Costume Designers Guild nominations
Thanks to N8
Fantasy
- Avatar (Mayes C. Rubeo, Deborah Lynn Scott)
- The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (Monique Prudhomme)
- Star Trek (Michael Kaplan)
Contemporary
- (500) Days of Summer (Hope Hanafin)
- Bruno (Jason Alper)
- Crazy Heart (Doug Hall)
- Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire (Marina Draghici)
- Up in the Air (Danny Glicker)
Period
- Coco Before Channel (Catherine Leterrier)
- Julie & Julia (Ann Roth)
- Nine (Colleen Atwood)
- Sherlock Holmes (Jenny Beavan)
- The Young Victoria (Sandy Powell)
Jeff says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 10:20am
No Bright Star? I’m shocked, I thought it was going to come down to Bright Star and Inglorious Basterds for the Oscar. How much will this hurt its chances?
Alper says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 10:22am
Fantasy:Avatar
Contemporary:Up in the Air
Period:The Young Victoria
and Academy will choose The Young Victoria.
Jasper says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 10:24am
WHERE IS BRIGHT STAR!?!
Steven says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 10:26am
Avatar has costumes?
Joseph Giancarlo says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 10:26am
OK, we already know this by now but i have and want to post it:
AVATAR is highest-grossing films of All Times!!
DBibby (Dion Blackler) says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 10:27am
No Bright Star. No A Single Man. No Where the Wild Things Are. Crazy.
Max G says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 10:31am
Haha, no Inglourious Basterds, but Avatar and Precious for chrissake? Now, that’s hilarious
red_wine says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 10:31am
These are junk. I find the existence of this guild unjustifiable. These are so thoroughly disposable.
Of course the loin cloths that the Navi wore in Avatar were award worthy. The Period are the only decent nominees. Up In The Air? It was normal formal suits. What all of us wear for formal occasions. Precious? Crazy Heart? Really?
maurier says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 10:41am
Please, I’m fed up with The Young Victoria, the costumes were nothing exceptional! Just have a look at Inglourious Basterds or Bright Star…
Lars says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 10:45am
Regarding Avatar and costumes… It may surprise people to know that the costume department actually made all the costumes for the Na’vi (but in human scale) – They were than handed off to the CG team to make CG versions for the CG characters.
Ethan G. says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 10:45am
Would’ve loved to see The Brothers Bloom sneak in here for Contemporary work. Up in the Air seems like a bit of a strange pick, although Incontention had an interesting piece a while back talking about how the costume designers had to make sure Clooney and Farmiga’s wardrobes could feasibly fit into the suitcases they had- a more interesting challenge than other designers in the contemporary category probably have to deal with. The Bright Star snub is saddening, but are we really surprised by that any more at this point?
Laura says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 10:45am
No Bright Star, yet again. It’s become very clear to me now that no one, outside of AD readers, has seen this film. Le Sigh.
On a side note: as a costume enthusiast, I can say that the costumes in The Young Victoria were to. die. for. Gorgeous, extravagant, gorgeous. I wanted to leap into the screen and steal some of those gowns. I still may steal some when I visit the annual FIDM exhibition of movie costumes this Spring. Mwahahahaha….
Antoinette says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 10:51am
WOOHOO!!! Bruno got nominated for somethin’. Praise the Lord!
Pat says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 10:53am
Okay, I’ve been annoyed by the whole ‘Bright Star’ snubbing this awards season, but this is pathetic. How was this film not nominated? (someone at incontention wrote that Janet Patterson would be justified in torching the guild headquarters if/when she got the shaft…Sasha, please set up a Paypal account so that your readers can chip in and buy her some gas.)
And where’s ‘Cheri’? The film wasn’t all that good, but the costumes were spectacular.
Vance says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 11:12am
Did no one actually see Bright Star? This is crazy.
BTW, is this is the first guild mention for Imaginarium? I know most people weren’t impressed, but I really enjoyed it. I thought it looked fantastic. The costumes, the sets, the cinematography… and those visual effects weren’t on the level of the blockbusters but they were very creative.
bambi says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 11:16am
I`m so happy that Avatar G-strings and tits-covering jewlery got nominated. Take that boring period costumes! About time someone acknowledge swim wear and lingere designers on film!
Ryan B says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 11:23am
A Single Man and Inglourious Basterds should be included. And what about Fantastic Mr. Fox’s tiny costumes?
NycOscarBuff84 says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 11:33am
@Lars I didn’t realize the process of the costumes like you described. So is it of contention that the five nominees will be: Avatar, Nine, Sherlock Holmes, Young Victoria, and Inglourious Basterds.
If an Avatar – Costume Des nomination holds up. This gives it a great chance to crack double digits and a chance to climb up to 12 (at the max) if the music branches recognize it.
NycOscarBuff84 says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 11:34am
And also were the voters confused about Where the Wild Things are those were truly magnificent fete’s of costume design. B.S all around for that and the Bright Star snub.
N8 says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 11:36am
The Bright Star snub is criminal, but I expect it can still eke out an Oscar nomination even without any love from the guild (Like Australia last year).
John says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 11:37am
No BRIGHT STAR & INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS is fail.
AVATAR? No WATCHMEN?
Guilds SUUCCKK this year. All populist, and they never used to be.
BrianA says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 11:49am
A couple of observations:
Re: UitA and other nominees in the Contemporary category: It’s not about whether or not the costumes themselves are impressive; it’s about how well the designer used her/his craft to inform a reading of the characters and settings. The type/cut/fit of suit a character wears says a lot about them. One thing this guild really gets right (conceptually, at least) is honoring the craft of the designer in that regard, not just “ooohh..look at all the pretty clothes.” It is worth noting that the only Guild nom in the Contemporary category ever to also score an Oscar nom was The Devil Wears Prada.
Re: Bright Star and other surprising snubs–
This guild has historically been one of the poorer ones in terms of predicting eventual Oscar nominees/winners. (Though they have gone 4/5 the past three years. They’ve never matched 5/5.) I don’t know how long they’ve been giving out awards, but IMDB lists 11 years of history. For the first four of those ll years, they failed to nominate the eventual Oscar winner, and for the first five years, they only matched 2/5 on the nominees.
Costume Design Oscar nominees that didn’t get nominated for the Costume Designers’ Guild Award:
1999 – Shakespeare in Love*, Elizabeth, Velvet Goldmine
2000 – Topsy-Turvy*, Anna and the King, Titus
2001 – Gladiator*, 102 Dalmatians, Crouching Tiger…
2002 – Moulin Rouge!*, Gosford Park, The Affair of the Necklace, LOTR: The Fellowship of the Ring
2003 – Gangs of New York, The Hours, The Pianist
2004 – Girl with a Pearl Earring, Master & Commander
2005 – Finding Neverland, Troy
2006 – Mrs. Henderson Presents, Pride & Prejudice
2007 – The Queen
2008 – Across the Universe
2009 – Australia
*=Oscar winner
Note that the one that got in without a Guild nom these past two years was a dark-horse nominee that got no other nominations. Smells like Bright Star to me.
@Ryan B–Interesting thought on Fantastic Mr. Fox. Never would have thought of it, but you’re right!
BrianA says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 11:51am
I too would love to see Bright Star, Wild Things and Inglourious Basterds in the mix for Oscar!
tmoves says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 12:12pm
Wow, thanks BrianA. When you break down the history like that, these omissions we are all in agreement with suddenly don’t seem so surprising. Those films of 1998 not being recognized is ridiculous. And I wholeheartedly agree that Bright Star, Inglourious Basterds, and Where the Wild Things Are (I mean, come on now!) should have been nominated here. And how can you argue against Arianne Phillips (and Tom Ford) for A Single Man?
Someone says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 12:17pm
AVATAR for costumes?
It’s like a joke.
psyco says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 12:20pm
The young Victoria – Queen Victoria
Coco Avant Channel – Coco Channel
Bright Star – Fanny Brawne, fanny who??
Reichdome says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 12:58pm
hmm…AVATAR for costumes and not Hurt Locker for costumes? bit unfair on ‘locker’ no? no matter as a self confessed fan of AVATAR im glad..it getting nominations in all the guilds hopefully headed to most nominated film..now THAT is one barometer that had more success than failure with the history of oscars….I don’t think i need to present the proof it gives me hope.,.,for a little more progressive mindedness in the academy’s attitude this year
go AVATAR FOR 14 NOMINATIONS!!!HECK MAKE IT A RECORD 16 NOMINATIONS!
Remy says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 1:00pm
The “Basterds” snub is a real disappointment.
daveylow says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 1:03pm
The Crazy Heart nomination is just dumb. And Bruno?
Dominik says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 1:29pm
I thought “Public Enemies” had great customes, too – same with “Bright Star”.
To admit, the five noms in the “Period” category are all strong. The customes were the only impressive thing in “Coco avant Chanel”.
Dominik says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 1:31pm
Oh, and the nomination for “Bruno” absolutely makes sense, cause the guild members certainly believe Sacha Baron Cohens penis was part of the custome design – which it wasn´t.
Dylan says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 1:42pm
About Fantastic Mr. Fox.
Thompson on Hollywood had an article about this very subject a few months ago. Apparently Fox isn’t eligible because they didn’t have an “official” costume designer or something like that.
Which is disappointing because the costumes were great in that movie.
Jasper says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 1:49pm
Where The Wild Things should have definitely been included in the fantasy category and Bright Star and Basterds definitely got snubbed from period.
I think Drag Me To Hell should have also gotten a nomination for contemporary (assuming it’s contemporary and not fantasy).
jnow says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 1:56pm
So Avatar is nominated for costumes? I take it, digital costumes count now? Intersting, because the only “real” costumes were the military wear worn by the non Na’vi. Do you really think it’ll get nominated for costumes?
Matthias Zucker says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 2:03pm
I wonder about all the guild attention on Avatar. Since everybody thought with all the digital work on the film (art direction, cinematogrophy, costumes, makeup) that the craftspeople who actually make a living creating these things for real would hate the film, but since they’ve all nominated it, I sense that there is stonger support for it than some would like to believe.
As far as the Academy is concerned, however, I can’t see them nominating it for costume design. They’re way too period-oriented for that. Give them an Elizabethan dress and they’ll gobble it up. Figuratively speaking.
BrianA says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 2:36pm
@Matteas:
I think you’re absolutely right about Avatar. I can’t see the Academy including it. Though the track record is better for fantasy than for contemporary, most of the Oscar noms year after year are for period work.
In the fantasy category, I personally would have put Wild Things above Avatar by a mile. Haven’t seen the other two nominees yet, but I expect Parnassus is deserving.
The period noms here are all good, and I think the final five will be between these plus Bright Star and Basterds. Academy designers may not know Fanny Brawne as well as Coco Chanel, but they know Bright Star designer Janet Patterson (3 previous noms) better than Chanel designer Catherine Leterrier (0 noms).
If you care to take a look, Nathaniel at thefilmexperience.net does a pretty good job with analyzing the costume category. I’ve enjoyed his site for years, even if not quite as much as Sasha’s.
bambi says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 3:00pm
Oh, please, Avatar costumes were designed around cat tail! Lets see if Project Runway contenders can design sexy underwear for cats and cat people. I don`t think so. It`s a tough job, people.
Clayton says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 3:34pm
Avatar? They were half-naked. But oh well.
Love the nods for (500) Days of Summer (really played up Zooey’s eyes) and Bruno. Those costumes were just hilarious.
Missing: Bright Star and Cheri. Still a worthy bunch overall.
Douglas says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 4:26pm
What a joke. Avatar? Bruno?
No Basterds? No Wild Things? No Watchmen?
Fail.
Morgan says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 4:44pm
Why all the animosity for Bruno? Baron Cohen’s costumes were just as important seeing as how he was supposed to be a “fashionista”. The film was fashion influenced. Makes complete sense.
Zach says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 4:45pm
Why only 3 fantasy nominees?
So all the ones I would have predicted were snubbed. Victoria is the obvious winner. Nine should get in because they like backstage musicals, and this is Colleen Atwood plus prostitute garb plus a large cast featuring Kate Hudson’s white Italiano dress.
Next is Chanel. Can’t blame them; the film did moderately well and is about Chanel, so how can you bet against it? With Guild and BAFTA nominations, it should be good to go.
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus is doing fairly well for a film that, despite Heath Ledger, has had no real traction. It also won the Satellite for Costumes, which is a pretty good precursor. Then what? Probably Bright Star, but I am surprised not to see Basterds or WTWTA (where else can it fit in?).
Scott says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 4:58pm
Would’ve liked to have seen Cheri and Fox included here. And it’s nice to see other Brothers Bloom fans here too.
Larry says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 5:02pm
I predict the Oscar nominees to be:
The Young Victoria
Inglourious Basterds
An Education
Nine
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
but Coco Before Chanel could be a dark horse here.
m1 says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 5:41pm
4-No, the actors were running around naked. YES, they had costumes!
TIODP
(500)DOS
TYV
Tero Heikkinen says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 5:57pm
THE biggest joke of the year…
For all the reasons mentioned before.
I mean, really?
Scott says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 6:06pm
Picturing the scene from Precious… Mary in her onesie, dancing to the TV…
Heberto Rivera Patino says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 6:26pm
Dash, A SINGLE MAN is being left out in everything. Is it Tom Ford? Is it the Weinstein brothers? The film seems to have such a grand scale in everything- art direction, cinematography, costumes, score (the Golden Globes gave it some loving), screenplay. Yes, the actors- Colin Firth & Julianne Moore- seems to the edge, but how about some loving in the technical categories. And leaving out BRIGHT STAR & INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS?
Pierre de Plume says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 6:40pm
On a side note: as a costume enthusiast, I can say that the costumes in The Young Victoria were to. die. for.
Laura (#12), I actually agree with you — though some might think it’s predictable and boring to say so. BrianA (#22) says it best in his great observations about costume design, and Sandy Powell’s work in Young Victoria I think is definitely a cut above.
I echo DBibby’s sentiment’s about A Single Man.
And about Precious, all I can say is that it took imagination to put Mo’Nique into that flowery, stretched-to-the-skin ensemble and wig she wore while the government worker interviewed her at home.
Alan of Montreal says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 7:36pm
I also lament the absence of Bright Star and A Single Man. I’m wondering if Precious shouldn’t be considered to be more of a period piece. It’s set in the late 80s, and that’s the kind of look it has (save for the one student that I read as a lesbian with the short-cropped hair–that’s way 90s queer). Aren’t we at the point yet where the 80s are considered “period”?
Diane says:
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 7:38pm
Gah!!! What is going on?! Bright Star is being snubbed for Costume? What the hell!
The Young Victoria had very conventional costuming (the whole film was conventional), while Bright Star had idiosyncratic, personal and yet historically accurate clothing. The clothes looked real and yet gloriously beautiful.
I also think Inglorious Basterds and a Single Man were snubbed here too. What BS.