FRANCINE LECOULTRE FABRIC INVENTOR 1 BACKGROUND In the small Swiss village where Francine Lecoultre grew up everyone she loved performed whatever task was at hand with care and precision. Her mother created everything from scratch: homemade preserves and pastries to dresses, aprons and doilies. Her father and grandfather crafted the minuscule movable parts that went into luxury Swiss watches. So it was that at 7, Francine picked up needle and thread to fashion intricate dresses with puffed sleeves and embroidered hems for her dolls and stuffed animals. Today one of Hollywood’s foremost textile and costume designers, Francine says that as a child she learned the Swiss ethos of excellence and craftsmanship. She had always loved textiles and art and it seemed natural to teach about the subject she loved. But it wasn’t until Francine took the risky step of leaving a secure position as an art professor in Fribourg and moved to Los Angeles that she discovered her own unique gifts as an artist. “That leap of faith changed my life,” says Francine, whose work as a freelance costume designer and textile artist draws on her training in art, textiles and sewing. “Ideas flow from my brain to my hands” says Francine. Her career in Hollywood has in moments felt like a fairytale and her free flowing ideas have become one‐of‐a‐kind costumes for villains, aliens, leading men and princesses. 2 BACKGROUND Francine brought more than her heritage of Swiss craftsmanship with her to Los Angeles. A former Swiss cross‐country ski champion, mountain climber and long distance sailor, Francine arrived in LA well prepared for the physical demands of her hands‐on vocation in the highly competitive film industry. Today, Francine is the “go‐to” person for unique, daring and dazzling creations. She has made a name for herself by inventing textiles for some of Hollywood’s most memorable costumes, worn by stars such as Ben Kingsley, Patrick Stewart, Val Kilmer, Guy Pierce, Lili Taylor, William Baldwin and Michelle Yeoh. Among other prestigious films, Francine brought to bear her creative genius to create original materials to make the alien and mutant garments in “Star Trek,” the pink fur of the gorilla disguise worn by Uma Thurman in “Batman and Robin,” as well as the glittering silk of the bejeweled Swarovski wedding dress worn by Amy Adams in Disney’s “Enchanted.” Each costume bears Francine’s imaginative signature. Nominated for a Costume Designer’s Guild Award for her work in the Carl’s Junior commercial “Miss Turkey,” Francine has also been commissioned to design the costumes of major opera, ballet and circus productions in the U.S., Asia and Europe. Not strictly limited to the film and theatrical industries, Francine has created masks and costumes for famous artists such as rapper, songwriter and record producer Kanye West. Ahmanson Theater "The Royal Family" 3 CAREER HIGHLIGHTS 1996 Breakthrough year for Francine Lecoultre in Hollywood: she receives her US Green Card for Alien of exceptional abilities. Film: “Batman and Robin,” Textile Artist: creating bright special textiles for the Flower Ball, including the iconic pink Gorilla costume for Uma Thurman as “Poison Ivy.” Union affiliation: (1996 to Present.) Francine becomes a member of IATSE, Local 705, Motion Picture Costumers, through this major film project, directed by Joel Schumacher. TV Commercial: She designs 300 specialty costumes and masks for the Campaign Taco Bell / Star Wars, celebrating the 20th anniversary of Star Wars. Directed by Alan Van Rinj – RSA. Union Affiliation: CDG (1996 to Present.) The Super Bowl Commercial is a success, opening the doors of CDG, The Costume Designers Guild 892. Film: The Dark Mist, Costume Designer –Director Ryan Caroll – Alpine Pics Film: To The Ends of Time: Costume Designer –Director Markus Rothkranz – Imperial Entertainment Entrepreneur: Creation of “Lecoultre Studio LA” –Costumes / Textiles, Shadow Hills (1997 to Present) 1997 Film: “Scream 2” – Textile Artist ‐ Miramax TV Commercial: “Toyota 828T,” Costume Designer ‐ Paradise Fish Productions 1998 Film: “Shattered Image” – “Image Brisée,” Costume Designer ‐ Director Raul Ruiz, Seven Arts / Lions Gate Film: “Star Trek Insurrection”, Textile Designer ‐ Paramount Teaching: FIDM –Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, LA. Advanced Program in Costume Design for Theater, Film and TV. (1998 to Present) Film: “A Slipping Down Life,” Costume Designer, Director Toni Kalem, DVC 1999 Entertainment –Lions Gate. TV Commercial: Echo Star “Beatsy TV”, Costume Designer ‐ Director James Wahlberg “The Mummy Tomb of the Dragon Emperor” 2000 Film: The Cell, Textile Designer ‐ New Line Cinema Antique Chinese pattern, Silk Screening Film: “Picking up the Pieces”, Textile Artist ‐ Costumes for Woody Allen, Miraculous Hands Prods with gold foil Film: “The Fast and the Furious,” Textile Artist, Original Film ‐ Universal 2001 Opening Ceremony: “EXPO.02” –Costume Designer, Director François Rochaix Creation of 1.200 fantasy costumes with specialty fabrics. Film: “Monkeybone,” Textile Artist, 20th Century Fox TV: “Star Trek Enterprise,” Textile Artist, Paramount (2001 – 2005) 4 CAREER HIGHLIGHTS 2002 Opening Ceremony: “EXPO.02 Switzerland,” Construction phase, OPENING Charity Event: Creator and director of "Samichlaus Parade ‐ The Gift of Giving," Event for special needs children, produced by Consulate General of Switzerland and the Costume Designers Guild. (2002 ‐ 2006) 2003 Film: “Haunted Mansion,” Textile Artist, Disney 2004 Film: “Promised Land,” Costume Designer, Director Michael Beltrami – Promised Films Musical: “The Ten Commandments,” Costume Designer, Cast Val Kilmer –BCBG Entertainment Film: “The Whole Ten Yards,” Textile Artist –Nine Yards Two Productions 2005 Film: “State of the Union: XXX2,” Textile Artist– Three Stike Productions Film: “Aeon Flux” – Textile Artist ‐ MTV Prods / Lakeshore Ent. 2006 Film: “Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus” – creation of masks for Robert Downy Jr as Lionel ‐ Further Films Film: “Mission Impossible 3,” Costume Dyer for principal cast, including Tom Cruise – Paramount 2007 Musical Circus: “Elements” Costume Designer, Director Daniel Flannery Center for the Arts Shenzen, China Film: “Enchanted,” Textile Designer, wedding dress for Amy Adams ‐ Disney Theater: “The Royal Family,” Textile Designer ‐ The Ahmanson Theater 2008 Film: “The Mummy, Tomb of the Dragon Emperor,” Textile Artist for Michelle Yeoh, Jet Li, "The Ten Commandments“ Egyptian Brendan Fraser’s costumes ‐ Universal Eagle, Silk screening with gold foil on TV: “Star Trek – Nemesis,” Textile Artist ‐ Paramount jumbo spandex Musical Circus: “Xayron, “ Costume Designer –Director Daniel Flannery, Budapest. Film: “Valkyrie,” Textile Artist ‐ Universal 2009 Entrepreneur: Francine installs her studio –loft at “Brewery Arts Complex” Theme Park: “Wicked,” Textile Artist –Universal Studios Japan Teaching: Teaching: UCLA –Costume Crafts for the Costume Design Program for Theater, Film & TV 2010 Theme Park: “Wicked,” Textile Artist –Universal Studios Japan Music: “Black Eyed Peas” The End Tour – Textile Design for Will‐I‐am. European Tour Exhibitions: The Brewery Art Walk" ‐ Spring + Fall. (2010 ‐ Present) 5 Film: “Magic”, Costume Designer –Robert Davi, Animals are People too CAREER HIGHLIGHTS 2011 TV Commercial: “Carl’s Jr – Miss Turkey,” Costume Designer ‐ Director Michael Haussman, HSI Film: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Textile Artist ‐ Sony Pics Film: “J Edgar”, Textile Designer –Imagine Entertainment 2012 Award: 2012 CDG Award Nomination for Excellence in Costume Design for TV Commercial for “Carl’s Jr – Miss Turkey” Campaign Film: Total Recall, Textile Artist, SFX costumes, Universal Music: Kanye West –New Year Show, Atlanta – Feather costumes and masks 2013 Musical Circus: “Illusions,” Shanghai, China, Costume Designer ‐ Director Daniel Flannery, R&S Productions Under Water Show: “The Mermaid Show,” Costume Designer ‐ Director / Choreographer: Stephan Mermiont – Dubai, World Trade Center Aquarium. Film: “Fast & Furious 6,” Textile Artist –Universal Exhibit: “The Brewery Art Walk:” ‐ Fall 2014 Film: “The Possession of Michael King,” Costume Designer ‐ Director: David Jung, Gold Circle Films Film: “Fast & Furious 7”, Textile Artist –Universal Film: “Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb,” Textile Designer – Creation of Egyptian textiles for principal cast, Twentieth Century Fox TV : “Shameless,” Textile Artist, Warner Bros. TV TV: “The Last Man on Earth,” Textile Artist, Twentieth Century Fox 2015 Musical Circus: The Journey of Lights Parade” at Chimelong Ocean Kingdom China –Costume Designer. Show nominated for 2017 Live Design Excellence Award in the Installation category. Group Show: “Palate to Palette”, The Loft at Liz’s –The Nature Show, Installation of 10 Sculptural Pieces –May 16 – June 22 The Parish of Saint Matthew's ‐ Episcopal Church, Exhibit: “Corsets”, Sculptural Pieces, FIDM Museum Shop, at the occasion of the Opening of 9th Pacific Palisades –LA 17 pannels ‐ Watercolor on Silk, Annual Outstanding Art of Television Costume Design ‐ July 21 ‐ Sept 26 with embroidery Installation‐ Event: “Sculptures & Costumes”, Performance with Abigail Gumbiner, Barbara’s at Brewery Art Complex with a documentary film by Tamar Halpern 2016 Film: “Passengers”, Textile Artist, Columbia Pics – Space suit for Chris Pratt Theatrical Performance: “Aerospace,” Costume Designer, Cheng Du, Si Chuan Province – China, Director Ms Lin. Documentary: LA. Story ‐ TSR, Gary Grenier, Director Exhibit: “The Brewery Art Walk:” Spring