Latest / The Art of Costume Podcast / Fallout with Costume Designer, Amy Westcott

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Fallout with Costume Designer, Amy Westcott · The Art of Costume Podcast

0:11
We destroyed them because nothing was untouched.
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So if we didn't make them, we we, we destroyed them.
0:19
Which was actually kind of sad. Like see.
0:21
You know it would. Be like this amazing grass and
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you'd be like take it downstairs to I don't see it anymore.
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It happened to be destroyed. Hello and welcome to the Art of
0:44
Costume podcast. I am your host, Spencer
0:47
Williams, and thank you so much for joining me for another bonus
0:52
episode. What's going on, costume nerds?
0:56
I am so excited to be here to talk with you all today because
0:59
we have a extra special episode. And I just got to warn you, if
1:05
you've ever found this podcast hard to listen to because you
1:08
find me to be such a insufferable nerd.
1:12
Well this is gonna be a hard episode for you then because I'm
1:15
about to go full nerd and dig deep into the pits of my nerd
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them because I am a huge Fallout fan.
1:25
I have been playing these games for as long as I can remember.
1:29
Fallout 3, Fallout New Vegas, Fallout 4, playing any new
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editions of the games. The games have been a part of my
1:38
life for as long as I can remember, and I was so excited
1:43
to hear about this series being adapted, but then I was also, of
1:47
course, very hesitant because I would I mean, I think it's fair
1:50
to say that most video game adaptations don't do very well,
1:55
but I'm so happy to say that this series on Prime Video is
1:59
just absolutely perfect. I love every second of it.
2:03
I love the characters, the world building, the campiness of the
2:07
of it, the humor, the horror, the blood, the gore.
2:12
I mean, it's everything about it is perfect and especially the
2:16
costumes. I'm so excited to get into the
2:19
Prime Video series Fallout on the Art of Costume podcast.
2:23
But before we get into it, let me give you a little summary to
2:26
catch you up. Fallout is the story of haves
2:29
and have nots. In a world in which there's
2:31
almost nothing left to have, 200 years after the apocalypse, the
2:36
gentle denizens of luxury fallout shelters are forced to
2:40
return to the irradiated hellscape their ancestors left
2:43
behind and are shocked to discover an incredibly complex,
2:48
gleefully weird and highly violent universe waiting for
2:52
them. Diving behind the costumes, we
2:54
have creator Graham Wagner and Geneva Robertson Duart, and it
2:59
was executive produced by Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy,
3:03
whom I am very big fans of. And of course, we have to get
3:07
into the costumes designed by costume designer Amy Wescott.
3:12
You know her from a ton of notable works such as The
3:15
Wrestler, for which she received her first CDGA nomination,
3:20
Entourage, for which she received 3 CDGA nominations,
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Black Swan, for which she received a BAFTA nomination and
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ACDGA win After Earth, The Many Saints of Newark and The Menu.
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And I was so excited to talk to Amy about the Fallout series.
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I mean, honestly, I was kind of nervous because I'm like, I'm
3:44
about the hit this costume designer with so many questions.
3:47
She's never going to want to talk to me again and or get off
3:51
the call and be like woof. But we had a incredible time, a
3:55
great conversation. The costumes really are just so
3:58
incredible because the Fallout universe is very dirty, falling
4:04
apart, resourceful, using random materials.
4:07
So hearing Amy's process and bringing a lot of those elements
4:12
to the show was just so fascinating.
4:15
Of course, we talk about the power armor and the ghoul played
4:19
by Walton Goggins. There's a lot to talk about.
4:21
If you enjoy this conversation, please, please, please leave us
4:25
a 5 star text review on Apple Podcast and rate US on Spotify.
4:30
It really, really does help. I hope you all enjoy.
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After this break, we'll be joined by costume designer Amy
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Wescott. I am beyond excited to welcome
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today's costume designer to one and only Amy Westcott.
5:10
Hi, Amy. Thank you for joining.
5:11
Thanks. Thanks for having me.
5:14
I'm so excited to talk to you. I'm afraid to say that not only
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am IA journalist in costume design and film and television,
5:20
but I'm also a huge gamer whose favorite game happens to be
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Fallout. So I've been waiting to talk to
5:25
you for like what, three years now That's.
5:28
Amazing. Well, let's get into it.
5:32
So to start, I would love to know more about your familiarity
5:35
with the world of Fallout. Did you know what you're getting
5:38
yourself into? Maybe a kind of an idea?
5:41
Yeah, I guess it it, it's it was kind of an idea, but I I had no
5:46
idea of the sort of depth and intricacies and, and, and rules
5:51
and and things like that. I had AI had an idea of what it
5:55
looked like as the game and but I also was, you know, sort of
6:00
not interested in following like an exact replica sort of thing
6:05
where. That's.
6:06
That's not that creative to do so.
6:10
So it was trying to sort of figure out if we were going to
6:14
stay in the game world or, or it was it was going to be based on
6:18
the game, you know, and then starting our own story.
6:21
So that was the latter, which was great for me.
6:24
And what was your reaction getting into Fallout?
6:27
Were you super excited, maybe a little bit nervous?
6:29
A bit of both. Yeah, I think, you know, you
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always have a bit of that nervous.
6:35
I mean, the first reaction is always, Oh my God, great, I got
6:38
this job. And then it's Oh my God, great,
6:39
I got this job. You know, it's it's really
6:42
exciting. And at the same time it was
6:44
completely scary because it's it's huge.
6:48
And I guess I, I knew how big it would be, but it was way bigger
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than I even thought in the beginning.
6:59
So many people and so many costumes and so many details
7:03
that needed to be created. So it, it was a, it was a lot,
7:08
but at the same time so exciting.
7:10
And when you get this chance, I I mean, for me it was sort of
7:15
just eye opening and ground breaking in terms of like having
7:19
something really creative to do. Yeah, I mean, I can't even
7:22
imagine. I remember when hearing about
7:24
the show coming to life, I was like, woof, like that's going to
7:26
be a job for for that feel. Like I feel bad for that
7:30
costume. Yeah, for sure.
7:33
So the world of Fallout comes to an end at a time that feels
7:37
quite similar to what we would consider the 50s, though it's
7:39
not exactly with that. I'm fascinated to hear about
7:43
your research process as a series essentially jumps back
7:46
and forth between this pre war pre war era and the post
7:49
apocalyptic world that we know as Fallout essentially.
7:53
Yeah, so it was a lot about the what we we dove into the the pre
8:00
fallout. It's just, you know, the pre
8:03
sort of end of the world when it was I think it was 2074.
8:08
So it was, it was retro futuristic 50s where it was like
8:14
the 50s had sort of come back and you know how it's sort of
8:18
cyclical in the world where some styles come back.
8:22
It was the 50s thing. It's.
8:24
Interesting. I never thought of it like that.
8:25
Actually, yeah, it was. Sort of like 50s again.
8:28
And, and so, or, or, or maybe in, in, in, in our, in our
8:32
story, it had never left, you know, it was always sort of this
8:36
optimistic world and, you know, Gee, dad and, and, and, but it
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had a, it had a Jetsons quality so that there was a little bit
8:44
of the, the futuristic elements and, and keeping it, you know,
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just touches. So it wasn't, I mean, it wasn't
8:52
supposed to look so futuristic that it was distracting.
8:56
It's supposed to look different than the 50s as we know it now.
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So we kept little elements in there, you know, the use of sort
9:05
of resin and plastic and, and, and keeping things, using things
9:09
that weren't available in the 50s that, you know, we created
9:13
now. So we, we did, we did like a a
9:17
Jetsons amp up, I would say, but then it was, it was, it was
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great because you know, if you think about it, production
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stopped right when the when the, when the bombs hit.
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And so there wasn't construction.
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So our our whole rationale, and I think the rationale in the
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game in general is that you can't get new things.
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There's no new style. Style is, is what you create
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from what you can set us scrounge and and salvage.
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So it became a whole new level of style for the people that
9:56
were left because they had to find things.
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And that was the cool challenge for for me and my department was
10:04
just creating something out of the rubble.
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You know, what comes out next, what comes from, you know, soot
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like what can grow. And, and that was the fun thing
10:17
for it for, for me is that we, we could create optimism
10:21
through, you know, people had their own style because it was
10:24
so many years after the bombs dropped.
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So it was they, they, they turned a new page and they had
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to create themselves and their identities from what was left.
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And, you know, it was making things and all these found
10:38
objects that we created sort of wearable art pieces out of, you
10:44
know, like a strainer hat. And, you know, things that you
10:50
could, you could, you know, there was a shirt with forks all
10:54
over it. And if someone found forks and
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and and and that was what they could find.
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Like what did they do with that? And they found old, you know,
11:04
construction pants. Like, what would they do with
11:08
what was left? Yeah.
11:10
That's so fascinating, and it's something I actually was going
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to ask you about too, because one of my favorite subtle
11:15
details and we'll get into the vault suit in a little bit.
11:18
But when you see Lucy kind of on the surface and she has
11:21
different pieces on top of her jumpsuit, which is something you
11:24
do actually in the game if you know what you're doing, right.
11:27
Yeah. So how do you and your team
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then? You were just talking about how
11:32
people are making something out of nothing essentially on a
11:34
surface. But like, what are you and your
11:36
team then looking for when you're actually going to make
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some of these pieces? I mean, are you gathering fork
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'cause I just. I'm trying to imagine what your
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workshop looks like because you really do make something out of
11:47
nothing. Absolutely.
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And our, and our workshop was a cross between like a salvage
11:53
yard and like a, you know, a, like there were dye, you know,
12:00
different dye colors everywhere and paint and, and everything.
12:03
It was like the most creative place ever.
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I loved it because it was taking things from one side of the room
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and, and, and transferring them and, and sort of upcycling them,
12:14
if you will, into something else by the time they're at the other
12:17
side of the room. So my team was, you know,
12:19
working on, we would, we would go and find things everywhere.
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So I mean, I, I trash picked, I went to flea markets, we went to
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estate sales and, and, and vintage shops anywhere, even
12:33
like some places that just sold scrap just to, to, to picture
12:40
something and make something. And then we all kind of
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spitballed about what, what it could become.
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And that was a lot of the research in the beginning.
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I was kind of playing with like, OK, if we had these found
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objects, what could this become and what could see and what
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could be made from it. And, and that was the, that was
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so fun, just sort of seeing the transformation of things into
13:05
something quite beautiful. You know, it started out quite
13:08
rusty and a mess. I have strong FOMO right now.
13:12
I mean, I already missed out, but I just, it's like a strong
13:15
sense right now. We'll send you a a a a strainer
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hat. Yeah, please.
13:23
I'm going to be throwing my forks all over the kitchen after
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this interview. So obviously with a game like
13:29
this, with such a huge fan base, there are likely going to be
13:33
some expectations, as I'm sure you know by now.
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But as the costume is, you still have to find that line between
13:41
making it realistic. The actors still have to wear
13:43
these costumes and be able to do these action scenes.
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So where do you find that balance between the realism but
13:48
then also paying tribute to the Fallout series so the fans are
13:52
happy at the same time? Yeah, I think it's, you know,
13:55
the structure and the bones of the show We were always trying
13:59
to keep very straight and, you know, follow the the rules of
14:04
the game, like what was available in the world and what
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wasn't and, and things that I think the fans would.
14:12
I mean, we basically picture that the that the fans would
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know every detail until we had to know every detail.
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And so, you know, like, don't slip up, you know?
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That's so scary I can't even imagine.
14:27
No, it was a lot. It was like, you know, a huge
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thing. But it was, I had, I had a guy
14:33
in my department that was an amazing gamer and A and a
14:36
really, you know, huge Fallout ban.
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He's the one that told me about it coming to town in the first
14:40
place. And he was sort of my consultant
14:44
on on, you know, if like, hey, can they use like this plastic?
14:49
Like what, you know, what is, what's, what's in the world,
14:53
Like, what can we use and what can't we use?
14:56
And, you know, he would say like duct tape's fine plastic is not,
14:59
you know, like he would make these sort of rules and, and,
15:04
and, and statements that we could follow.
15:06
That was great. It was like having your own
15:09
consultant in there, like a Fallout consultant.
15:13
But for me, I learned so much from what was what was in the
15:16
game and what and what So what we had to follow, but then
15:20
explode from there, you know. So it was the I mean, I really
15:25
wanted to be respectful and and I hope that it came out that way
15:28
of the game and what was already there with just, you know, sort
15:32
of exploding it and and making it.
15:35
And that was the fun for me. It was making it into a world
15:38
that was outside the game too, that that people that want that
15:42
that were into the game could understand and and respect and
15:47
and appreciate, I guess is the more the word, you know, and
15:50
making things into something that were was a workable, you
15:56
know, that wouldn't give somebody tetanus or, you know,
16:00
you know, somebody could actually wear and yeah, do a
16:03
stunt in and things like that. There were things that we had to
16:07
omit because they were too dangerous.
16:11
I'm sure like. Oh no, we actually can't Pierce
16:15
someone's lung. Like that would be bad because
16:20
there was sort of no holds barred on the creative process.
16:22
So it was like, let's create everything and do everything.
16:25
But we still did the, you know, the bolt suits within range of
16:30
where it was. And, but we had to make it a 3D
16:33
suit and make it sort of updated and, and, and, and and
16:39
distressed and, you know, realistic, but also something
16:45
that somebody could wear for 12 hours a day.
16:47
Right, so that actually leads me to my next question.
16:50
Let's talk about the vault a little bit and the vault
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jumpsuits because it's such a like iconic staple.
16:56
Like you just you know it exactly.
16:57
You know it's follow immediately with the colors and whatnot.
17:00
Well, I also love about this suit.
17:02
I've always thought this for years.
17:03
That's so form fitting. I just can't like it's tight and
17:08
they all feel like a glove too. You have so many different
17:12
people in the vault too. So how did you team approach
17:15
gain everyone their own ball too?
17:17
I mean that bit hopefully. You know, what's funny is it's a
17:23
it could have been a real mess if we use the wrong fabric
17:26
because really like there are some fabrics that are so like
17:32
superhero Y and then I don't think that's a word, but but.
17:36
It's a word here, yeah. Like, you know, with the, with
17:40
the sort of shine and the spandex and, and the, and the
17:44
superhero look about it, which, you know, I was not interested
17:48
in because really they have to wear it more like a jumpsuit,
17:51
like a, a functional jump, you know, one piece outfit.
17:57
But you we didn't want to see everything and do every, you
18:01
know, like it was some some personal things that had to be,
18:07
you know. I got it, yeah.
18:09
Yeah, it was absolutely. The fabric was absolutely
18:12
perfect because it was this four way stretch.
18:15
I, I used it when I did After Earth and on on some military
18:21
costumes. And it's like this beautiful
18:24
four way stretch woven fabric. It looks like a woven.
18:28
And so it's not, it doesn't have that sort of shiny, but it's
18:33
made in Italy. It's made in small batches.
18:36
It's, it was insane to get as much as we needed for this.
18:41
And I mean, it was the perfect fabric, but we had we had to get
18:44
so much and keep dying in the right color and so many steps to
18:50
make it right. But it starts with the fabric.
18:53
I mean, it absolutely had to be the right thing.
18:56
Or I mean those those suits would have been sort of
19:02
ridiculous. Right, right.
19:04
More ridiculous than they already are, actually, I would
19:07
argue. And like you said in the game,
19:10
they're quite flat because it's a game.
19:11
So how to do like what texture? And like you mentioned that you
19:15
made it feel a little bit more modern to the contemporary eye
19:17
as well. And what touches do you do to
19:19
that suit to make it feel just, I guess, more realistic?
19:23
Well, you know, there are, there are parts of the suit in the
19:26
game and of course it changed over the years also with the
19:29
different iterations of the game, right.
19:32
And, and there were panels and, and, and different areas that
19:37
were sort of like clearly on the game, they were rendered and
19:43
beautiful, but you don't really know what they're made out of.
19:45
So when we were making them, it was a lot of trial and error and
19:50
trying to figure out what looked like an elevated version.
19:54
You know what, what would, what would make the arm?
19:58
We tried so many different things like printed fabric, 3D
20:02
printed fabric, different applications on fabric and, and
20:07
what ended up working really well was faded leather like that
20:11
was, you know, in a very specific leather because it had
20:14
to be super thin. So we, we ended up making these
20:18
pieces my, my team and, and it like, it was just a lot of
20:25
testing and. See what we get there.
20:28
But we ended up with such interesting pieces that that
20:32
came in and it was it, you know, paid homage to the to the
20:36
original, but still gave it its own life, you know, which is
20:41
what we wanted to to do. And and then it was a lot about
20:44
getting it the right color because Bethesda has their blue.
20:48
Yeah. I think of that, Yeah, yeah.
20:52
Oh, it had to be right. But then we sort of updated the
20:55
zipper area so it was like it was encased in the gold, but it
20:59
was like a like a raw gold. So it looked like it was taken
21:03
down and distressed. So it wasn't like this yellow
21:07
down the front because that was sort of too jarring.
21:10
And we had to try various, you know, at first I worked with an
21:13
illustrator and, and did a lot of new up like updates and what
21:17
could we do? And and then it was a lot about
21:22
just figuring out what what could make it what what could,
21:25
what could make the suit special.
21:27
Right. That being said, and this
21:30
question feels kind of silly now, but now that we've been
21:33
talking what, how much of this series is built versus source, I
21:38
would say, I mean, I think the answer is pretty much everything
21:40
feels pretty built at this point.
21:42
Yeah, everything's, I mean, single thing I think, except
21:48
maybe, well, I mean, even a lot of the 50s things we made, I
21:51
mean, I had a crack team and they they were, I had an amazing
21:58
tailor shop that I don't know if you have watched up to Barb's
22:03
character yet, but we had this sort of futuristic book on Barb
22:06
that was very 50s oriented and, and, and just making all these
22:10
individual things. And then we would source vintage
22:15
items and just, I mean, we, we destroyed them because nothing
22:20
was untouched. So if we didn't make them, we,
22:23
we, we destroyed them, which was actually kind of sad, like
22:28
seeing things, you know, it would be like this amazing dress
22:32
and you'd be like, take it downstairs.
22:34
I don't want to see it anymore. It happened to be destroyed, you
22:39
know, So it was it was so those kind of things.
22:43
A lot of vintage we found, but a ton of vintage we actually made,
22:47
especially if you look at the dress, the vintage wedding dress
22:51
that she wears in the first one wears.
22:54
We had fifteen of them. We had to make them.
22:57
So there was. A big.
22:59
Thing in the world that we could have found so we very much
23:02
followed a vintage silhouette and then had to make so many of
23:07
them because there's so many iterations where she gets bloody
23:10
and and and stabbed and you know, and it was also supposed
23:14
to be in the vault for a long time.
23:16
It's, it's a relative, you know that there's one of.
23:19
Yeah. It's like a family heirloom,
23:22
yeah. When people wore and they all
23:26
signed it, we all signed it in the, you know, costume
23:30
department. Oh I love.
23:33
That and it was yes, was handed down from various generation to
23:39
generation and and and then, you know, sees the end of its run at
23:44
that point, but. I could say, well, I mean, it
23:47
might still be usable, but for the most part, yeah.
23:53
Which actually brings me to one of my other favorite topics.
23:57
One of my favorite aspects of costume design is actually the
23:59
breakdown of costumes, which we're kind of just talking
24:02
about. I love aging, dying, taking
24:05
these costumes and making them feel lived in dirt.
24:07
And there's lots of dirt, blood, guts, everything in this show.
24:12
So I have to imagine, I remember thinking years ago, too, like
24:15
whoever does the show is going to have Prey, the world's
24:18
biggest breakdown department. At least I hope.
24:22
Absolutely. I mean, it was crazy when when
24:24
we started, we thought, OK, like I thought, you know, what's
24:30
really going to be important is an amazing textile department
24:33
because it is all, but it's, I, I thought that.
24:37
But then of course the next day I was like, what's really going
24:39
to be important is an amazing tailor shop.
24:43
And then the next day what's really going to be important is,
24:46
you know, every day there was a new really important department
24:50
to have. So the, the textile department
24:53
was so important because really without them, it, I mean, you
24:59
never would have felt the way it should have.
25:02
You know, it never would have made viewers feel like they were
25:07
watching the game because the game is so gritty, just like
25:09
you're saying. It was so important.
25:12
My my head textile artist, his name Chandra Telford, She is,
25:17
she is this genius that did work on, you know, Pirates of the
25:21
Caribbean and all these sort of amazing things that she just
25:24
takes something and and they're artists they make they make
25:29
something into something else completely.
25:32
So just watching them work was kind of kind of amazing, like
25:37
really watching them. Like for example, when I brought
25:43
them down the, the ghoul jacket that had been made in our tailor
25:47
shop in our, in our shop. I brought it down and we, we,
25:51
you know, we're spitballing about where it could go.
25:54
And it was important that it has a, you know, shot in it.
25:57
So it looks like maybe the ghoul has taken it off a dead body
26:00
that he shot. And, you know, we had to figure
26:02
out how he obtain the jacket in first place and but then it also
26:08
had to be so wrecked at the edges that you can believe that
26:14
he's been wearing it for, you know, maybe 100 and 5200 years.
26:19
And, and, and the illustration that I had to show them, it was,
26:25
it was just blowing in the wind. It was just this, you know, like
26:29
dead like it. Feels like it's disintegrating
26:31
when you see it catch the wind. Yes.
26:33
Yes, and they created that. I mean, that's something that
26:36
and we have we had, I don't know, I want to say 10 of them
26:40
or might be more like 12, but but we had so many and they just
26:46
got it to this place that is only an extreme artist into.
26:53
That's incredible. I mean, shout out to that entire
26:56
team because it just totally, totally is so immersive and it's
26:59
so important, especially for a series like this.
27:04
So Amy, as expected, the world is absolutely in love with
27:07
Walton Goggins as the ghoul, which as someone who watches the
27:11
Righteous Gemstones, I was not shocked at all.
27:14
So talk to me about designing this character, especially
27:18
someone who we actually see, one of the only characters where we
27:20
see their back story as well. And I have to imagine there must
27:24
have been some collaboration with Walton Goggins as well, and
27:27
Karina's character. Absolutely.
27:29
And actually we, I, we, we have a nice friendship now because of
27:34
it, because yeah, I love the guy.
27:38
He, he, you know, like when an actor comes along that has had
27:44
so much experience and so much knowledge of the industry and
27:47
just so much to give to the character that it's it's it we
27:53
we were feeding each other Like it was just, you know, the first
27:56
time we met person which, you know, there were pictures and
27:59
things like that exchanged first of, of, of just ideas.
28:03
But then meeting in person. It was so inspirational for me
28:07
to keep going on as character in the way that we both saw it was
28:12
like a meaning of the mind in such a great way that he he, you
28:18
know, he brings this sort of cowboy quality anyway.
28:22
Like he's just the sort of marble man cool.
28:25
Like, he's so cool and he comes in with swagger and so, so there
28:31
was such a base. You know, it's not like I had to
28:35
reinvent like a cowboy. He's already halfway there.
28:39
He just got to get the costume on there.
28:42
Yes, and I, I, it was so much fun to really like to.
28:45
It was a lot of fittings and they were, you know, it started
28:49
with one thing and then and then it, it, it was the new versions
28:53
and, and, and, and then and then bringing them down to a place
28:57
where where he felt like the ghoul.
29:00
And it was so great to see him turn into the ghoul.
29:04
You know, each fitting, it was like more and more becoming part
29:10
of who who he was and, and his, you know, input was so extremely
29:18
valuable for me because, because he has so many great ideas.
29:23
And so we were just talking. He was like, yeah, but but
29:26
there's also like he completely respected the, the art and what
29:30
happens. He he would put things on just
29:33
be like, yeah, you get this, like you, you where we're going
29:37
here. And so it's like the sort of
29:39
mutual respect that I loved working with that guy.
29:43
And he is such a phenomenal actor.
29:44
And watching him bring into life was, jeez, even the camera test.
29:48
I was like, whoa, like Jeff, you know, we were playing with his
29:53
his his Cooper looks during the camera test as well.
29:57
And, you know, I just messing with his his handkerchief,
30:01
moving it around, seeing the right way it should be.
30:04
And just he just, like brings everything right to life.
30:10
And it was so fun seeing that at the camera desk, like seeing the
30:14
character. I think it was cool for everyone
30:16
to see him just, like, become that guy.
30:20
Yeah. Yeah.
30:21
It paid off. I mean it it, he's incredible in
30:24
it and I'm just so excited for him and everyone on the show.
30:28
Let's talk about the Brotherhood of Steel because I feel like the
30:32
show would not work if the Brotherhood of Steel did not
30:35
work and it did. It totally paid off.
30:38
But then also to me, it feels so impossible seeing the power
30:41
armor suits. I have zero idea how this came
30:44
to be. I just, I don't know how you did
30:46
it. Please enlighten me because it's
30:48
crazy. Well, you know the the power
30:50
armor was made, We had them all made.
30:53
There was nothing CGI about the power armor Which.
30:57
Is insane. It's insane.
30:59
And even when we started, we were like, Oh my God, it was a
31:03
huge endeavor because there had there was several iterations of
31:07
the power suit because one, you know, had to be this massive
31:11
thing that was probably, you know, 1,000,000 lbs.
31:15
And, and, and then there was one that had to that the stuntman
31:19
and Aaron had to walk in. And then there was one that had
31:23
to, you know, be able to use his arms.
31:25
And so there were, there was one that could sit down.
31:28
And so there was several like big robots around, but not
31:35
robots at all, but big metal suits that they that these
31:39
amazing people in LA made and brought, brought to us.
31:43
And we were like getting the people, you know, getting the
31:47
stunt guy or Aaron in and out of them, which was hilarious.
31:52
But it really like, you know, they the, the place that made
31:56
them. Hats off to them because they
31:58
were so great about keeping everything the way like the I
32:03
mean, because it was a real collaboration.
32:04
The art department, the prop department, us, we all had a lot
32:07
to say about what should be where, what should, what things
32:10
should look like. And they really like took down
32:12
the metal. We we knew exactly what the
32:14
metal was going to look like. They brought it to such a, such
32:17
a realistic place. And then we based a lot of
32:22
things off that. So we worked really closely with
32:26
them. And I think that and with the
32:28
props department, it's the first time in my sort of working
32:31
experience, I guess that I worked back closely with, with
32:34
props because we were just intermingled.
32:37
Everything you know was a collaboration.
32:42
It's really great. I could imagine, yeah.
32:45
Including the pit boy too. I'm assuming on their arms.
32:48
Pit Boy Yeah. It had to fit exactly on the
32:50
suits that we made. So it had to, you know, we were
32:53
just constantly working with them on like how these pieces
32:58
were going to fit together. And, you know, what was that
33:00
going to be like and how could he draw his gun and how what was
33:03
going to fit over his pants and what worked and how.
33:07
So it was all just sort of like this rolling ball the whole time
33:13
of, of, of ideas and, and cool things that were happening.
33:17
And, and I think it, I think it was really beneficial for us
33:21
that that there was such a small amount of, of CGI and things
33:27
like that. It was all practical, which at
33:30
first we were like, oh God, what?
33:35
Have I got myself into? Oh my God.
33:37
So much practical elements, but it ended up giving the actors so
33:42
much more to work with and and so much more for us to work with
33:46
in terms of seeing what was happening in the scene and
33:49
really, you know, people really getting bloody and getting shot
33:53
and things like that. Was it was cool?
33:56
I also think it's very important too, the practicality of it
33:59
because to really feel this world, I mean, post apocalyptic
34:01
has been done time and time again, but to really like be in
34:05
the suits or just seeing the colors of follow the blue and
34:08
the gold and just you know, building these things from
34:11
scratch and same forks and stuff in the armor and whatnot.
34:14
I think that's really like helps the actors feel immersed in it,
34:18
the cast a crew, but then also the audience too.
34:20
It just really all adds up and really helps make this world
34:23
feel unique and special. So.
34:25
Yeah. And I, I think also with the
34:27
post apocalyptic thing, I think we never wanted the show to feel
34:32
like sad and like post apocalyptic in a, in a, in a
34:38
sort of a, a typical like, oh, it's the end of the world.
34:43
It was supposed to be on the other side of that.
34:45
So, you know, it was like the optimism of life going on.
34:50
Yeah. Everyone there's over at the the
34:52
world oriented, they're ready for the next thing.
34:54
Everybody kept going. Water was low, but you know,
34:59
they, they learn to like deal with what they had left.
35:02
And I, I think there's an optimism to the show that is
35:06
really unique and it's a, it's such a unique voice that we all
35:10
listen to. And, and you know, with Jonah
35:13
being sort of the, the, the, the, the one really, you know,
35:18
his, his voice as a director is so unique.
35:20
And, and, and that was that was that sort of sets it apart, I
35:24
think, which I, I hope is that is that sort of like really
35:31
unique voice. Right, Amy, this has been such a
35:35
privilege. I mean, the show has gone rave
35:36
reviews. Everyone.
35:38
I'm obsessed with how much people love this show.
35:40
I finished it last night. I stayed up.
35:43
I was, I was kind of like milking it because I knew I was
35:45
going to interview you. So I didn't want to watch it all
35:47
one night. So I was like, OK, it's not till
35:49
Friday. I could do one episode today
35:51
with, you know, I'm so glad. Strung it out a bit because it's
35:56
so funny when you work on something for like a year and
35:59
then people watch it and like. Just like that.
36:03
Yeah. Space it out.
36:05
So I want to ask you just as final question, why is this
36:08
series meant to you just personally and professionally as
36:11
a costume designer, but just someone who's had already such a
36:14
successful career? But this just feels like
36:16
something so unique and special. And it totally was.
36:20
I mean, I on so many levels, it was unique and special.
36:24
And I mean, you learn something new on everything and you, you,
36:27
your eyes are open to various things on, on every job.
36:31
And really if that stops, you should get out of the business
36:34
because it is like you, you, you, you have to see everything
36:38
as an opportunity. But this job, I mean, it taught
36:41
me and every job I've had subsequently has, has reflected
36:46
what I learned on fallout in that creativity is infinite.
36:50
If there's no, there's no like there's no wall.
36:53
If, if you can find the person who can do it or find the, the,
36:58
the place that can apply something or find a, you know,
37:02
the skill involved and, and if you have the idea, it can be
37:06
made. And I, I think that was really
37:09
sort of an exploding thing for my, for my brain and career.
37:14
Like I can do that. I can do that, you know that is.
37:19
Cool. I love that.
37:20
Amy, congratulations to you and your team.
37:22
Such an incredible show and I'm just so happy for you all and I
37:26
don't know, I'm excited to see what's next.
37:28
Thank you. So.
37:29
Much. Thank you.
37:35
The Art of Costume podcast is hosted and produced by Elizabeth
37:39
Joy Glass and Spencer Williams. Our audio engineering and
37:44
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37:49
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38:02
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38:11
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