From Fashion Stylist to Costume Designer

Becoming a Member of the Costume Designer's Guild

Written by Nikki Shadrow and Jesi Mosny

Have you contemplated life after fashion or wardrobe styling? Now may be the time to think about working on movies, and television shows. Either way, the Costume Design Guild is your next step.

Aspiring fashion stylist Niki Shadrow sat down with James Casey, the new director of Local 892, the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (I.A.T.S.E), a.k.a. the Costume Designers Guild, to find out exactly what she needed to know NOW if one of her future goals included working in film and TV. She share many interesting facts and tips.

The Guild includes costume designers, assistant costume designer’s, stylists, commercial costume designers, and costume illustrators who work on motion pictures, television, commercial and stage productions. The LA branch has six hundred members, and negotiates contracts with major studios to protect artists by insuring a minimum wage, health and pension benefits.

To join the Guild, you’ll need time at work on the set and money. The initial cost can be anywhere from $2,000 to $4000 depending on which discipline (costume design, stylist, etc.) you choose to classify yourself in. This is similar to the makeup & hair stylists union, wherein upon acceptance, you must decide whether you want to be a makeup artist or a hair stylist—you cannot do both. Additionally, quarterly dues are between $121-$194 per quarter.

For instance, choosing a goal like, “I will be designing the look of a feature film directed by Steven Spielberg in the summer of 2004” will enable you to come up with your classification. In this case a Costume Designer—because only Costume Designers are able to design the look of the film. If on the other hand your goal were actually drawing the looks of the costumes, then you would choose to be classified as a costume illustrator.

The easiest part might be getting the screen credit since it takes only one “on-screen” commercially released project to be qualified. Just make sure that every time you work on a film or TV show, that you ask for a crew list, or get a copy of the Annual Index of Motion Picture Credits. This documentation will prove to the Guild that you did in fact serve as the costume designer, stylist, etc. on that film.

All of this information will be included on your application. The Guild will make sure you have completed all the required criteria. Once the committee reviews your work history and experience, they will call you to set up a personal interview.

Although the Guild does not act as an employment agency, they do provide a support system for their members. As far as personal rights, pension, and health benefits you are much more protected. In addition to these benefits it is much easier to find work because most major productions are “Union Only”, meaning you must be a member of the guild. Now that you have acquired the basic steps towards becoming a member, here is how you can apply.

You must write a written request for an application either by mail or e-mail. Or you can just log onto Crystal Wright Live to download the application yourself. You must also provide three letters of recommendation, a resume, photo of yourself, and a short bio.