Many low-and no-budget
directors shy away from
period or fantasy films for
a variety of good reasons,
including tough locations,
tricky acting and expensive costumes and
props. Historic clothing has to look just
right. A silly, cheap-looking accessory can
ruin a scene; I know from experience. In
one of my films I put a dorky rubber hat
on a character, thinking it would look like
cloth. We now roll our eyes and refer to that
character only as “Condom Man.”
Think about the independent films you’ve
seen in recent years. How many of the
characters wore anything but off-the-shelf
modern clothing? Why not take the leap?
Period costumes offer an opportunity to
boost production value—especially if you’re
shooting on video or with limited locations.
Maybe it’s my background in theater, but
I love colorful characters and colorful
costumes. Film noir be damned!
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| David LaGraffe, Rhonda Carlson and Dale Phillips dress for the Old West in “Liberty TV.” |
For a recent episode of my show, “Liberty
News TV” (www.libertynewstv.com), we
needed to costume an elaborate cowboy
spoof. But Maine is hardly the place to go
scavenging for chaps, cowboy hats and sixshooters—
or so we thought. As we began the
costume scrounge, however, we discovered
that all you have to do is ask. In the end, we
managed to outfit a dozen cowboys and two
19th-century women for just about $200,
complete with guns, spurs, hats, chaps,
ponchos and even a sombrero.
The Old West: Piece by Piece
Most period costuming can be accomplished
by accessorizing modern clothing—typically
by either adding or removing some detail of
the costume. Here’s how we rounded up our
western wardrobe:
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