Tag: Costume Design

“The Killer” Costume Designs by Cate Adams: The Expert

Cate Adams, Costume Designer
Edited by Leonard Zelig
Behind the Scenes photos by Miles Crist
March 5, 2024

Illustrations by Richard Merritt
(Click to view in full resolution)

During my first talks with David Fincher to discuss the script, one of the first notes he gave me was that maybe “The Expert” should be in an Ann Taylor suit. Ann Taylor is a small US chain of clothing stores for fashion-forward career women. Put together, but not flashy. Very understated despite her wealth. That was my first impression.

When we got closer to shooting the scenes with Tilda Swinton in Chicago, there was correspondence between her and David about shaping the character, what she would wear, what her house looks like, that he shared with me and Gigi Williams, Head of Makeup.

She lives in a beautiful, mid-century modern home, and she has money from her occupation, but she is very under the radar. She indulges herself with smaller luxuries like fine-dining restaurants, where she keeps her own bottle of whisky, and Swiss ultra-luxury vintage watches like an Audemars Piguet. A masseuse could be seen leaving her home with a table.

David suggested a simple but beautiful dress with a flow, with a sway. It had to be warm because it was going to be really cold since we were shooting at night in Chicago in February. So, maybe wool. And nice shoes, but not so tall as to risk hurting anyone when she topples. He wanted something that was in a lighter tone, similar to “The Killer” in Paris. It’s funny how there are these hidden Easter eggs, everything connected. And all the light tones couldn’t have a touch of pink in them. If you look at some khakis on the color wheel they will lead to pink. And he doesn’t like pink. I also had to avoid greens. And patterns. So, it had to be muted tones like off-white, ecru, eggshell, cement… She shouldn’t be menacing when you first see her. You want a bit of compassion or empathy for her.

I knew I wasn’t going to have a lot of time with Tilda. So, we just started doing a lot of research. After scouring the internet for dresses and looking for reference photos of her films and press appearances, we started to think that we should make our own dress.

Read the full exclusive article here, on The Fincher Analyst

“The Killer” Costume Designs by Cate Adams: The Dominatrix

Cate Adams, Costume Designer
Edited by Leonard Zelig
March 5, 2024

Illustrations by Richard Merritt
(Click to view in full resolution)

“The Dominatrix” is played by the gorgeous and fearless Monique Ganderton, a top Hollywood Stunt Performer, Stunt Coordinator, Actress, and Director.

We started to research for the looks of The Dominatrix in Los Angeles, around July/August of 2021. From the script and David’s notes, I knew we wanted her to be elegant with a hint of sexy the first time we see her, but not revealing as we didn’t want to give away what was to come. The inspiration for this look came from images of the classic vintage style of vedettes and fashion icons from France, such as Carine Roitfeld, formerly of Vogue Paris, Victoria Beckham, and vedette, burlesque dancer, and model Dita Von Teese in public:

Read the full exclusive article here, on The Fincher Analyst

“The Killer” Costume Designer Cate Adams Makes Michael Fassbender Blend In

Jack Giroux
January 10, 2024
Below the Line

Costume designer Cate Adams convinces audiences a guy like Michael Fassbender can walk through the world unnoticed. That’s not an easy task. The costume designer makes the titular character in David Fincher‘s The Killer an assassin who blends into his surroundings, almost like death himself in the big cities.

It’s a Fincher film in which the craftsmanship shines without drawing attention away from the story at hand.

Or, in the case of The Killer, the character. It’s more about point-of-view than plot, thanks to Andrew Kevin Walker‘s cold yet intimate, clockwork-like script as well as the impeccable work from crew members such as Adams. She makes the killer’s world and his wardrobe more tangible, both mundane and poppy.

Recently, the costume designer spoke with Below the Line about her beautiful, subtle work in David Fincher’s latest film.

Read the full interview

In Conversation: David Fincher and Michael Fassbender with Rian Johnson on “The Killer” at the Academy Museum

Rian Johnson
November 15, 2023
Netflix: Behind the Streams

Director David Fincher and actor Michael Fassbender discuss making The Killer with moderator Rian Johnson at The Academy Museum in Los Angeles.

Watch The Killer on Netflix

Holt McCallany Talks to David Fincher about “The Iron Claw” and the Role of a Lifetime

By David Fincher
December 29, 2023
Interview

After casting Holt McCallany in Alien 3 and later in Fight Club in the types of tough-guy roles that have largely defined his four-decade career, David Fincher finally let the 60-year-old actor showcase his softer side as FBI agent Bill Tench in Netflix’s psychological thriller Mindhunter. It was that performance, in which McCallany was able to balance steely professionalism and quiet melancholy, that earned him a meeting with director Sean Durkin, who was looking for the right person to play the patriarch of the Von Erich clan in The Iron Claw, his biopic of the legendary Texas wrestling dynasty. As Fritz Von Erich, a loving but severe father who pushed his four sons (played by Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson, and Stanley Simons) beyond their limits—often with tragic results—McCallany is earning the best reviews of his career, and even, to his own shock, some Oscar buzz. As he told Fincher over Zoom a couple of weeks ago, he’s still letting it all sink in.

DAVID FINCHER: Hey Holtster! How have you been?

HOLT MCCALLANY: I’ve been great David, because there were a couple of articles, one in Variety, one in Vulture, that picked me as somebody who could get a possible Academy Award nomination for Supporting Actor, even though it’s going to be a very tough year.

Read the full interview

Holt McCallany as Fritz Von Erich. By Devin Yalkin

Variety Awards Circuit Podcast: Danielle Brooks (“The Color Purple”) and Holt McCallany (“The Iron Claw”)

Clayton Davis
December 14, 2023
Variety

Also on this episode, “The Iron Claw” actor Holt McCallany talks about playing the legendary wrestler Fritz Von Ehrich in Sean Durkin’s powerful new drama. He discusses coming to peace with many of his scenes that were cut from the film, and what we can expect from his upcoming directorial effort “The Star Maker” after getting script notes from David Fincher.

A quintessential “that guy” performer in the eyes of most audience members, this veteran character actor boasts over 80 credits in a three-decade career, including turns in “Nightmare Alley” and Netflix’s “Mindhunter.” As the hardened patriarch of a family of pro wrestlers in A24’s sports drama, McCallany exudes an intense and thorny power, expertly revealing the dangers of a particular form of pressurized ambition. It’s a performance that’s reminiscent of J.K. Simmons Oscar-winning turn as the abusive music teacher in “Whiplash.”

Actors on Actors: Michael Fassbender & Carey Mulligan

December 10, 2023
Variety (YouTube)

In their Actors on Actors conversation ‘Shame’ costars Carey Mulligan (‘Maestro‘) and Michael Fassbender (‘The Killer‘) reminisce on working with Steve McQueen and talk about the directors they worked with on their current projects, David Fincher and Bradley Cooper.

Variety Actors on Actors presented by AIR from Amazon Studios.

From ‘Shame’ to Netflix Films: Michael Fassbender and Carey Mulligan on Rejection and Being So in Character You Act Without Thinking

Kate Aurthur
Photographs by Alexi Lubomirski
December 10, 2023
Variety

In “Maestro” and “The Killer,” the characters played by Carey Mulligan and Michael Fassbender exist in different worlds. Mulligan’s Felicia Montealegre Bernstein, an up-and-coming actress who becomes conductor Leonard Bernstein’s wife and soul mate, breathes rarefied air among East Coast artists from the 1950s through the ’70s. Fassbender’s tightly coiled, mostly silent assassin, meanwhile, travels the world seeking vengeance, while keeping his focus by doing push-ups on his fingertips.

Twelve years ago, though, Fassbender and Mulligan inhabited the same toxic universe, as dysfunctional siblings in 2011’s “Shame.” The film was writer-director Steve McQueen’s bleak, sexually explicit examination of sex addiction through the eyes of Fassbender’s character, Brandon, a New York City executive brought low by his self-destructive desires. Mulligan’s Sissy, a lounge singer, was sorrowful and also boundary-less.

Read the full interview

Dressing to Disappear: Cate Adams Reveals the Secrets Behind ‘The Killer’ Costumes

Spencer Williams
December 8, 2023
The Art of Costume

How does one design a costume for a character, who does not want to be seen? Costume designer Cate Adams unveils the meticulous process behind crafting the enigmatic costumes in David Fincher’s ‘The Killer.’ In an exclusive interview with Spencer Williams, Adams shares behind-the-scenes stories, from deciphering Fincher’s vision for a character who effortlessly blends into the background to the awe-inspiring challenge of outfitting the incomparable Tilda Swinton. Join us as Adams takes us on a journey through cities, layers, and hidden Easter eggs, providing an intimate look into her creative process and the transformative power of costumes in film.

Read the full interview

“The Killer” Camera Department: Dominican Republic

Notice the VFX foliage in the out-of-focus foreground.

The Killer: Michael Fassbender

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC UNIT
Director of Photography: Erik Messerschmidt, ACE
A Camera Operator: Brian S. Osmond
A Camera First Assistant: Alex Scott
B Camera First Assistant: Brian Wells
A Camera Second Assistant: Jonathan Clark
B Camera Second Assistant: Matt Gaumer
A Dolly Grip: Dwayne Barr
B Dolly Grip: Mike Mull

Idea and BTS Video: Cate Adams, Costume Designer
Location: Dominican Republic
Editor: Leonard Zelig (The Fincher Analyst)

‘The Killer’ Costume Designer on Dressing Michael Fassbender’s Assassin Like a German Tourist

David Fincher “did not want him to look cool at all, like a typical assassin,” explains Cate Adams.

Esther Zuckerman
November 30, 2023
The Hollywood Reporter

At the opening of David Fincher’s The Killer, Michael Fassbender’s unnamed assassin describes his look as based on a German tourist he saw in London. It’s a convenient disguise for blending in on the streets of Paris because, as he explains, no one wants to interact with a German tourist. But what does that look like off the page? That task fell to costume designer Cate Adams, working with the exacting director. “David had a lot of ideas about how he wanted him to look,” she says. “He did not want him to look cool at all, like a typical assassin.” The solution? Bucket hats, Skechers and “lazy people clothing.” 

Read the full article