Without today's supremely talented industry professional, a lot of your favorite Hollywood stars would be walking around with far less clothing, and though that sounds awesome, trust me, the films you love are much better with the addition of her beautiful handiwork. Please, take a few moments to absorb the words of a specialty costume maker, who has worked on such films as X-Men: The Last Stand, Doom, The Cat in the Hat, such programs as Crank Yankers and even did some work on those cool, live action Assassin's Creed II shorts you all love so much, Simone Williams.
What inspired you to become a specialty costume maker?
Everything good in the 70s and 80s. Star Wars, KISS, the old Universal Monsters, Alice Cooper, Bladerunner, MTV and music videos. I never admitted I listened to Duran Duran, but I loved their look and their videos. Even The Police had a costume designer from The Royal Shakespeare Company make their costumes once things started going downhill towards the end of the Synchronicity Tour. Everything I was absorbing inspired me to be a creative person. I was always a crafty kid. I had been sewing and crocheting since I was little. I started college in Art and Graphic Design, but that soon changed.
How did you get your start?
While getting that Art degree, I got a work study scholarship in Photography for the Theatre Dept. That pretty much blew it open wide for me. In costume design, it's expected that you draw and you're an artist, so I started living a double life of going to art classes, then doing a lot of uncredited theatre work. People encouraged me to go to grad school for costume design.
Was it tough breaking into the business?
I think sticking with it and not giving up takes more fortitude than people give it credit. Ten years ago, I had a few credit cards with sweet interest rates, so I was able to get by even when I shouldn't have been. It's the Robert Townshend method of paying for your dream with your credit cards. You certainly can't do that nowadays!