Miyako Bellizzi has been the stealth mastermind behind some of Hollywood’s most up-to-date memorable seems to be—from Robert Pattinson’s Marc Ecko sweatshirts in Good Time to Adam Sandler’s leather-based blazer in Uncut Gems. The New York-based costume designer has had a lengthy, fruitful inventive collaboration with filmmakers and brothers Benny and Josh Safdie over the years, however broke out on her personal with HBO’s remake of the 1973 Ingmar Bergman miniseries Scenes from a Marriage. Following the marriage of Jonathan (Oscar Isaac) and Mira (Jessica Chastain), Bellizzi’s work put Isaac into one other class of sizzling daddy fodder: philosophy professor with tiny glasses, luxurious knitsand New Balance sneakers (in a sizzling method).
Since then, Bellizzi has change into one of the trade’s most sought-after costume designers. This yr alone, she crafted the glamorous, South of France summation ensembles in Hello Sadness and the three-piece fits of The History of Sound. She’s closing out the yr with one other collaboration with Josh Safdie, on his solo directorial debut, Marty Supremestarring Timothée Chalamet as the titular Marty—a twister of a younger man in the 1950s decided to make his desires of taking part in ping-pong professionally occur, regardless of the price.
The scale of Marty Supreme spans New York’s Lower East Side to London to Japan to New Jersey, giving Bellizzi one of her largest scopes but to discover the characters who inhabit Marty’s world. Here, Bellizzi talks to Marie Claire about collaborating with Josh solo, her love of texture, and dealing with style icon Gwyneth Paltrow.
Endo (Koto Kawaguchi) and Marty (Timothée Chalamet’s) face off in a ping-pong match in Marty Supreme.
(Image credit score: A24)
Marie Claire: How was it engaged on Marty Supreme and prepping this movie, contemplating its giant scope?
Miyako Bellizzi: It’s such a completely different world coming from Good Time to Marty Supreme. Uncut Gems was this type of center floor over the years, and the evolution of the movies has gotten greater. I bear in mind studying the script for the first time, although, and being like, Wow. You’re actually excited about this world of 1952, and the way do you bounce into one thing like that? You simply need to dive headfirst.
You get into these little worlds after which all of a sudden you are spending all day studying about desk tennis in Brazil in 1952. It takes time to take action a lot analysis, and it is my favourite half of the course of as a result of that is if you actually begin to consider the world and the way huge it’s. Josh and I like images, and that is the place it began. There’s this Ken Jacobs documentary about the Lower East Side that Josh discovered at MoMA. He was capable of share it with us and attain out to the filmmaker, and that was our bible for the Lower East Side.
It’s like, “What’s going on in 1952? What is happening in the world?” For me, that was vital to know, particularly the best way to differentiate between Japan versus the Lower East Side and the way individuals are dressed. How am I going to indicate that? Everyone can do 1950s, however how can we present and make it actual to every world?
MC: There’s a lot use of knits and silks, but in addition texture in patterns on this movie, like Marty will probably be carrying a printed tie with a striped shirt. How did you go about planning for every character on this context?
MB: I’m impressed by texture. Marty’s world is layered in the texture of it, but in addition with the material [of what he’s wearing]. I like prints and stripes and the subtleties of that, in phrases of material element, however then additionally in the material itself. [Paltrow’s character] Kay’s world was very completely different; the black and white tweeds versus Marty and his stripes and the suiting and the colour palette versus even the plaids of [Odessa A’zion’s character] Rachel’s clothes. There’s such a tradition conflict of differing types of individuals who lived in the Lower East Side, and I actually needed that layered world in comparison with Kay, or the desk tennis was all strong.
I needed Marty to be heat tones, like tans, however there’s one thing actually too collegiate about that, and as I bought him into some cool tones, one thing modified. It’s attention-grabbing how even colour and material can decide somebody’s character.
Bellizzi says she “searched the world for polos” with the intention to gown Chalamet’s character interval precisely.
(Image credit score: A24)
MC: That’s like that pale blue short-sleeve polo sweater that Marty wears.
MB: I searched the world for polos. It’s actually few and much between to seek out an precise polo from that period, and it is also knitwear, and knitwear is hard to recreate. For the movie, I created some knits for Rachel’s brown gown, and the vest he wears, I made. Knitwear is actually robust, however it’s additionally actually vital to the interval. [Marty’s ping-pong rival] Endo’s polo at the finish, that was this classic polo. I used to be dying to make use of it someplace as a result of that one had a texture, it is virtually like a crochet. It was the most lovely polo, and I needed to attempt to incorporate them wherever I might. The blue knit that Marty wears, when I discovered that, I used to be like, “We got to use this somewhere.”
MC: I do know they’re imagined to be goofy, however I beloved the Harlem Globetrotter pink silk units. They jogged my memory of one thing Tilda Swinton would put on.
MB: I had a lot of enjoyable making these. The pink comes from Josh. The Harlem Globetrotters are crimson, white, and blue. The Washington Generals are inexperienced and white, after which that is the humorous halftime present. Josh was like, “It has to be pink.” I believed they need to be some type of uniform. Then we talked about these wild sleeves on them. He was like, “It needs to be theatrical that they’re playing ping pong and their sleeves are just really wide, so it’s like they’re dancing.” It grew to become one of my favourite outfits of Marty’s simply because he has all these completely different semi-uniforms. Not that he is shape-shifting, however I really feel like he is taking part in completely different roles.
Suiting is one factor that is very a lot him and who he needs to be, however there are different moments—working at the shoe retailer or his desk tennis uniform—these are all uniforms that are not essentially reflecting his private type. When you are designing for a character, you need to take into consideration their closet: “What would they wear in everyday life?” I believe that blue polo and the gab jacket in the bowling alley scene is the most reflective of his private type. And I’m glad I used to be capable of get that in there as soon as, as a result of exterior of that, who’s Marty? And I’m making an attempt to indicate that in little particulars all through the movie.
“She’s my most fashionable character because she has access to certain brands and things that no other character has access to,” Bellizzi says of Paltrow’s Kay.
(Image credit score: A24)
MC: How was it engaged on Kay’s costuming? She’s such an attention-grabbing character who has that old skool Hollywood glamour, however then left it behind to be a wealthy spouse, so she’s type of frozen in time.
MB: I had a lot enjoyable with Kay. She’s my most trendy character as a result of she has entry to sure manufacturers and issues that no different character has entry to. We first introduce her character in London [in] 1952 throughout the winter. I saved her fairly black and white in the starting as a result of she has this lack of life. But she wasn’t in boring garments in any respect. I used to be intentional in how her world grew to become extra colourful by the finish, by assembly Marty. Something about him sparked one thing inside of her and gave her this gentle. I do not assume she realized she was lacking one thing. What about Marty is so intriguing to her? That additionally helped me with Marty’s character.
On one hand, Kay’s residing the dream, or what individuals assume the dream is. You’re a film star, and you’ve got a wealthy husband. It additionally is considering being a lady in that point interval and feeling caught in a relationship. You cannot depart your husband. What are you going to do? That was half of my talks with Gwyneth, too. Not that it is just like who she is in any respect, however she is that this iconic film star who’s been in so many movies. I take into consideration how The Royal Tenenbaums was a large one. I needed to offer her fur in that first scene as a result of all the ladies can be carrying furs. But I can not give her a mink fur as a result of that’s what she wore in The Royal Tenenbaums.
Kay (Gwyneth Paltrow) and Marty (Timothée Chalamet) kiss underneath a bridge in Central Park.
(Image credit score: A24)
MC: Kay’s beautiful crimson gown in the direction of the finish of the movie feels so pivotal when she’s operating round with Marty in Central Park. And particularly with how that night finally ends up for Kay.
MB: At the final minute, we became the crimson gown. Red is so putting, and a lady of her stature would not essentially put on one thing so vivid. In my thoughts, the comparability is like a middle-aged man going by way of a disaster, shopping for a crimson Ferrari. That’s her crimson gown second in the movie, and she or he’s like, “What am I doing? Snap back to reality.” It makes a lot of sense as a result of, additionally inside the colour story, that is her pivotal second, after which all of it comes crashing down.
That night time we shot in Central Park, the climate turned. It was 20 levels. I made this scarf, however I made it tremendous outsized; it’s virtually like a blanket as a result of I needed it to be actually dramatic for when she’s operating in the park. You do not truly actually ever see the gown, which I additionally discover attention-grabbing. It’s like she’s hiding.
MC: It’s her Little Red Riding Hood second.
MB: Then there’s this vulnerability when she comes again into the get together, and she or he’s taken that off. There’s a shot proper when she’s strolling in, it is actually tight. It’s virtually like she seems to be bare. There’s such a vulnerability there with that.
Marty Supreme marks Bellizzi’s third characteristic collaboration with Josh Safdie.
(Image credit score: A24)
MC: Kay’s jewellery additionally performs a large function in the movie. Did you additionally supply all the costume jewellery?
MB: We had a few distributors that we needed to get a lot [jewelry from]. Even in curating that, it is a entire different half of somebody’s character. Marty has a necklace and his watch. There’s a necklace that was scripted, so I labored with props, and that necklace was remade off of a Cartier excessive jewellery piece from that point interval. I collected all these completely different advertisements, they usually had been so enjoyable. Reading previous style magazines from that point interval, there’s the “two rule” the place it is such as you’re both carrying earrings and a necklace otherwise you’re carrying a bracelet and a necklace, however you possibly can by no means put on all three. The pairings of every thing had been intentional—about being true to the period of costume jewellery and the way it was worn. That was one other world to find.
MC: You’ve performed costuming for Marty and Hello Sadness and The History of Sound, all of which got here out this yr. Was there something that stood out to you in your work?
MB: What’s completely different about this yr particularly is that each of the movies I did had been interval movies, and I had not performed that earlier than. So to have the ability to begin with The History of Soundwhich was 1917 to 1927, after which Martywhich was 1952, I’m getting in chronological order. It was a very completely different method this final yr and really inspiring for me. I had not performed a interval movie earlier than, and that was actually eye-opening. I beloved it a lot. Both of them had been very enjoyable tasks to work on, [getting to research] the historical past behind it. It’s been actually fulfilling creatively.
This interview has been edited and condensed for readability.