2020 Oscar Nominations for Costumes and HMU

Awards season is always an exciting time.  There have been some extraordinary films this year with remarkable achievements in all categories. We at MWS are very proud of all of our customer’s successes. We could never pick just one winner. Here is a look at the 2020 Oscar nominations for costumes and HMU.

2020 Oscar Nominations for Costume Design

The Irishman: Sandy Powell and Christopher Peterson

The Epic gangster movie that runs three and a half hours and spans 50 years could have been a costuming dream and nightmare. Oscar-winning costume designer Sandy Powell was up to the task. Costume challenges included replicating real people, remaking vintage costumes, de-aging, distressing, a huge cast and 102 costume changes for Robert De Niro alone. This is Powell’s 15th Academy Award nomination. She has won three times.

JOJO Rabbit: Mayes C. Rubeo

A comedy-drama about a lonely German boy with a big imagination who discovers his mother is hiding a Jewish girl in their attic. Mayes C. Rubeo who is best known for her work on Avatar told “The Hollywood Reporter” that director Taika Waititi had a very specific look in mind. Rubeo said, “We wanted it to look like wartime through the eyes of a child and do something unexpected.”

Joker: Mark Bridges

A dark gritty supervillain origin story that follows a man’s painful journey to self-destruction. Mark Bridges who won an Oscar for his work on Phantom Thread told “Deadline” that “he was looking for a very different kind of challenge.” Bridges said “the costumes had to look like well-worn thrift shop clothes. But each costume had to be made as they needed multiples for stunt doubles.”  This is Bridges’ fourth Academy Award nomination. He has won twice.

Little Women: Jacqueline Durran 

A beautiful adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s beloved 1868 novel. A story of love and sisterhood with a timely and timeless approach. Oscar-winning costume designer Jacqueline Durran told “The New Yorker” that “she wants the characters she dresses to look as if they really live in their clothing.” While Durran kept the clothes appropriate to the 19th-century setting, she said,  “I think that it was about bringing a kind of new life to Victorian girls — keeping it Victorian but not doing it in the way that we’re used to seeing it.” This is Durran’s seventh Academy Award nomination. She has won once for Anna Karenina.

Once Upon A Time…In Hollywood: Arianne Phillips

A faded TV star and his stunt double strive to achieve fame and success in the film industry during the final years of Hollywood’s Golden Age. Arianne Phillips told “Deadline” she worked very hard to get this job. Her main challenge was ” a unique amalgamation of reality, fantasy, and memory set in 1969 Hollywood.” This is Phillips’ third Academy Award nomination.

2020 Oscar Nominations for Makeup and Hairstyling

Bombshell: Kazu Hiro, Anne Morgan, and Vivian Baker

This Hollywood Dream Team of HMU experts had the task of turning famous actors into famous newscasters. The numerous challenges included prosthetics and wigs. Charlize Theron’s portrayal of Megyn Kelly alone required eight separate prosthetic pieces and several hair changes. This is Hiro’s fourth Academy Award nomination.

Joker: Nicki Ledermann and Kay Georgiou

Makeup head Nicki Ledermann told “Variety” that “we’re not in the superhero world. This story is treated like real life, and that’s what made the project so interesting.” Hair department head Kay Georgiou first worked with hairpieces before cutting and coloring Joaquin Phoenix’s own hair.  Georgiou told “Variety”, the production designer wanted broccoli green hair for the final look. “Then it was a matter of what type of broccoli — organic broccoli, cheaper broccoli, freshly cut, older broccoli; there are a plethora of broccoli greens out there.”

Judy: Jeremy Woodhead

Veteran makeup artist Jeremy Woodhead faced major hurdles transforming actor Renee Zellweger into Judy Garland. Woodhead told “Below The Line” that “The two of them are very different, very few similarities. I had to take as much of Renée out of Renée’s face and put in as much Judy as I could.” Woodhead chose to use minimal prosthetics,  just a nose tip, teeth, and lenses. The bulk of Woodhead’s work was realized by “painting Zellweger’s face, plus utilizing a prominent wig to transform the actress.”

Maleficent: Mistress of Evil: Paul Gooch, Arjen Tuiten and David White

Special effects makeup designer David White said since the film is a sequel, he started with the familiar and worked out from there. White spent months creating looks for at least 20 characters, all influenced by the environments that spawned them. He told “Variety” that “each of the prosthetic pieces created for the creatures was carefully hand-crafted for the actors based on casts of their faces. That way, I can tell how much weight or protrusion of a cheekbone is necessary.” This is Tuiten and White’s second Academy Award nomination.

1917: Naomi Donne, Tristan Versluis, and Rebecca Cole

The movie 1917 is a harrowing cinematic achievement that tells the story of two soldiers in World War I attempting to prevent a deadly ambush against British troops. Made to look as if it had been filmed in one long take with a huge cast provided lots of challenges for the HMU team. The film’s hair and makeup designer Naomi Donne brought on prosthetics expert Tristan Versluis. Versluis told “Forbes”, “the team was tasked with making the looks realistic but respectful. Versluis and his team had to build bodies of dead soldiers and horses that would be buried in the mud They also had to build scars, remote-controlled bleeding rigs, and other faux injuries for wounded or dying soldiers.

2020 Oscar Nominations for Costumes and HMU: The awards show

The 92nd Academy Awards ceremony will honor the best films of 2019 on February 9, 2020 at 8 PM. We are very excited and proud of all of the nominees in Costume Design and Hair and Makeup design.

We wish you the best of luck but you are already truly winners to us.