The stories told through the lens of directors in TV, film, or theater are usually always highlighted, but have you ever thought of how the rest of the team behind the camera is telling a story too? Costume designers have been in the shadows in comparison to the directors and producers, and sometimes even MUAs. In recent years industry figures like Ruth E. Carter and Shiona Turini have brought more deserved exposure to the craft. ESSENCE loves giving credit where credit is due, and we also love giving those who deserve their flowers. Costume designers are the ones who really shape the scene if you think about it. Without them, the films and shows that we love wouldn’t make sense visually.
These five Black women have shaped the stories of some of your favorite TV shows and films like Harlem on Amazon Prime, Bel-Air on Peacock, and BlacKkKlansman. Take a look at how they got their start as Black women in a tough industry like film.
QueenSylvia Akuchie, “Bel-Air”
The beginning of QueenSylvia Akuchie’s career started with styling in the music industry. From album covers to magazine spreads, Akuchie even toured with the artists that she would style. “I decided to take a deep dive into Costume Design. Storytelling has always been a part of my artistry. Studying fashion history and costume design helped shape my career in film and television. Being able to create costumes and tell stories through my own lens was a win-win for me.” She’s worked on Tyler Perry’s Madea franchise, has dressed Denzel Washington in Equalizer 2, and is currently a costume designer for Bel-Air. Akuchie describes her experience as a Black costume designer in the industry as an “exemplifying experience.” She’s a Nigerian-American with a wide range of experiences that allowed her to “illuminate her artistry in ways that truly inspire the culture.” Many of the shows she’s been part of helping design with teams have shaped the shows we love to watch today, like Coming to America 2, which opened a door for African fashion. Now African designers are showing in Paris and Milan partly because of Akuchie’s influence on her costume design in the film.
Jaclyn Banner, “Kindred”
While working in Atlanta as a wardrobe stylist, Jaclyn Banner knew she would have to take matters into her own hands. Atlanta didn’t lend her that many opportunities at the time of her start. She was styling music videos and independent films. Banner visited New York, staying an extra week to network with a big commercial stylist, and ended up in an assistant role on two projects. She was about to move to the city until a friend in Atlanta asked her to be a costume buyer for a project that her friend in the TV and film industry was working on. “That’s how I got my start in the industry, and I never looked back,” says Banner. She kept being persistent and landed a role as an Assistant Costume Designer and eventually another promotion to Costume Designer. She’s worked on projects like Kindred on Hulu, Kingdom Business on BET+, and the movie Get Out. She tells ESSENCE about her experiences “As a Black Costume Designer, we face the same dilemmas as any Black woman in a position of power or authority. There’s a fine balance to be professional and assertive and being able to stand up for ourselves with people on all levels without coming across as the ‘Angry Black Woman.’…We have to be superwoman at all times, and that can be exhausting.”
Marci Rodgers, “Till” & “BlacKkKlansman”
Marci Rodgers went to school for costume design at the University of Maryland College Park for her master’s degree. She’s worked on Netflix’s She’s Gotta Have It, BlacKkKlansman, Paper Girls, and more. She says her experience as a Black Costume Designer has shaped her in many ways to where she’s seen growth and maturity in her design process. “My designs relate immensely to the culture and fashion today as I had the distinct pleasure of reinventing Mars Blackmon and Nola Darling, to name a few. Also, having the opportunity to recreate periods by way of my wardrobe design brings authentic nostalgia to many.”
Deirdra Govan, “Harlem” & “Devotion”
Deirdra Govan recalls her experience in the industry as a true “Made In New York story.” Govan did it the old-fashioned way by working over the years from the ground up to build her career. She knew early on that she was meant to be a visual creator. Govan graduated from the Parsons School of Design with a bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design and another in Business Administration. She went on to get a master’s degree in Interior Architectural and Design at Pratt Institute. She took matters into her own hands by networking with a family friend who was a Saturday Night Live makeup artist, and he introduced her to the New York Business Representative for the local wardrobe union for Theatre, Film, and Television. Her big break was working as a costumer for Broadway shows like “Les Misérables” and “Miss Saigon” and “Phantom of The Opera.” A year later, she landed a job with an international touring company. Soon after that, she landed a set costuming position for the television series New York Undercover and from there, she climbed the ladder of the costume department.
She’s worked on Devotion, Harlem, Sorry To Bother You, and an upcoming television series, I’m A Virgo. She has been around for years, so her experience as a Black woman in the industry has not deterred her from her dreams and goals. She shares with ESSENCE, “My journey and experience as a Black Costume Designer have been built off of many, many years of learning, focused determination and tenacity, in honing my craft/art as a designer. When I have quiet moments with myself, it is humbling to see how far I’ve come, but I still have a long way to go. The opportunity to design projects that are of substance, are culturally relevant, and resonate means more to me than just getting the job,” says Govan. “It’s important for me to seek out projects that flip the status quo, redirect the narrative, and show that we are not myopic in telling our stories on the screen. I feel that some of the projects that I’ve had the privilege to design are those that will stand the test of time. Be it films or television series, I hope my work will be valued, and the legacy that I want to leave behind is one that expresses a diverse body of work that inspires, is joyous, and has a cultural impact that debunks stereotypes.”
Charlese Antoinette Jones, “Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody” & “Air”
Charlese Antoinette Jones found costume design through fashion. She was a recent Fashion Merchandising and marketing graduate living in New York City. New York is a popular hub for movie sets, so Jones always saw trailers everywhere and eventually asked about how to work in film. She landed her first internship and, five years later, started costume designing. She’s worked on Newlyweeds and The Inevitable Defeat of Mister and Pete, which both premiered at Sundance in 2013. She’s also worked on Judas and the Black Messiah, which earned her a Costume Designers Guild Award nomination for Excellence in Period Film, and her most recent costume design credits can be seen in Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody and in Ben Affleck’s upcoming film Air, which follows the story behind Nike’s pursuit of Michael Jordan. Her experience as a Black woman in the industry recalls a rough start. “I’ve had a rough time at times in this industry, a lot of rejection and a lot of questioning if I belong. Some of it is definitely related to being a Black woman, and some of it is just how cutthroat this industry is. I’ve been homeless, and I struggled for a long time,” Jones tells ESSENCE. “I’m grateful to be on the other side of that— hard work, strategy, and consistency does pay off over time. I’m blessed because my projects are celebrated and really relevant to our culture. I’m really intentional about what I choose to design and what it says about the world, what stories are being told, and how.”