The Case for Costume Designers in Animation Production

Usually, costume design exists in the realm of responsibility of the animators on a given project. A character is developed by a character designer, or a visual development artist, but an animator nonetheless. There is, however, no collaboration with a costume designer and it is only recently that 'costuming' has become its own sector within animation, with costume designers gaining recognition for their contributions to these productions.

In 2023, Skydance made history by establishing the animation industry's first official studio-designated costuming department with Neysa Bove. She worked on Moana (2018) and Raya and the Last Dragon (2020) marking herself as the first fashion designer to sit at the head of the project (Davis, 2023). While these roles are, evidently, being integrated into the production process, the value of costume designers in animated productions cannot be understated.

While it would be difficult to be all-encompassing in arguing a case for further integrating costume designers into animation production projects, breaking down the fundamentals of the case would serve to introduce it.

Maarit Kalmakuri, a costume and set designer, wrote an article outlining the emergence of costume designers in animation, claiming this addressed a long-existing blindspot in animation productions: "their lack of professional costume design expertise" (Kalmakurki, 2021b). She argued that given costume design's significance to, among other things, contribute to character and story design and development, the integration of a costume designer into the production process would not only support the existing project, but contribute in new and groundbreaking ways.  She argues it saves money and time, and results in more diverse characters, and is ultimately an investment. 'My key research finding is that costume designers are vital experts in the production of digital animation films, but they are underused', she states (Kinnunen, 2021).

Her PhD thesis, titled 'Digital Character Costume Design in Computer-Animated Feature Films', outlines the neccesity of involving the costume designer in the process, as costuming aids in creating the character's identity, supporting the narrative of the film (Kalmakurki, 2021a). Kalmakuri's argument, and the general sentiment it echoes, is uncontested in live-action but only to a certain extent in animation.

However, as evidenced in the following projects, ranging from computer-animated, to stop-motion, the integration of a costume designer allows for creative and deeply personal contributions to serve the character, the director's vision and ultimately, the message of the film.

Over the Moon (2020) dir. Glen Keane and John Kahrs

In computer animation, much has changed in the way of costuming. As 'textures, shapes, and colours are now so close to reality that the digital-animated world becomes almost palpable', costuming has gained importance for the audience, who increasingly appreciate its ability to reinforce the narrative (Sandoval, 2021a). 'Each seam, trim, stitch, jewel, buckle, and button are so precise that you want to grab those costumes from the characters and put them into your wardrobe' (Sandoval, 2021a). As animation has evolved, studios have developed 'stitching, lace, leather, mesh and veil textures', as well as software to 'sew' garments together, among other technological developments (Sandoval, 2021b). The synthesis of these and the input of a costume designer is evident in films like Over the Moon.

(The Sun, 2020)

Netflix Animation's Over the Moon is a profound exploration of love and loss, following Fei Fei, a young girl reeling from the death of her mother, who aims to build a rocket ship to the moon to meet a mythical goddess. The clothes worn by the Moon Goddess, Chang’e, were created by internationally renowned fashion designer Guo Pei, known for creating Rihanna's trailing yellow gown at the Met Gala in 2015.

Guo Pei reflected a desire for Chang'e's costumes to capture the audience by surprise, through a myriad of shapes, colours, and fabric choices (The Sun, 2020). Details of her costumes' design are small yet intentional in achieving this, reflecting the fantastical nature of the film whilst remaining reminiscent of Chinese culture. To ensure the fabrics of her costumes moved fluidly on screen, animators collaborated to get the physics of the costumes just right with a plethora of technologies, so they would be as Guo Pei envisioned (The Sun, 2020).

In this scene, Chang’e is briefly reunited with her late lover. She wears a traditional Chinese dress which compliments the muted and melancholy tones in the forest, emphasising the tragedy of their final farewell (The Sun, 2020).

(The Sun, 2020)

(The Sun, 2020)

In this scene, Chang’e wears an imperial empress gown, as her and Fei Fei have helped each other accept and move on from the loss of their loved ones, and she overcomes her sadness to restore light to her kingdom. The story is embedded in the embroidery, as the tale of Chang’e and her lover are depicted on the robe as two intertwining birds, reflecting Guo Pei's belief that costume design is a fundamental aspect of dramatic storytelling (The Sun, 2020).

This project was Guo Pei's first experience working in animation, and as there was a language barrier between her and director Glen Keane, they communicated and collaborated solely through concept art (The Sun, 2020).

The Box Trolls (2014) dir. Graham Annable and Anthony Stacchi

In stop-motion animation, characters are represented by miniature figurines, or puppets, necessitating an exceptional level of detail in their design as their scale is blown up largely on screen. In costuming the characters, the textures used to imitate a fabric, or the movement or weight of fabric in contrast to the size of the puppet are just some of the things animators and costume designers must consider (Sandoval, 2021b). There have been productions where a character designer, without the input of an additional costume designer, has created beautiful work in terms of stop-motion costuming. Felice Haymoz, who worked with Wes Anderson on Fantastic Mr Fox (2009) and Isle of Dogs (2018), comes to mind. However, the impact of integrating a costume designer into a stop-motion animation production, given the detail necessary, is best evidenced by a film like The Box Trolls.

Universal Pictures' The Box Trolls is 'a pan-European mash-up of Victorian eclecticism, steampunk, and German Expressionism', in which Eggs, a human boy raised by trash-collecting trolls known as 'Boxtrolls', must save them from a pest exterminator (Edwards, 2014). LAIKA Studios, who animated the project and is most known for Coraline (2009), specialises in stop-motion animation and has its own puppet department with subsections for costuming.

Deborah Cook, the film's costume designer, collaborated with the production designer, character designer, and the film's directors, to develop the film's costumes.

 Cook was inspired by other mediums in establishing a "vibe" for the film; the colour palette for the film's costumes came from Delacroix's 1830 Liberty Leading the People (Edwards, 2014).

The fabric call-out board displays the combination of velvets and chiffons Cook utilised to bring era-appropriate authenticity to the otherwise fantastical costuming of the film, with other, sturdier fabrics (Edwards, 2014). For example, puppets of the protagonist Eggs had trousers with a non-stretch suiting on top, while being backed with lycra (Edwards, 2014).

For the fabrics that translate badly into stop-motion, like denim, lace, or fur, laser etching was employed to imitate them so that details could be visible once the scale was altered (Edwards, 2014).

To aid both in costuming, and to support the animators, Cook ensured the usage of crooked linework (Edwards, 2014). For example, the lines in Eggs' trousers are crooked where they stretch, so the animators could animate him kneeling with ease (Edwards, 2014). 'Another thing we do in the costume [is] we line the seams up so everything’s got several purposes', Cook explains, as 'they also need to pass over the puppet’s access points so [the animators] are not twisting the costumes around or impairing movement' (Edwards, 2014).

This scene, where Eggs dances at a ball, was initially shot with dancers, allowing for both the animators and the designers to understand the motion of the crinolines and adapt this to the puppets. Cook worked with the armature department to build metallic structures to provide the desired movement under the skirt (Sandoval, 2021b).

In these examples, it becomes evident how the collaboration between costume designers and animators can allow for a synthesis of ideas to serve the film. While the work of character and production designers is significant, these case studies illustrate the necessity of addressing this blind spot, as Kalmakuri puts it, in animation production. For a truly comprehensive, enlightening exploration of animated projects where costume designers have conducted radical and beautiful work, dedicating themselves wholly to costuming as an art form, Kalmakurki's PhD thesis is a must-read. To acknowledge even just the fundamentals of the case for costume designers in animation production is to contribute towards this argument, and to their increased visibility in this field.

Sources

Davis, V. (2023). Neysa Bove Dives into the Very Fabric of Animation Costume Design. [online] Animation World Network. Available at: https://www.awn.com/animationworld/neysa-bove-dives-very-fabric-animation-costume-design [Accessed 26 Jan. 2025].

Edwards, C. (2014). The Challenges of Designing Tiny Costumes for ‘The Boxtrolls’. [online] Cartoon Brew. Available at: https://www.cartoonbrew.com/feature-film/the-challenges-of-designing-tiny-costumes-for-the-boxtrolls-103865.html [Accessed 26 Jan. 2025].

Kalmakurki, M. (2021a). Digital Character Costume Design in Computer-Animated Feature Films. pp.105–250.

Kalmakurki, M. (2021b). There’s a New Profession in Animation Town. [online] Creativity Unfolded. Available at: https://medium.com/creativity-unfolded/theres-a-new-profession-in-animation-town-a425fbf8903e [Accessed 26 Jan. 2025].

Kinnunen, K. (2021). Costume Designers Can Add Significant Value to Animated Films. [online] www.aalto.fi. Available at: https://www.aalto.fi/en/news/costume-designers-can-add-significant-value-to-animated-films [Accessed 26 Jan. 2025].

Sandoval, M. (2021a). Costuming the Animated World: Computer-Animated Films. [online] The Art of Costume. Available at: https://theartofcostume.com/2021/05/27/costuming-the-animated-world-computer-animated-films/ [Accessed 26 Jan. 2025].

Sandoval, M. (2021b). Costuming the Animated World: Stop-Motion Animation. [online] The Art of Costume. Available at: https://theartofcostume.com/2021/03/25/costuming-the-animated-world-stop-motion-animation/ [Accessed 26 Jan. 2025].

The Sun (2020). Meet Guo Pei, the Designer Behind Over The Moon’s Ultraluminary Costumes. [online] thesun.my. Available at: https://thesun.my/spotlight/meet-guo-pei-the-designer-behind-over-the-moon-s-ultraluminary-costumes-DM4934162 [Accessed 26 Jan. 2025].