Rough Costume Idea - Lucy

Costume is an important factor for representing a character to the audience. The clothing and appearance of a character helps to convey their personality, lifestyle and even their social status. By conveying these factors non- verbally, it gives the audience the ability to become involved with the narrative. It also adds more depth to the characters, making the plot more intriguing and it aids the consumption of the moral message. Costume and appearances also help an audience to relate to characters within a production.

The character of Lucy is a high profile business women and her clothing needs to represent this as well as her personality to the short films audience, without detracting from the theme of the overall narrative. Below are some of the first ideas of the style and colours of the clothing that the character of Lucy should wear. The features found in this articles of clothing are importnat to her character, and will be used and conisdered when producing the actual costume for this character.

This coat portrays a selection of important factors about the character of Lucy. The colour of the coat (Black) conveys the formal tone of her profession and of her personality. The colour allows her to blend into a variety of situations but also represents the authority that she posses. The dark colour also shows how often this coat could be worn, as it would be suitable to wear with a variety of outfits which can convey the importance appearance has for her. The length of the coat is also traditional for heroes and saviours. Long coats are synonymous for representing authoritative characters in a variety of media products. The length of the coat also protects her femininity from being largely apparent, representing how hard she works for an industry that could be deemed predominantly male. The cut and style of the coat are also highly relevant for conveying Lucy’s character. The long black coat is a traditional and stereotypical symbol for power, as are the majority of Lucy’s costume items.This can suggest to the audience the Horror genre of the film, because of the dark tone is possesses.  The cut of her coat offers a small glimpse to the personality that she represses in order to conform to her job description. The detail at the bottom of this coat represents the flare of individuality that Lucy has in her work, conveying to the audience that she is more rounded as a character and has outside interests of her work.

The necklace is simple design and therefore could be worn with a variety of items. The design and colours within the necklace mean that it would suit the professional and formal tone of Lucy’s outfit. The necklace conveys the femininity that is not often shown by Lucy. The design is simple but offers another example of the individuality that Lucy keeps throughout her outfit, showing a small rebellion in a career that needs conformation. The colour hue on the pearl features adds to the clear simplicity that her outfit is designed for. The connotations associated with “Pearls” represent her importance and ranking she has within society and her job. The fact that this design could appear expensive and may not match the rest of her plain outfit, could represent a gift, that conveys that she has relationships in her life. The fact she is capable of emotion, connotes this to that the audience allowing relation to be easier.

Once again a blouse of this design creates the simplicity and the formal features that make up the outfit of Lucy. The colour of this item is vital in conveying information about Lucy to the audience. White often symbolises purity and innocence but another important factor is that it conveys perfection, which is something Lucy holds crucial in her life as well as in her appearance. White is also representational of cleanliness, which is a feature that Lucy could pride herself on in order to achieve her position at work. The white blouse is a common and often stereotypical item of clothing worn by those who work in offices and high powered jobs; by keeping this feature in the costume, it allows the audience to relate to her as a character and offers them the chance to understand her behaviour and actions.  There are also aspects of this item of clothing that convey the individuality that is subtly used in the entire outfit.  The ruffle details on the sleeves and the central seam are the flare of personality that is found throughout her costume. The polka dot details on the blouse are also there to convey a sense of individualism, in what could normally be deemed a bland or uninteresting ensemble worn by many. It helps to create Lucy as an individual character as well as making her easier to remember from the audiences perspective.  

The skirt that helps to create Lucy’s character is a part of attempting to show the normality and the business position she holds. Black skirts and trousers are stereotypical components of professional’s outfits, making it easier for the audience to relate and understand her. The choice of colour in this item of clothing is also important. Black as a colour is representational of elegance and sophistication which are important concepts for a character, which has power and control, such as Lucy. Black is also recognised as a colour that changes the perception of people’s body style. This effect could be seen as important because of Lucy’s femininity but also reinforces other visual interpretations; that she cares about her appearance and the importance it holds.  Another important feature linked to the colour of this costume, is that black can also be interpreted as a colour of rebellion, which a theme running throughout Lucy’s outfit and her personality. This subtle use of colour reference allows the audience to connect with the character on a variety of levels as well as over a period of viewings. By using a skirt it reinforces her feminine nature, as it allows her shape and natural curves to be seen. The skirt also reinforces that this isn’t the most important feature due to its length. The skirt also allows for both genders to connect with the character, as men could see her as a portrayal of a female stereotype and women can see her as an inspiration and admire her. The cut and style of the skirt, is also important to show conformity in the position that Lucy holds, as the style is one that can be worn by many and has no extravagancies.

The shoes are the final piece of costume that helps to give a visual representation of Lucy’s character.  The most important piece of information represented by this feature is her personality and rebellion against the conformist society she faces. The colour of these shoes is purple and therefore represents mystery and royalty. Mystery is a key aspect of the horror genre of this short film and by linking it into the costume, is strengths the importance and knowledge to the audience. Mystery is also an important factor of Lucy’s personality, as specific details are never given; her job and her reasons for being in the location of the film.  The royalty aspect of this colour again conveys subtly to the audience that she is an important character, with high status and large amounts of power.  The height of the heel and the style of the shoes are there to convey her femininity once again. The height of the shoe shows her confidence and ability to walk in them, which can convey that, she does it often. The style of the shoe also conveys that comfort is also important as they can be deemed practical when looking at the type of heel and the strap used. This can also convey that she spends a lot of time, sat or still, due to the height of the shoe. This connotes to the fact that she has authority and importance and has control over others and does not need to partake in activities herself. The material that the shoes are constructed from is also an unusual choice so it represents her individuality, which is referenced to throughout her outfit.

These factors found throughout the costume, are important in conveying Lucy as a character and allowing the audience to connect with her and the narrative.  Each of them is important in representing the genre, an example being the Social Drama that is conveyed by the normality of her costume, making it easy to relate to everyone, but also to important issues that societies can face. By representing personality traits and the moral of the film in the costume it reinforces it in the audience’s minds and also means that important screen time is not wasted by unnecessary dialogue. Even though these are not the actual pieces of the costume, the character of Lucy will wear, the features will be attempted to be replicated, in order to make Lucy as strong and interesting character.

Main Character Profile

The protagonist within my short film is named Rhys Miller. He is a dominant male character and takes the main focus of the film and its narrative. He is a professional and is often deemed inexpressive; his serious nature when dealing with business and his family are crucial to representing this. Even though he is perceived as inexpressive or emotionless, he cares deeply for his family and friends around him; mainly for his younger sister. By hiding his emotions he perceives it at saving his family from the danger his job brings, when in fact it just makes them cold towards him. This character flaw helps to make the audience sympathise and connect with him, making this an important feature. It makes him appear more human, as this is a common trait shown throughout characterisation and in reality. The only expressive features about him are his eyes, making him easier to relate to by adding more human characteristics.

The professional tone of Rhys’ personality is also conveyed and supported by his costume. His clothing is plain and doesn’t contain specific details. The unremarkable nature of his costume, allows him to blend into the background, which is important for his profession but also is a symbol of his actions. His clothes are well fitting, and his appearance is well cared for conveying his importance as well as his status and wealth, these are vital factors in representing his character to the audience.  The colours and tones used within his costume are also important. Dark blues, greys and blacks are used to support his professional stance, but also to reinforce his masculinity. His posture is also important in creating a strong character. He is straight backed and his posture connotes the power and authority he posses. His actions are relevant and considerate, detailing the amount of care and grace he puts into life, helping to support his intelligence and the depth of his personality. His posture is also relevant to conveying how guarded he is, the lines he creates are straight and harsh, but small movements such as the emotive eyes, convey his ability to be sociable. Age is also a crucial feature, the youth of the character, age being between late 20’s- early 30’s shows what should be his innocence but how it is lost, by the cold, harsh life that the character of Rhys posses, helping the audience relate to him.

Due to the fact that this is a short film, development of character is not shown on screen because of the time constraint. It also doesn’t hinder the moral message being conveyed to the audience, by distracting them, Keeping specific details such as his job title and marital status from the audience it doesn’t over load them with information, and keeps the main focus of the audience clear. By representing these facts through visual imagery, such as the wearing of a wedding ring, it conveys there is more about the characters than is shown on screen, allowing more belief in them from the audience, helping the moral messages of the film to come across stronger.

Narrative Structure

Although in a short film there is not a lot of time for equilibrium to be established, it is important to consider the narrative structure in order to make the film understandable and represent key features of the plot that cannot be changed. The equilibrium is established within “two” is the relationships between Rhys and Kathy, brother and sister and Rhys and Lucy, two good friends and colleagues. The connections between Kathy, Lucy and the films protagonist Rhys are standard and relatable relationships for the audience. Even the troubles that later become evident between both Rhys and Kathy are commonly found in society. The clothing that all the characters wear also represents normality. They are all well kept and each of them shows pride in their appearance. The style of clothing is also a common feature of young adults and makes them easier to relate to.

The disequilibrium for this film is the decision that Rhys has to make. It threatens his normal life and holds the possibility of breaking his heart and therefore hurting him.  The choice disrupts their everyday lives and forces them to exist outside the boundaries set by society.  The fact that Rhys is forced into a decision between saving Kathy and Lucy destroys his previous life as it does not allow anything to return to as it was previously. The disequilibrium is featured at the start of the film and is carried through until the end. There are a variety of aspects that portray this change. Rhys’ behaviour alters dramatically. He begins the narrative frightened but managing to hide it behind a façade of confidence. By the end after deciding upon Kathy’s death his posture is no longer rigid but slumped as if he no longer as the will to live. His voice and language are lacking emotion and are cold as the decision appears to have hurt Rhys to the point where he is psychologically removed from the situation.

The resolution of the piece is when the equilibrium is returned to the narrative. In the case of “two” the death of Kathy brings the end of the film to what could be interpreted as a return to normality; both Lucy and Rhys are free to return to the world. The decision has been made so for now there is no danger to the characters. It helps to represent to the audience that although normality has not always been carried through this episode of their lives that it has always been present in the world around them. This is not a strong return to equilibrium as both Lucy and Rhys will never be the same as they were previously but it does reinforce that the danger and fear that encompassed the decision Rhys had to make has now diminished.

Action and Enigma codes are also an important feature of a film. The enigma codes are crucial as they pose questions to the audience about the narrative and keep them interested in the film. The action codes are how the enigma codes are portrayed to the audience. Within my idea for “two” the largest enigma code possessed is about who will Rhys choose and that is not answered until the final moments of the film. There are also a lot of questions posed that are never answered and is left to the audience to decide, allowing them to engage with the film on personal levels. These questions are Why Rhys? Where are they? Who is Lance? There are also enigma codes that answered as soon as they are posed; an example being, wondering who Kathy is. Through dialogue it will become clear that she is Rhys’ sister. Knowing this information helps to give audiences a sense of power as they know more about the characters in the narrative.