They are key players in the filmmaking process, artisans with fabric and dyes who work side by side with directors to create the look and feel of Hollywood's motion pictures.
They have evoked the genteel splendor of 18th century French nobility in "Dangerous Liaisons," captured the glamour of the 1940s in "Bugsy" and re-created the rags-to-riches social ladder that existed among the doomed passengers in "Titanic."
Yet today Hollywood costume designers think of themselves as a forgotten and misunderstood segment of the Academy Awards, their work overshadowed by upscale fashion designers whose gowns for Oscar contenders and presenters become the talk of the town.
There was a time when Edith Head, who won eight Academy Awards in her life, was arguably the most famous designer at Oscar time, but the media's attention today is focused almost entirely on the gowns created by Valentino, Armani, Versace and other top fashion designers who dress the Oscar-nominated actresses for their red-carpeted arrivals past the line of paparazzi.
"The Oscars are the biggest deal in the fashion business," said Brian Rennie, design director at Escada, who last year outfitted Oscar winner Kim Basinger for the Academy Awards.
"Years ago, when the Oscars first started, the stars were dressed by people like Edith Head and Adrian," Rennie added. "They did the costumes for the movies and Oscars as well. Nowadays, that is all gone. If you asked me to name a list of costume designers, I wouldn't have a clue."
Unlike fashion houses, costume designers don't use the Academy Awards to pitch a label or a look. While their creations do occasionally spark fashion trends--as Michael Kaplan did when he designed the layered, torn T-shirt look in "Flashdance"--costume designers rarely reap the rewards.
So, it is understandable that costume designers, after years of feeling overlooked, have decided to shine the spotlight on themselves.
For the first time in three decades, the 470-member Costume Designers Guild will hold a gala awards banquet on Saturday at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Hosted by actress Anjelica Huston, with Annette Bening and Carol Burnett scheduled to present awards, the already sold-out affair will do what the directors, screenwriters, producers and actors guilds do annually--honor their own.
The winners will receive a sterling silver statuette that depicts a female figure draped in an amorphous swirl of fabric. As yet, the trophy has no catchy nickname like the Oscar.
