00:00When it comes to unforgettable TV, costumes do more than just dress the part, they tell
00:05a story.
00:06And this year's Emmy nominees for Outstanding Contemporary Costume Design gave us fashion
00:11moments that were as bold, layered, and binge-worthy as the shows themselves.
00:16Let's start with The Righteous Gemstones, a televangelist empire dripping in rhinestones,
00:21sequins and just the right amount of satire.
00:24The Gemstone family wardrobe is all about excess between flashy suits, designer labels
00:29and a Sunday service that truly dazzles.
00:32I've always been very fascinated with religion.
00:34I think specifically coming from the South, you can see some of these extreme megachurch
00:39situations where it's so far-fetched.
00:42For example, last season we did a monster truck rally and I remember messaging Danny and messaging
00:48the production center and being like, whoa, look, this is actually a thing.
00:51And he was like, yeah, we already knew that.
00:53So it's like the megachurch world is just, it leaves so much fun for character development
01:00and costume design.
01:02And I think with some of these characters, it's really fun to play with it because they
01:05have a stunted element to them, but they're also bazillionaires.
01:08So, you know, we have people like Judy and Adam Devine's character that, you know, they would
01:14really care about having this like elaborate look so you can play with sequins and things
01:18like that and they do have the access.
01:20So, yeah, I feel like I myself am a huge fan of drag culture and just like club kids and
01:27things like that.
01:27So I really thought that this is a show that you can kind of push that like, I don't know,
01:33sometimes you can come on to shows and they have a certain kind of energy to them and
01:36some have like a feminine energy, a masculine energy or like both or this or that or neither.
01:41And I felt like this show has like an energy where we could really elevate religion and
01:46like a drag perspective.
01:47And I think that's kind of what we did.
01:49And I think it was pretty incredible because Danny was really like on board with pushing,
01:55you know, these characters and like having a lot of fun with it.
01:58Meanwhile, The White Lotus was one of the boldest ensemble shows this Emmy season, but the
02:03clothes also stood out as a character of its own.
02:06From breezy linen sets to luxe resort wear, every look said something about status on vacation.
02:12With each season of The White Lotus, it was clear that the country or location was a huge
02:20character in the story and the relationship with the landscape and the people and the culture
02:28where the guests are, where the guests are, was very important.
02:31One of the first things that came to my mind was my own travels in Thailand and Southeast
02:38Asia, and then also the song One Night in Bangkok.
02:42It kept going through my head because it's super catchy.
02:45And so these two influences, sort of a shiny, flashy, glittery version of ourselves.
02:53And then my own idea of like a bohemian spiritual adventure.
02:59I approached the ladies as if they were one person with sort of three facets to them.
03:05And when you first meet them, they seem like one amalgus blob.
03:11And then as you get to know them, you see their personalities and where they're from and
03:15where they chose to live their lives come through.
03:18But the idea really was that they are dressing for each other and trying to impress each other.
03:22And also a little bit for show that they're wearing masks and that the masks start to come off.
03:29And, you know, particularly the case sometimes with American Girlfriends is that there's a lot
03:34of fronting going on.
03:35So their guard gets let down and you see that Laurie's falling apart and Jacqueline's not happy.
03:42And so that starts to prevail in the outfits.
03:47Then there's the studio, a behind the scenes take on Hollywood itself.
03:51The costumes blurred the lines between on-screen glamour and the creative chaos behind the lens,
03:57with the costumes from each episode serving as an homage to a different era of Hollywood.
04:01When you're doing a period show, you really go in and you just, you know,
04:05you want everything to be exactly from that period.
04:08And this one, we just incorporated all of it.
04:10We did, you know, 30s suiting, some 40s in there, a lot of 70s, a little 80s, a lot of 90s.
04:17You know, we just tried to kind of weave all of the eras of Hollywood filmmaking into it just
04:23to show the love that we have for all of it.
04:27My favorite story is when we, when Ron Howard came in, we did ask him to bring his hats,
04:32his signature Imagine hats.
04:35And he brought a little duffel bag of the different hats that he has.
04:40So it's like Imagine Docs, Imagine Creative, a charity that he works with.
04:45And he showed us all the hats, which is exactly what we wanted.
04:50But he's like, well, maybe I could wear a different hat for different scenes.
04:54But it's all one costume that he wears.
04:56It's just like one thing.
04:57So that would be a totally different farce if you were changing his hats every single
05:03time we see him.
05:05Meanwhile, Emily in Paris brought us Parisian couture like no other.
05:09Love it or hate it, Emily's bold looks, clashing prints, and over the top everything is another
05:14character in itself.
05:16With each season, viewers have watched Emily immerse and find comfort in the Parisian way
05:20of life.
05:21And this season, that was reflected more than ever in her fashion, with her signature Emily
05:26twist, of course.
05:27I remember that the black and white masquerade ball that Truman Capote was throwing in 1967,
05:35I think, around the end of 60s.
05:39So it was a good way to have this French and American culture goes well together.
05:45So black and white, I thought it was a nice idea.
05:48It was very, very graphic instead of having a lot of colors for once in the show.
05:57So we get in touch with Aris and he was part of the project.
06:03He was very enthusiastic and he did a couple of regarding the mood board I sent to him.
06:09He did a couple of drawing sketches.
06:12And Lily and I decided on the most outrageous one, obviously.
06:20So yes, it was a nice collaboration.
06:24It's the kind of moment that you are happy to collaborate with the fashion designer.
06:29Because they all know that I have a deep admiration for the job.
06:35And finally, Hacks.
06:40Debra Vance's wardrobe serves old Hollywood glamour one minute, sharp power suits the next,
06:45and always reminding us that she runs the show.
06:48Put her next to Ava's laid-back style, the contrast makes for the perfectly imperfect but
06:53brilliant pair.
06:54So whether it's satirical sparkle, Hollywood power dressing, or Parisian couture, these nominees
06:59prove that in TV, the costumes are about more than just clothes.
07:03In the end, the Emmy went to the studio, but every designer this year delivered looks we'll
07:08be talking about long after the ceremony is over.
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