Want a master class in movie costumes?
BY VALLI HERMAN >>> Whether she was re-creating the look of wartime London’s leaders or bringing an animated fairy tale to life, British costume designer Jacqueline Durran so squarely hit the target of believability that she earned two Academy Award nominations this year for two vastly different films, “Darkest Hour” and “Beauty and the Beast.” ¶ How? Her answer is simple: “You just do it,” she said, speaking from London recently. “It never really occurred to me that I was doing things differently. The work, the actual core thing that you lie in bed and think about at night, is the same.”
A career of worrying has netted her a slew of awards in the last 12 years, including an Oscar for “Anna Karenina” and nominations for films including “Mr. Turner,” “Atonement” and “Pride and Prejudice.”
Her feat this year was all the more remarkable because “Beauty and the Beast” and “Darkest Hour” also brought double nominations to her frequent collaborators, production designer Sarah Greenwood and set decorator Katie Spencer. For the movie watcher catching up on this year’s Oscar-season films, Durran’s work on “Darkest Hour” and “Beauty and the Beast” are a master class in capturing distinct time periods through clothing.
With the exception of Edith Head, very few costume designers have earned two Academy Award costume design nominations in one year.
In 2004, Ngila Dickson was nominated for “The Last Samurai” and won for “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.” In 1999, Sandy Powell was nominated for “Velvet Goldmine” and won for “Shakespeare in Love.” In 2016, Powell again earned double nominations for “Carol” and “Cinderella,” though the award went to Jenny Beavan for “Mad Max: Fury Road.”
“Winning an Oscar does give you a feeling of success that I’m not sure anything else can give you,” Durran said. “You can’t help but feel it’s an achievement. On a day-to-day basis, I don’t think much changes. I still work with the same directors and I try and do the same work.” She has had a fruitful run with director Joe Wright, for whom she designed six films, including “Darkest Hour.”
Ask Durran if she thought her latest films were among her best and she’ll respond with an emphatic “No.” The $1 billion-plus box office of “Beauty and the Beast” ranks as her biggest film, but “Darkest Hour” is more aligned to her working style.
“It’s really detailed work with the actor, working out how the costume would feel, how the actor wants to use it,” she said.
Gary Oldman, who won the lead actor Oscar this year, transformed his face into Winston Churchill with spectacular special-effects makeup, but Durran made the rest authentic. She had an array of esteemed companies create replicas of Churchill’s clothing and accessories, including suits and coats from Savile Row tailor Henry Poole & Co.; headwear from London’s Lock & Co. Hatters; shirts and bow ties from Turnbull & Asser; and his watch from Breguet. Also shoes were re-created to match his specific style. A careful eye will notice the clothiers were thanked in the final credits of the film, which can be viewed on-demand or DVD.
“I think he had chosen his style by the 1920s and kept that look with minor style alterations through his life,” Durran said. That consistency made capturing his essence easier, she said, “but you had to get it totally right, detail by detail. The overriding idea of Churchill is that he is a bit of a dandy.”
For “Beauty and the Beast,” Durran had to honor the iconic imagery of the 1991 animated film and the feminist ideals of actress Emma Watson, who portrayed Belle in the live-action version as an active, unconstrained heroine.
“She was adamant that she wouldn’t wear a corset. She wanted to ride a horse and run,” Durran said.
Adding another layer of complexity, the Beast wore costumes that were later amplified in computer-generated imagery. “The actual costume had to be photographed, the pattern and fabric, in the way we wanted it to be worn and then sent to the visual effects departments,” she said. “They re-created the costume on camera in CG from our existing item. They put the details into the computer program and then they can predict the movement of the costume based on the fabric and the action and work with it from that point.”
Although she didn’t pick up another Oscar earlier this month, Durran remains focused on her future in film — future nominations or not. (This year’s award went to Mark Bridges for his designs for “Phantom Thread.”)
“I enjoy the work I’m doing, and I enjoyed it before,” Durran said, “and I will after.”