COSTUME DESIGN FOR ENTERTAINMENT

Kick things off by meeting your instructor and getting the lay of the land. You’ll unpack how the course runs, what’s expected, and what your final project will look like, so you can hit the ground running from day one.

• Instructor intro 
• Course structure 
• Assignments & final project overview

Get a real feel for what a costume designer does and why it matters. You’ll explore how emotions translate into colour, then put it into practice by building palettes that make feelings visible on screen.

• The role of a costume designer
• Key responsibilities
• Productions: Films & TV series
• WORKSHOP: Choosing a colour palette

Get inside the script before you start designing for it. Learn how to break down characters, map story beats, and translate them into visuals using grids, timelines, and mood boards: your first real step from page to screen.

• Key plot points & scene requirements
• Character profiles
• Tracking changes: Character grids, visual timelines 
• The design pipeline & process
• Case Study: Trayce Gigi Field

Assignment #1:
From the provided script, create a grid to break down the given script in a clear and transferable way, including a column for costume and character ideas. 

Get strategic with your visuals. Learn how to turn research, colour psychology, and the 60-30-10 rule into design concepts that actually say something, not just look pretty.

• Historical & contemporary research
• Case Study: DALGLIESH 
• Primary & secondary sources
• Colour palettes & fabric swatches 
• Colour: Psychological & symbolic meaning
• Physical & digital swatches 

Assignment #2: 
Using the 1940’s/1970’s or the 1980's UK/Ireland as your historical choice, create a mood board for a look of a married couple at that time. 

Explore how costumes tell wildly different stories, from corsets and crowns to space suits and alien armor. Learn what it takes to design for worlds that once were and worlds that never existed.

• Period dramas
• Case Study: Game of Thrones
• Inter- & intra-departmental collaboration
• Resources for costume designers
• Science fiction & fantasy
• Case Study: Star Trek 
• Contemporary costume design: Key aspects 

Assignment #3: 
Create a mood board for a character from an alien or fantasy world, including visual research, concept sketch, and real-world examples of colour/shapes/textures, etc.

Get inside your character’s closet — literally. Learn how every stitch, accessory, and tweak tells a story about who they are, where they’ve been, and what they’re hiding.

• Semiotics of clothing & costumes
• Social status, personality, accessories, cultural & psychological traits
• Alterations & modifications for individuality 
• Case Study: Doctor Who

Assignment #4: 
Create a character and present it as a mood board with a short backstory including personality traits & a glimpse into the character’s life, paying attention to colour and costume silhouette. 

Discover how fabric tells a story. Learn how texture, colour, and wear shape character and mood on screen, while keeping it all practical for lights, stunts, and those infamous quick changes.

• Fabric drapage, movement, light reflection
• Collaboration with production designers
• Colour & fabric manipulation techniques
• Safety, practical implications, durability, special effects
• Quick changes
• Case Studies: Wes Anderson films, Poor Things, Flash Gordon

Assignment #5: Concept Development & Mood Board
Select one of the provided scenarios. Conduct a research into the chosen genre, period, and character, creating a digital mood board & choosing at least three base fabrics. 

Get behind the scenes of high-action filmmaking. Learn how to design costumes that work with stunts, SFX, and VFX teams without breaking continuity. From squibs to CGI, make sure every costume survives the action and looks seamless on screen.

• Collaborating with SFX & VFX teams
• Accommodating stunt equipment 
• Safety & material considerations 
• Execution & filming
• Blending practical & digital effects
• Post-production
• Case Study: Low-budget & alternative squib effects

Understand the full picture of character creation — where fabric meets flesh and prosthetics. Learn how to balance design, comfort, and continuity while syncing costumes with hair, makeup, and special effects with insider tips from guest expert Polly McKay.

• Functionality & comfort: Practical implications
• Costume-specific solutions for prosthetics
• Maintaining visual harmony
• Collaborating with hair & makeup artists
• Case Studies: Stranger Things, The Shadow Queen

Get scrappy with style. Learn when to rent, when to build, and how to track down or whip up the perfect costume on any budget, from rental houses to random household hacks.

• Renting vs. building: Budget & design needs
• Costume rental houses: Inventory, agreements, procedures
• Sourcing vintage & contemporary garments 
• Working with costume makers, pattern makers, seamstresses 
• WORKSHOP: Brainstorming key costume elements & materials

Get real about the numbers behind the seams. Learn how to plan, price, and pull off costume budgets that work: from rentals and on-set kits to smart sourcing and solid contingency plans.

• Creating detailed costume budgets
• On-set kit & costume truck essentials 
• Cost reports & tracking expenses
• Materials sourcing & negotiation 
• Developing contingency plans

Assignment #6:
Given a specific budget and set of requirements, design costumes for a limited murder mystery TV series, including a table for budget & anticipated costs.

Practice conducting effective fittings for the actor, the story, and the stage. Learn how to collaborate with directors and producers without losing your design vision (or your cool) when things get tight — literally.

• Conducting effective fittings
• Prepping for the costume team 
• Working with your actor
• Presenting your fittings 
• WORKSHOP: Brainstorming solutions for common fitting issues

Keep the story straight down to every button and thread. This class dives into costume continuity, the tools that keep productions seamless, and how pros use tracking software like Sync on Set to make every scene match perfectly.

• Continuity apps 
• Costume continuity professionals
• Strategies for managing changes 
• Software discussion: Sync on Set 

Final Assignment:
Break down a script scene by scene, working out story days and creating a document that covers all the relevant details. Create a mood board for each of the main characters. Include sketches of your designs.

Prepare for the chaos of set life — fast changes, tight calls, and costumes that refuse to cooperate. Learn how to keep wardrobe magic intact when production pressure hits and every second counts.

• Managing on location
• Quick changes
• Maintaining integrity in costumes 
• WORKSHOP: Addressing the damaged costume element problem

Learn how to speak the language of production pros, handle feedback, and build a portfolio that gets you noticed. Collaboration isn’t just teamwork, it’s how you get hired.

• Working with production personnel
• Communication & creative problem-solving
• Integrating feedback
• Portfolio development