Tim KashaniAligning humanity and technology through story-driven action and impact | Co-Founder, Apples & Oranges | Technologist, Director, Writer & Producer.

ShowbizU: Costume Design Process- Linda Cho

Name: ShowbizU: Costume Design Process- Linda Cho
Uploaded: 2014-08-12T18:22:56+00:00
Duration: 1 min 47 s
Channel: Tim Kashani
Description: In this monologue, costume designer Linda Cho outlines her end‑to‑end design process. She begins by casually reading the script and then meeting the…

12 Aug 2014 · 2 min

Watch on YouTube

1:47

In this monologue, costume designer Linda Cho outlines her end‑to‑end design process. She begins by casually reading the script and then meeting the director to absorb their vision, emphasizing the need to align with the director’s leadership. She conducts targeted research based on the project’s setting—e.g., modernizing Shakespeare— and gathers any additional sources of inspiration such as specific flora for a character. Cho then creates an initial round of black‑and‑white sketches on inexpensive photocopy paper, a low‑pressure method that allows rapid iteration anywhere, even while traveling. After presenting these rough sketches to the director, she either finalizes the design or revises it further based on feedback. Once the design is approved, the work proceeds to the costume shop for construction. Throughout, she stresses a pragmatic, low‑stress approach that treats sketches as a roadmap rather than polished renderings.

Chapters

Once I accept a project, I read the script just casually and without too much on my mind, and then meet with the director. The director will tell me what they're thinking about it, and if they want my input, I am happy to share it. But mostly I'm there at that first meeting to hear what they have to say about their vision for the show, because they are the captain of the ship. So You have to get on board with that vision. I'm a firm believer in that. And then I go back and I do the research that is relevant for this project. If it's a Shakespeare and they want to do it in contemporary America, then you do all that research. And if there are other sources of inspiration that make sense for that particular vision, whether it's I don't know, you found some beautiful flowers that will work for one particular character, you know, sort of do everything you want. Do a first round of sketches. I always do it black and white, and I just use cheap crappy computer paper, photocopy paper, so there's no stress about like, am I wasting this paper? Is this a good drawing? Is it a bad drawing? I just— paper and pencil. Also, I can do it anywhere. I can do it if I'm traveling. If something is very bad, I can just photocopied again, and it takes me 20 minutes to paint. And again, this is, this is my process. A lot of other designers work in a different way, but for me, having no pressure and just thinking of it as a bit of a roadmap as opposed to a beautiful finished rendering is helpful for me. And then I show that to the director, and hopefully we're either done or I go back and do some more revisions. And so that is the design process, and then that goes to the shop.