TV Costume Design panel roundtable: ‘Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist,’ ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power,’ ‘Nobody Wants This’
Costume designers Ernesto Martinez, Luca Mosca, and Negar Ali-Kline share a mutual respect and admiration for their respective peers’ work that can only come from the experience of being in the trenches.
“I get anxiety from looking at my colleagues’ work, because I know how much has gone into what’s onscreen,” Mosca, the costume designer for “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” tells Gold Derby during our Meet the Experts: TV Costume Designers panel. “I know exactly what the struggles were, what their successes are, and how good they have been in achieving all of that. I cannot watch a movie or a TV series like a normal audience member now, because I know exactly what went into making it.”
“Full disclosure, I watch everything,” Martinez, who served as costume designer on “Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist,” adds. “So I really look at the costumes, and so I know the work that it takes. Both of you do fantastic work. Negar, I saw all the subtleties in the rabbi on ‘Nobody Wants This,’ because I kept wondering, how is she going to make this guy really sexy and cute? And you did a great job. And Luca, your work within the action the scale of what you do – all these characters – it’s amazing.”
“Ernesto, at this point, when I see a bad costume, I used to say, ‘Oh, that costume designer.’ Now I say, ‘That poor costume designer,’” Mosca adds. ”I’m no longer blaming the costume designer. I know that there has been an army of chefs in that kitchen who led to that specific costume. You understand what’s going on behind the scenes and what the costume designer is up against.”
For Ali-Kline, who designed costumes for Netflix’s “Nobody Wants This,” the respect of her industry peers is crucial. “I watched a couple of scenes early on, and when you see something in your own work where you’re like, ‘Oh, that was a bit of a mistake.’ And then people on your team say, ‘Well, no one’s gonna notice. The audience doesn’t look for that.’ And I am always like, ‘No, but my peers are gonna notice what the mistakes are.’ They have trained eyes, and they will see that. You care about what your friends. So yeah I watch these shows and I’m just like, my mind is blown as to how you wrapped your arms around a project like ‘Lord of the Rings’ and ‘Fight Night’ and reined those in. I’m incredibly impressed and admire you both so much.”
Watch the full roundtable discussion above.