In real life, a lot of people at that level will have their kimonos made especially for them.

Knowing who the actors were as you were designing them helped, with Catherine’s beauty and Renee’s frailty, they directed me visually just by who they were.

My own style is pretty classic; I much prefer to design for others.

I really like the original Apes costumes. The colors were great, and the use of heavy materials was something that influenced me for this film.

It’s often said that costume designers are a faceless group of people. But we can contribute to fashion in a way that might be new and different.

One thing about costume design – and I think design in general – but especially costume design, is people have a misconception that it’s very glamorous work.

Inspiration comes from everywhere: books, art, people on the street. It is an interior process for me.

One of the challenges with period costumes is, on a technical level, making the scale of different periods work on contemporary bodies. We’re much bigger than what people were in older times.

The costumes had to serve the choreography.

I’ve been lucky in the things I’ve got to work on. I’ve been able to keep it fresh, always getting to do different kinds of things.

Some of the kimonos took as long as four to five months to make, with all the layers that go into it.

Planet of the Apes was a gigantic challenge, making the clothes work so people could do stunts and action in the clothes. I really learned a lot about that in that movie.

The reward is that you can actually create a world separate from reality with a story, actors, music, and camera design. When it works it can entertain, move people and teach us all.

People like to stir up the fashion vs. costume world, and I think what they mean by ‘too costumey’ is that it’s too much, or not real enough for everyday wear. You couldn’t say that...

The thing that’s great about being a costume designer is you never know what’s going to be next; you never what world you are going to enter.

The first Chicago was definitely a product of its time, and Chicago the musical is definitely a contemporary look at another time.