Film Costumes in Action

Partners and collaborators

AHRC/UKRI, University of Bristol, British Film Institute, University of Leeds

Description

Film Costumes in Action

Film Costumes in Action investigates how costumes have been designed, made and used in British film from the 1960s onwards.

Costume plays a central role in film imagery and is fundamental to understandings of character, atmosphere and setting. Yet little is known outside the industry about how costumes are designed and constructed, and how the profession of costume has changed over the last six decades. 

We want to raise the profile and appreciation of British-led costume design and making, nationally and internationally, and champion expanded notions of screen heritage, past, present and future. 

The British film industry has developed a distinctive model for costuming film. Small costume and wardrobe teams attached to studios or production companies are led by costume designers who liaise with costume houses (who also supply television and theatre) and freelance specialists in diverse crafts from corsetry to millinery. Britain has developed a reputation for expertise in period film, and British-trained designers, especially women, have become increasingly prominent internationally. 

Above image: Costumes for Shakespeare in Love (1998) designed by three-time Academy Award winner Sandy Powell, on display in the exhibition Dressed by Angels (2015), which marked 175 years of Angels costume house.

Top image: Wardrobe Mistress Jackie Cummins making sure that Ursula Andress is free of wrinkles for her starring role in She (1965).

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The costume journey

Film Costumes in Action will use costumes, archival materials (including design sketches and paper records) and interviews with practitioners to record the whole ‘costume journey’. We will trace how costumes develop from the script to the designs, to making in the workshop and fitting on actors, through to filming and marketing. Along this journey, we will examine the roles of a huge range of professionals – designers, illustrators, cutters, costumiers, textile artists, supervisors, stand-bys and more – to document the skill and labour involved in film costume.

Wardrobe Supervisor Rosemary Burrows dressing Charlie Chaplin on the set of A Countess from Hong Kong (1966). Burrows ensured that costumes were ship-shape on over 100 films, from Dracula (1958) to V for Vendetta (2005).

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Interviews

So far, we have interviewed designers, makers and managers of costumes, and heard about the joys and challenges of this work. We’ve also spoken to costume houses and fabric suppliers, to understand how people and objects move within the close-knit networks of the costume industry. 

We’ve heard about the creative buzz from a great fitting: 

“the magic in a fitting room when you find the character is so good… And you’ll try on a few things and then you’ll just drop something and you can see the actor switch on, you can see them start to feel it.” – Costume Designer 

The methods of a successful team: 

“Often in my workshop, I split up clothes. Someone will make the sleeves, someone will make the bodice, someone will make the skirt, it’s a team effort and then it all comes together at the end.” – Cutter 

And the long hours on set: 

“I worked my socks off, we didn’t have enough money to pay enough people simply, [so] I’d be loading trucks at 9 o’clock at night and I’d be back on location at 7 o’clock in the morning, fitting the crowd.” – Costume Supervisor 

There are many shared themes emerging from these interviews: the importance of long-term collaborators, the rewards of creative fulfilment, and the demands of tight deadlines and long days. These open up theoretical observations concerning trust, care, tacit and embodied knowledge, and emotional labour; and they also indicate the challenges facing the industry around working hours and culture. 

Events and Outputs

During the project, we are hosting a series of ‘Costume Conversations’ for academics and practitioners. These workshops explore different methods for researching costume history, e.g. object analysis, reconstruction, film screenings and interviews. 

Costume Conversations 1 took place in March 2024. The day included an interview with Jane Petrie, BAFTA winning costume designer, which explored the role of imagination and authenticity in film design. Through structured discussions, the group mapped the costume journey, digging into detail of how costumes get made, and how we can access knowledge. 

In March 2025, we will be hosting a Wiki Edit-a-thon event, to create and update Wikipedia entries for costume designers and makers. These records will address the invisibility of costume workers within film histories and screen culture more broadly, and highlight the notable contribution of costume to British filmmaking. 

The research team will also develop publications for academic and public audiences, including an online map, a printed zine, journal and magazine articles and a book (provisionally titled Dressing British Films). 

This project is also informing programming at the British Film Institute, with a season of screenings centred on costume design planned for 2025. 

Project Team

Project lead: Professor Melanie Bell, University of Leeds 

Co-Investigators: Dr Claire Smith, British Film Institute & Professor Sarah Street, University of Bristol 

Research Fellow: Dr Alice Sage, University of Leeds 

If you would like to talk to us about contributing an oral history interview or have any questions about the project, please contact: Alice Sage a.e.sage@leeds.ac.uk 

We will be delighted to hear from you!

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Follow our research on Twitter @film_costume

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