About, Editor and Contributors | Clothes on Film

Clothes on Film was launched by me, Christopher Laverty, in June, 2009. It’s intention was and remains to celebrate the art (or craft? There’s a future debate) of costume design in film and television.

I have always been interested in costume design, though apart from a brief stint in theatre, I’ve never practically worked in the field. My knowledge is all theoretical and analytical. I am very lucky to have met, interviewed and can call friend some of the best and brightest costume designers in the business. I have learned so much about what the process involves and continue to do so every day.

For me it is most important that Clothes on Film looks beyond the surface of costume design to discover its hidden meaning. A t-shirt is never just a t-shirt (look at Drive) and a coat never just a coat (see Penny Lane in Almost Famous). All these choices were made for a reason; there is subtext going on here. Clothes on Film gets to the heart of what costumes mean and their influence on the narrative in play. Personally I do have a stronger bias for contemporary costume because I feel it is often overlooked. This is not to say you won’t see any period clothing analysis on the site. Just visit the archive and you’ll find over 400 essays and videos to sift through about everything from There Will Be Blood to Trainspotting 2.

Clothes on Film continues to publish content including news, essays, interviews, videos and analysis.

(also do buy a copy of my first book Fashion in Film published by Laurence King. It’s all new content and makes a wonderful companion to the site as well the perfect present for friends and loved ones. That was my feeble attempt at the hard sell.)

Contributors:

Bonnie Radcliffe Bonnie has worked in a variety of roles in costume for film, television and theatre. Loves clothes and is fascinated by people, especially the way clothes can create a living, breathing character.

Jill Burgess
Jill writes Everything Just So, a blog focusing on fashion exhibits in New York City. Her favorite fashion eras are the 20’s, 30’s and 60’s. She had a seamstress make a copy of the hot pink William Travilla-designed gown Marilyn Monroe wore in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes to wear to her high school prom. She lives and obsesses about clothes and costumes in Brooklyn, NY. Contact thru: twitter.com/#!/jillburgess815

Lesley Holmes Costume maker and seamstress.

Contact thru: twitter.com/lesleyanneh

Kristin M. Burke.

LA Based award winning movie costume designer, author and now director. Contact: frocktalk[at]gmail.com

Sarah H. Specialises in musicals. Lover of vintage clothes, shoes, hats, handbags and make-up. Contact: Sarah[at]clothesonfilm.com

Simon Kinnear.
Freelance contributor to Total Film and also has his own movie blog.
Contract thru: twitter.com/kinnemaniac

Adam Batty.
Creator and editor of Hope Lies at 24 Frames Per Second. Expert in French cinema.
Contact thru twitter.com/adamhopelies

Guest posts:

Matt Spaiser, Jill Burgess, Amber Butchart, Dr. Deirdre Clemente, Aisling O’Connor, Ashley Clark, Katy Werlin, Limara Salt, Louise Junker, Abbey Bender, Josie Sampson, Dallas King, Neil Alcock, Lesley Holmes, Lisa Magnuson, Suzanne Rowland, Kristin Koga, Aurélie Coulibaly, Corinna Tomrley, Sara Bivigou, Maggie Costumer’s Guide, Brenda Hineman, Ben McCarthy, Kate Snowden, Gilly Laverty.

If you would like to contribute an article to the site about your favourite costume(s) in a movie, please contact editor chris[at]clothesonfilm.com – hopefully we can put something together.