Costume Multiples?

Hi!

I thought I would make a topic for the replica/duplicate costumes. This is what people have said so far:

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[b]From Padawansguide:[/b]

[i]Costume Multiples? [/i]

[i]We all know that sometimes in movies, they make multiple versions of a costume. This can be for many different reasons - they want to age some of them, some are in case something happens during shooting. Sometimes they make stunt versions of a costume. In the case of Star Wars, there seem to be replicas of some of the costumes that are used for various events. There was one fashion show in California that used the replica costumes. There are also costumes that have been used at Disney. So - the question is - which costumes are which? And with the new pics from Kelsey, this has gotten kind of confusing. So I'm going to try and lay out what we know, from my own, Kay_dee's and Aure's observations.

Presumably the costumes used on screen in the movie are also the ones we see in the official promo shots. I'm going to go ahead and guess that the ones that were on disply at FIDM were also the screenworn costumes. There are also a number of costumes that seem to have been made out of unique or one-of-a-kind items - like the wedding dress. To my knowledge there was only 1 antique bedspread. So any replica is going to really look different. I'll run through the costumes and the open questions one by one.

1. The Packing Gown

Aure noticed that the white beading pattern on the front piece differed. The front piece in the promo photos matches the one at FIDM - but is different from the one Kelsey wore, and the one that Benae Quee saw at NY Fashion week. Compare:[/i]


[image=http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c162/aure_entuluva/Packing-promo.jpg] [image=http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c162/aure_entuluva/Packing-FIDM.jpg] [image=http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c162/aure_entuluva/Packing-Kelsey.jpg] [image=http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c162/aure_entuluva/Packing-fashion.jpg]

[i]Promo, FIDM, Kelsey, NY

So this seems to mean there are at least two packing gowns. Was the Kelsey/NY Fashion show version a replica made for events, or a double from the movie shoot?

2. Red Senate Gown

A while ago, someone, I think Bridgette, brought this link to my attention: http://entertainment.webshots.com/album/75759642kpAQCa. It's photos of a bunch of Amidala and Handmaiden costumes. There was some discussion at the time of whether they were real or replicas. I think we ultimately decided they must be replicas because some of the costumes looked slightly off. The red senate gown is a good example of that. Compare their photo of the replica gown to the one I took at the Brooklyn Museum of Art (BMA). It's very obviously not the same garment:[/i]

[image=http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c162/aure_entuluva/amidala_replica.jpg] [image=http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c162/aure_entuluva/amidala_bma.jpg]

[i]Replica, BMA

3. Gold Handmaiden

This is a tough one, because it's very hard to tell with the photos we have. I'm prett sure the replica one from the above mentioned site is just that - a replica. But what about the NY Fashion show one - does that match the FIDM and BMA versions, or the replica one?[/i]

[image=http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c162/aure_entuluva/gold_replica.jpg] [image=http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c162/aure_entuluva/gold_fidm.jpg] [image=http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c162/aure_entuluva/gold_bma.jpg] [image=http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c162/aure_entuluva/gold_fashion.jpg]

[i]Replica, FIDM, BMA, NY

4. Black Amidala costume

This costume is tougher since we have so few good pictures of it. The pics of the replica are fairly illuminating - because if it is close to the structure of the real costume, then it would answer some questions about how the costume is put together. (Like the drape on the front, and the gores on the back. However, comparing the replica to promo shots, I think the embroidery looks different. The replica has mo

 

Duplicate costumes for a movie all right but for an exhibit, what is the interest ?

 

I guess you never know what happens to the costumes on transport or during the exhibition.
People could try to rip parts of or destroy the costumes in any other way.

 

While it appears there certainly are some duplicates, I don't think anyone can definitively say that there are multiples of each costume. The first thing that comes to mind is Padme's ROTS green velvet cloak. Natalie Portman accidentally damaged that costume while on set (she got white paint on it) and instead of just having her slip into a duplicate version of it the costume crew, including Biggar herself, came onto set and did their best to clean it. Natalie continued to wear said costume to film the scene. This was all caught on the Hyperspace Webcam.

 

I doubt there are multiple Padme wedding gowns as well. Didn't they end up cheating by finishing one sleeve more than the other since it was made from antique lace? I wouldn't be surprised if some of the multiple gowns are a bit different based on the materials used (vintage pieces for trim).

 

Something like that...I think Trisha told someone at FIDM (was it you, Mary Alice?) that one sleeve of the wedding gown has more beading on it than the other because she was still working on it the night before filming. Or something like that...


edit: Maybe someone here could get this job: http://www.lucasfilm.com/employment/jobs/lfl/finance/job20061115.html and find out for sure about all this stuff.

 

Well, I doubt it would be a wise decision econimically to have duplicates for a costume that would appear in the film for just a few minutes.

 

Well, the exhibit featured movie costumes. If several duplicates of a costume were made for the filming of the movie, what does it matter which one (#1, 2 or 3...) gets displayed. In some cases all that might be left from older movies could be a stunt version. And many of us speculate that the Leia costume shown in MOM and the new Science of Star Wars exhibits is a duplicate most probably worn at the end of Empire (the belt is constructed differenetly, and the fabric seems a little different than ANH).

I think I should point out I have a distinction in my mind between the word "duplicate" and "replica". I think of Duplicates as multiples made for the movie production. "replica" as perhaps a cheaper version made after the movie for actors or models to wear at official events.

I do think it's odd that the mystery exhibit seemd to feature the replica's of the queen costumes that were worn in the FIDM runway show (and most probably the handmaidens were the replica versions as well). The only way I know these were replicas is because the FIDM staff told us that's that LFL donated for the fashion show. They would not give them the real costumes for that small fashion show as they had used in the New York runway show.

 

Yes, I had heard that during a tour at FIDM too. Another reason why I think the wedding gown is one of a kind!

Maybe there is a mix of one of a kind pieces and duplicates that were made just in case they needed to film something with a stand-in or stunt double, or something horrible happened (like Obi-Wan's robes that shrunk in the water scenes of Ep III!). Many of the costumes have to be made well in advance of actually shooting the movie and I can only imagine it would be better to be prepared with back-ups if the budget allowed for it.

 

Jessica did some comparisons on the picnic gown - and based on the flower placement (and the vining pattern), it does appear that Kelsey's, the Promo, and the FIDM gown are all the same. I'm not sure a replica could be made so precisely. Especially since the beading on the Packing gown piece seems different. But I suppose anything is possible.


Promo:
[image=http://i68.photobucket.com/albums/i31/costumersguide/Star%20Wars/picnic_promo.jpg]

Kelsey:
[image=http://i68.photobucket.com/albums/i31/costumersguide/Star%20Wars/picnic_kelsey.jpg]

FIDM:
[image=http://i68.photobucket.com/albums/i31/costumersguide/Star%20Wars/picnic_fidm.jpg]

 

There this picture that shows Carrie Fisher and her stunt double boht wearing slave Leia costumes: http://www.rebelshaven.com/SWFFAQ/images/slave/behind15.jpg
So we know there's a least two of those.

Yeah, and that applies to most of Padmes costumes. She seems to change for almost every scene she's in. LOL!

kay_dee, your distinction between a duplicate and a replica makes perfect sense.

 

Kelsey has confirmed that there is only one Picnic gown. She is going to ask about other costumes. She also was a bit worried about the possibility of rain. But we are all thinking positive, no more rain for Rose Parade for another 51 years!

 

No, didn't discuss that peticular subject with Ms. Biggar at FIDM gala.

Wow that job sounds cool. But you probably have to sign confidentality paperwork and can't spill the beans

 

Wow that job sounds cool. But you probably have to sign confidentiality paperwork and can't spill the beans

That's why you tell us over somewhere where there's no record of it! Silly goose.

And I don't know, but the possibility to have a second Packing Gown seems more likely than to have a second Picnic gown. The ones who study the picnic gown and those who have made it must know how draining it is. I think it's economically smarter...and I think they're smart enough to avoid that. I'm sure they took precautions before Natalie began to roll in the fields.

~Spacelady

 

So it was reported in the picnic thread, that Kelsey will not be wearing the Picnic dress in the parade - it's on her blog as well:
http://blogs.starwars.com/itsatrap/4

Maybe it's because it was the real costume and not one of the replicas? She also posts that there will be 3 costumes - the red senate gown, the packing dress, and the "black post-senate costume" - she said the last is from Ep. II, but I can only assume she means the black amidala costume from Ep. I that she tried on...

We know there are replicas of the red senate gown - and we think she probably tried on the replica black senate gown - and with the packing gown beading discrepancy, maybe they are using all replicas for the parade?

 

Kelsey's Blog Entry
FYI: Kelsey has updated the blog, it is the EPI gown.

My first question when I heard that they were going to use the costumes for the parade/floats was "the real costumes ?" or the "repros ?".
It's one thing to put the actual costume behind some glass and with controled lighting, and quite another to send it outdoors where you don't control the elements. (and can't just yell cut, if it looks like rain).

 

SW.com has an article about the costumes up:

http://starwars.com/community/news/family/news20061206.html

There are some new pics - there's a girl wearing what I assume might be the real gold travel gown, next to two amidala costumes that might be the real ones? Or might not! There is another girl wearing the red senate undergown - but she's posing next to what looks like it might be the real one. Any guesses on whether she's wearing a multiple or a replica? I'm guessing multiple - it looks slightly different, and those sleeves don't look like they fit well at all!

The article confuses me, because it says something about the costumes Natalie wore - but I'm still not convinced they aren't wearing the replicas. I can buy that the picnic gown was the real one. But what about the packing gown and the gold travel gown?

 

Well it proves that there is more then one version of the Red Senate gown. And cool, more photos of the underlayers of gowns!

 

I've been reading through this thread and the other few Padme threads that spawned it. Thought I would chime in with what I have experienced working in Hollywood and what I know from some friends who have been on set on big budget movies.

Most productions create multiple costumes for principles characters for stunt or the possibility of damage. But again, it all depends on what the costume is for, how many set ups is has to live through, how much wear and tear and action it will see.

But, contrary to what has been said, most large budget movies don't have to adhere to the schedule completely. That's why their budgets are so big. The filmmakers demad a lot of clout from the studios and can get away with it. It's a sad fact that most of today's large scale, large budget, effects driven movies go over budget and over schedule. Finishing just before release. If something goes wrong, something goes wrong. They move on to the next set up and pick up the shot later. Production staff makes the change to the schedule. This isn't always true, of course. But one of the only big budget filmmakers who consistently comes in under schedule is Spielberg.

Now, Lucas shot the last two prequels (especially ROTS) in a very non-traditional way due to the heavy use of green screen backgrounds and the ability to move the cameras quickly and shoot quickly because no film stock was involved. So, this changes the speed at which the film was made with multiple scenes being done with multiple sets of actors in one day on a particular piece of set. Normally this would be a scheduled set up with one set of actor(s) with maybe one or two lighting set ups. Perhaps moving to another set later in the day. Lucas did ROTS in a "new" way. Akin to Rodriguez work on Sin City. Where he was able to "bang out" whole sequences and even, sometimes, all the pages for a particular set in one or 2 days. By bringing actors in in shifts to complete all their parts for that set. It's a weird way of filming. Kind of flips the actors on the heads due to shooting scenes from various parts of the script, various emotional levels, various costumes, during various times of the "day" all in one day of work.

So that being said, there could have been drastically different needs for costumes in AOTC and ROTS. Beyond one-of-a-kind pieces, maybe when the Production staff planned out the shoot they realized that all the scenes for one costume could be done in one day, with multiple set ups, due to the digital camera work and George's lack of direction? So they only paid for one version to be made? It's altogether possible. It's the one part of film production I don't have a lot of knowledge of: production management. All my experience is with physical production and art related stuff.

There's also been rumors since ANH of LFL making replicas of the costumes after the movies for promo shots and public appearances.

I have no idea if any of this makes sense or if I added anything.