Behind the Black
Making Maleficent: Costume Design with Anna B. Sheppard
The costume design of Disney's Maleficent is sweeping, graceful and dramatic, just like Maleficent herself. Here, renowned costume designer Anna B. Shepard tells us about her research, inspiration, and the process of dressing Maleficent for the big screen. Q: You have a both an extensive and varied list of accomplished projects- which did you draw the most experience from for Maleficent? A: The only project I can link to Maleficent was Captain America, The First Avenger - even though one is a fairy tale and the a other comic book, both contained a big array of CGI and reality mixed with fantasy. Also both involved creating the iconic image of the hero and represented vast production values. Q: How much of a role did the original animated version of Maleficent play in your designs? A: The famous black robes from Disney's animated Sleeping Beauty influenced Maleficent's image in our movie- we created a version of these for the christening scene as a tribute to the image that so many people have grown up with. Q: Can you take us through the research process when you work on a film? How did you immerse yourself in the world of Maleficent? A: Research for the movie is, in my opinion, the most important and interesting part of the preparation process. In the case of Maleficent, one of my main sources for inspiration was the 15th Century-to-Renaissance art period of both French and Italian art - paintings, sketches and sculptures. As I had to create two very different worlds, one with creatures living in a forest fairyland and the other an opulent human kingdom, my research was divided into using a lot of references to nature - the world of insects, birds and animals, which contrasted with the images of royal courts, armour and lavish adornments in beautiful fabrics. The latter was very different from the simplicity of the natural world. Research also helped to provide different sources of colour and shapes, creating a background tapestry of visuals that formed the basis of the actors' costumes for each of their characters. All of the images were then collated and made into big mood boards, displayed in my office and the workrooms for my crew and makers. Q: Which costumes in the film were the most challenging? A: The most challenging costumes were the ones for Maleficent and Stefan because they tell so much of the story and their relationship, changing dramatically through the course of the film. Maleficent's costumes evolved from mossy colours and floaty fabrics to become dark and sculptural shapes in much heavier fabrics with lots of volume - artificial furs, leather and feathered accessories were used to form a much darker and sinister-looking character. Stefan changes from a peasant boy to a powerful and rich king obsessed with the use of iron to create his invincible kingdom. For the final battle, pieces of his armour were hand sculpted to create a much more modern and dangerous image than the ornate armour of King Henry. Q: What role does CGI play in your costume design? A: CGI played a very big role in Malificent, creating additional depth to the production design and amazing action sequences. In practice it meant not using certain colours in costumes (certain shades of green and blue), also it meant we had to take into account the weight and flexibility of structures as fabrics had to float in the air and be fire retardant in some cases and serve the image that will be created by CGI. Q: How much of a difference do you find between working on a film and working on a television series? A: I worked on two big TV series - Band of Brothers and The Prisoner - both with vast amounts of costumes. I think now that with the advent of HDTV the gap between film and television has shrunk visibly- apart from the faster pace of shooting for TV, there isn't much difference in production values. Q: Is a role's stunt work ever a factor in the costume design? A: Stunt costumes very often create quite a challenge for the creation of the garments involved. Sometimes the beauty of the costume has to be sacrificed for the safety of the stuntman! Metal pieces are often replaced with rubber, fabrics are made lighter but mirroring the image of the original and shapes are wired to help with maintaining the silhouette. With shoes, the soles need to be more flexible and with a good surface grip. Q: Could you describe the collaboration with the makeup artists on this project? A: The collaboration process between costumes and makeup in this type of movie is an every-day occurrence and necessity in this kind of production. My team and I worked closely with the makeup department, helping with the placement of hats, crowns and working together on hairstyles, particularly facial hair to complete the look of characters.












