The Issue of Historically Accurate Costumes

Whenever I tell someone that I have a new screenplay that I want to produce, they always ask me the same question. It's not "What is it about?" It's not "What genre is it?" The first question I always get from friends and family is "WHEN does it take place?" They just assume that it isn't present day! And, I guess that's a fair question since all but one of my recent short films that I wrote and directed over the past 3 or 4 years have been historical fiction! (When the Lights Go On Again is WW2, 'Til I Come Home ( a commissioned piece) is WW1, Cotton Clouds is 1911, Dandelion is present day.)

I love history! And, I really love making it come alive on screen! But, a huge challenge of historical films is accurate costumes. It would be so much easier to costume a cast from Goodwill or Old Navy!

For all of my other films, I've been fortunate enough to borrow costumes from local theatres. Two of our theatres in town have extensive costume collections and they allow other theatres and filmmakers to come pick from their stock! This was perfect when we had a large cast of background to costume for Cotton Clouds! However, Wayward presents even more challenges.

Mercy and Bennett will be the only two actors on screen for much of the film. Therefore, they and their costumes have to be ready for their closeups! Costumes have to be accurate! In theatre, costumes can be a bit more forgiving since the audience is generally seated far away from the stage. Not so on screen. Another challenge is that the siblings will face some physical challenges throughout the course of the film. So, their clothes will get torn and dirty. Because of the way films are shot out of sequence, we will need to have one set of pristine clothes and one set that can be literally dragged through the mud! Because of this, we can't just borrow these costumes!

Enter our wonderful friend, Kathy! Kathy is a professional costume designer for stage and screen! And, she decided she would like to lend her expertise to this project! She knows we are a poor, start-up production company, but she still is willing to take time out of her VERY busy life to pour into Wayward! She has been sketching, measuring and searching for fabrics! And, we are just so excited to have her design these one of a kind, special, historically accurate costumes for Mercy and Bennett!

(Top) Kathy and Chloe met up at Blue Cow for a delicious costume meeting! (Bottom Left) We were fortunate enough to find beautiful fabric at a great price at a local shop. (Bottom Right) Chloe and Kathy picked gorgeous fabric...one of which is a one of a kind silk blend from the only bolt of this fabric in existence!