Costume Design Award Winners Round Up: Oscar, BAFTA & CDG |

© 2011, Columbia Pictures 28 Feb ’12

The votes have been counted, prizes dished out and winners’ speeches read. Now the Big Three honours have all been awarded it is time to list the lucky recipients and give them the hearty round of applause they deserve.

First to be announced on 12th February was the BAFTA (British Academy of Film & Television Arts) award for Best Costume Design, which the BBC typically and shamefully edited from their main broadcast, sandwiching it with Cinematography, Editing and other worthy categories ninety seconds before the end credits. Nominees and winner below:

The Artist – Mark Bridges WINNER
Hugo – Sandy Powell
Jane Eyre – Michael O’Connor
My Week with Marilyn – Jill Taylor
Tinker, Tailor, Solider, Spy – Jacqueline Durran

Mark Bridges for The Artist: first a BAFTA…

Of course, there are no complaints here. Every nominee was a worthy winner but it just seemed right that it was Mark Bridges’ time. His contribution to The Artist has been covered by just about everybody on the net by now so there is little need for us to delve any further. Do check out our exclusive interview with the great man from back in November however, plus our earlier article covering his amazing work for Boogie Nights. The love has always been there.

Understandably the CDG (Costume Designers Guild) Awards on 21st were an altogether more respectful and glamorous affair than BAFTA (well, they were held in Beverly Hills). Categories for mainstream costume in TV, Film and Commercials meant that everyone got a fair shot at glory:

Contemporary Film

Bridesmaids – Leesa Evans & Christine Wada
The Descendants – Wendy Chuck
Drive – Erin Benach
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo – Trish Summerville WINNER
Melancholia – Manon Rasmussen

Period Film

The Artist – Mark Bridges
Jane Eyre – Michael O’Connor
The Help – Sharen Davis
Hugo – Sandy Powell
W.E. – Arianne Phillips WINNER

Fantasy Film

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 – Jany Temime WINNER
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides – Penny Rose
Red Riding Hood – Cindy Evans
Thor – Alexandra Byrne
X-Men: First Class – Sammy Sheldon

Contemporary TV Series

Glee – Loy Eyrich & Jennifer Eve WINNER
Modern Family – Alix Friedberg
Revenge – Jill Ohanneson
Saturday Night Live – Tom Broecker & Eric Justian
Sons of Anarchy – Kelli Jones

Period/Fantasy TV Series

Boardwalk Empire – John A. Dunn, Lisa Padovani WINNER
The Borgias – Gabriella Pescucci
Game of Thrones – Michele Clapton
Once Upon a Time – Eduardo Castro
Pan Am – Ane Crabtree

Made-for-TV Movie or Miniseries

Downton Abbey – Susannah Buxton WINNER
The Kennedys – Christopher Hargadon
Mildred Pierce – Ann Roth

Commercial Costume Design

Carl’s Jr., “Miss Turkey,” – Francine Lecoultre
Dos Equis, “The Most Interesting Man in the World,” – Julie Vogel
Swiffer, “Country Dirt Girl,” – Roseanne Fiedler WINNER

Arianne Phillips for W.E.: straddles two time periods with panache.

Again, no arguments from us; these winners deserved their statuettes (a crocodile apparently, as Lacoste were sponsors). Trish Summerville taking Contemporary (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) must be especially pleased, because as a costume designer for feature film she is relatively new on the scene. It will be interesting to see how her career progresses.

Wonderful to see Arianne Phillips recognised for Period (W.E.), being as the film she worked so hard on was universally panned by critics. Moreover we have little coverage of W.E. here at Clothes on Film, largely due to manpower and the unfortunate truth that we just cannot see everything straight away. Hopefully we can reinstate ourselves by analysing the film when it reaches DVD, and perhaps Ms Phillips will even chat to us about her designs for the 1930s/late nineties set story (recreating that latter era is particularly intriguing).

For Fantasy, Jany Temime’s hard graft (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2) is all up there on-screen. Brave of the CDG to dismiss controversy in the press over Fleur Delacour’s wedding dress (actually Deathly Hallows: Part 1) that ultimately went nowhere. Loy Eyrich & Jennifer Eve for Contemporary TV Series (Glee) is sure to be a popular choice, as will John Dunn and Lisa Padovani for Period/Fantasy TV Series. Scanning over the Period/Fantasy nominees again, that category was a tough one to call. Incidentally, Loy Eyrich also took home a Career Achievement in Television award.

Susannah Buxton taking Made-for-TV Movie or Miniseries (Downton Abbey) is a real boon. The show has been huge for years in the UK but has now hit the U.S. with considerable success. Ms Buxton has to rework most of her costumes on the show that have already been seen in several similar TV dramas before. Not easy, especially since the press found out and inexplicably chastised her for it. Roseanne Fiedler for Commercial Design (Country Dirt Girl) we cannot comment on as we have never seen her work, but well done anyway.

So on to the big one – the Academy Awards on 26th:

Anonymous – Lisy Christl
The Artist – Mark Bridges WINNER
Hugo – Sandy Powell
Jane Eyre – Michael O’Connor
W.E. – Arianne Phillips

Bridges finally nabs his Oscar, and about time too.

Mark Bridges takes the costume design for The Artist at the 84th Academy Awards and it would take a real grump to begrudge him that honour. Bridges’ work takes into account many stylistic choices and influences: 1920s-30s period research, nostalgia, costuming in colour for black and white, fabric, budget and time. He should have had been nominated for The Fighter in 2011, but this makes up for it. Although, while we are talking Oscar, and BAFTA for that matter, why no In Memoriam mention for Eiko Ishioka, Richard Bruno, et al? There is no excuse for disrespect.

The award season is fun but is not the be-all and end-all; not for costume design, not for any art or craft in the movies. Some of the best work from the past year was not even nominated – for anything. Overall it has been a good run for feature film but who knows what the next twelve months will bring? More surprises we hope.

© 2012, Chris Laverty.