day- 'Fair Belles' and Evaluation

It was really nice that today I was able to see the costumes I designed, sourced and made being used in a real film environment.

Having already bonded with the actresses, actor and film crew, I found it very easy to be on set and thoroughly enjoyed the environment and got on very well with everybody. Having Ellen there as my assistant worked really well, especially during the sex scene, as we were both there to give Annabelle and Dan dressing gowns in-between takes.

I am very happy with how well this project has gone and I would definately do this again. I am planning on working with the film course next year as I have made strong connections with certain people and they have requested to work with me again in the future.

Costume Sourcing, Adaptations and Breaking Down

This evening I went sourcing again to find the 2 remaining accessories to my costumes. I managed to find a necklace and make a necktie from a scrap of brown fabric.

I also adapted the chemise for Belle and I am really happy with the result.

I broke down Dan's trousers and they are now perfect for his character as Belle's client.

I am very happy with how well everything has gone, despite the few jobs I had left today tonight. I am very much looking forward to working on set to see how my costumes look on film and how well they work with the set design and lighting etc.

Fitting and Costume Sourcing

Today I had a fitting for both of the actresses, Annabelle and Caroline, and the actor, Dan. I am thrilled with how good everything looked. I have an adaptation to make to Belle's costume but it should be fairly simple. I also need to break down the trousers for Dan to make them look more worn and source a necktie for Dan and a necklace for Annabelle. I had a look in the uni costume store collection of jewellery but the only thing I could find that may have worked is an earring that I would need to attach to a chain but i am not 100% happy with that so I will try to source a necklace later.

Caroline (Adelita)

I feel I have really successfully done my job as a costume designer so far and due to my organisation skills I have managed to keep on top of everything.

Shoot Day- 'The Chair'

Today I assisted Ellen on set for The Chair. It was an interesting experience working on this project as they used a green screen, something I have only ever been seen done on DVD extras! It was really interesting and a totally different experience to working on set on Ophelia as they did many different takes from all different angles in all different ways.

I felt a bit useless on set as there was only one actor and Ellen was very much in control of his costume. It was an interesting experience and learning curve but as an assistant I did very little despite being very willing to do anything!

The day was an experience but I wish I could have been more of a help. For example, if there had been two actors on set I could have been in charge of the continuity for one of their costumes.

I am very glad I assisted as I was able to observe Ellen doing her job which gave me confidence in myself for my film in a few days time.

Costume Sourcing

Today I continued with the costume sourcing and found some black shoes for Belle after finding out the red shoes would not fit her. I went to the uni costume store again and found a nice pair but they are not as good as the red pair. However, they are going to have to do as the shooting starts in 2 days I have arranged a fitting for tomorrow.

I am pleased with how all of the costumes look and am excited for the fitting tomorrow. I think they are going to look even better on the actresses/ actor.

Project Documentation

I have printed off all of the information posted on Dropbox and read through it all so I now have a better understanding of what the film is about/how it is going to be shot/ in which order it is going to be shot. I am pleased I have read through all of the information and I feel very involved with the whole process of the filming and with the film crew.