How the Coco Costume Designer Channeled Chanel

Can you imagine the challenge of creating costumes for a movie about one of the most iconic fashion designers in history? That's just what Catherine Leterrier did for the film Coco Before Chanel. If you haven't already seen it, you must. (See here for release dates.)

Catherine Leterrier is an award-winning costume designer. You may have seen her work in Bon Voyage and The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc.

According to Sony's website, Catherine Leterrier says, "In fashion, every designer has their own line, color, and material codes. Chanel's is instantly recognizable. What Karl Lagerfield did in adapting the Chanel line to the future, I did backwards towards the past. I went back in time, designing the first models that Chanel might have created and which could have fashioned her style. The Chanel style is distinctive in its cut, the supple hang of the fabric and the perfect simplicity of the finish. The costumes designed for the film had to be up to the exacting standards of haute couture."

Catherine Leterrier shared with Sony about her preparation for the design process. "I hunted down the cotton braids, silk ribbons, buttons and other period accessories at flea markets and antique dealers. I even found a platinum and diamond necklace that had belonged to Mademoiselle Chanel at the Louvre des Antiquaires. In the film this magnificent piece adorns Audrey Tautou's graceful neck in the restaurant scene where she appears in a black sequined evening dress."

See for yourself. Are these designs not channeling Coco perfectly?

 

Photos | IMDB.com

If you have a love for fashion and film, you could make a career out of it. Find out about FIDM's Film & TV Costume Design Program and see where it takes you.

--Gigi Hooghkirk

Comments

[Acai]

I love it!
My favourite.