“UpsiteTown” a dystopian film by Sara Balestrieri INDEX cHAPTER EIGHT: thefinaldesigns ofupsidetown chapter seven:Fromthepage itcomes to life chapter six:thedownside chapter FIVE:theinvisibles -BEHINDTHESCENES oftheupside CHAPTER FOUR: THEPERFORMERS chapter three:thecourt -characters’ andpoliticians development THEUPSIDE CHAPTER TWO: Chapter One:Fromanitalian legend to crisis political CHAPTER ONE

from an italian legend to political crisis ONCE UPON A TIME: THE BEGINNING

This story was inspired by an Italian legend relating to a beauti- that isn’t, however, the reality. To protect her feelings and emo- ful palace in Vicenza: Villa Valmarana ai Nani. tions, her parents keep the little princess in a bubble of lies.

The legend talks about a dwarf small girl, Princess Layana, I analyzed this theme, focusing on the passage between the daughter of one of the noble owners of the villa. Because of childhood and adult age, and its loss of innocence as her deformity, the parents ordered that the young woman lived consequence. I built this character grew in a world detached confined within the high walls of the mansion and, to avoid from reality, which makes her develop a distorted vision of life, hurting the girl’s feelings, all the servants and custodians of the embellishing it and enriching it with wonders. This doesn’t let villa were chosen exclusively among the dwarves. her know to see the truth: she grows up in a world of injustice and pain, provoked by her father who is the head of the gov- The myth of the princess never seen before and confined in the ernment and he wants to maintain this situation of disparity for villa started to circulate amongst the folks of the village, until personal advantages. one day a prince decided to enter the complex and look for the girl. When he succeeded, upon seeing him, Layana became Not by chance, I chose a female protagonist to tell it: There was a time when men were kind. aware of her condition and fell into so much despair that she generally, all children, if born in a wealthy context, tend to be took her own life by jumping off the tower. At that point the raised in a bubble made up of illusions, but if females this atti- When their voices were soft. faithful but desperate dwarf servants turned into stone. tude increases. And their words inviting. Even today the 17 dwarfs guard the eternal sleep of Layana Because they are wrongly considered more vulnerable and sen- placed on the walls of the villa… Villa Valmarana takes its name sitive, often symbols of naivety, society tends to create a more There was a time when love was blind. from them. beautiful world around girls, even aesthetically, removing any argument that can upset them. And the world was a song. I liked the idea of a girl, prisoner in a wonderful world, And the song was exciting. There was a time... Then it all went wrong.

Les Misérables | I Dreamed A Dream

Villa Valmarana ai Nani, Vicenza SYNOPSIS

A girl kept far away from the cruel reality by a UpsideTown is a huge city divided into two: in the upside politicians, celebrities, The next morning Anne disappeared and no one seems to care. businessmen, and businesswomen live on top of very high skyscrapers, surrounded That evening Jane can’t sleep and, wandering through the immense palace, she powerful father, who is trying to save his posi- by magnificent gardens and elegant buildings. Down in the downside, workers live finds herself by chance at a sort of brothel: her father is there, drunk, while pas- tion in a society too tired of inequality. in a dirty and polluted environment, where they work incessantly to keep the sionately kissing a dear friend of Jane, Lucrezia. Upside at its best. The two worlds are uniquely connected by the elevators of the But the daughter faces the truth and she will skyscrapers, where the goods are shipped from below to above. Shocked by the latest discovery, Jane isolates herself from the court and her re- find herself in front of deciding what is right, lationships with her father cool down, even more, leading the girl to approach The only way for one of the downside to access to the Upside is to become part of the Donna, a politician that is clashing with Edward and the government. Donna ex- discovering that, in any case, she has to get her theatre company of the Prime Minister, created for her daughter. Every year, just for plains to her that her father will not permit her to become the new leader once hand dirty. one day, there are the auditions. she is 17 and that he is keeping her segregated in the Upside, while there is a whole world around her in poverty because of his father’s policies. Jane is the daughter of the prime minister, Edward, who heads the city of Upside Town. At the age of 17, according to tradition, she will be the new minister and will Meanwhile, Jessie joined the theater company and comes into contact with the replace the father in the government. This important event is less than a year away, luxury of the Upside and the exploitation of the company members, who are which will mark Jane’s growth and bring her into adulthood. Still, Jane does not feel reluctant to join her, like Crystal, the show’s main star. ready to invest in this role: her father has not prepared her for this at all and seems to have no intention of doing it even in the last few months. The girl starts to get Donna gives an ultimatum to Jane: a coup is being organized. If she joins the impatient: she wants to know everything. The responsibility of an entire state group, Donna will defend her and come out unscathed, otherwise, she will leave will soon fall on her shoulders, but Edward keeps her away from the govern- her alone. ment and its various work commitments. Jane’s days pass surrounded by her small For the last time, Jane wants to talk to her father, but a fierce confrontation opens palace courtyard, among small talk, sumptuous lunches, walks in the vast flower gar- and Edward admits that she would never become prime minister. She is weak, dens and evening shows. Her life goes on quietly, built on rigid rules and limitations not a leader. to be respected. Jane is surrounded by a lot of beauty, but it is not charming any- more, always the same for too many years. Jane needs something new: an adventure. The next morning, Donna is found murdered in her rooms. Jane finally goes to Jessie and organize the uprising. Jessie, a young worker in a textile company who, tired of her life without pros- pects, instead of complaining just like everyone else, is organizing a revolt. She has That evening, during another show, Ellie accesses the surveillance system and a contact inside the upside, but she needs people to help her in this operation and manages to open all the city elevators. She, Key and a huge group of rioters come she hires Key in the team, a turbulent but strong boy who works at the steel plant, and and go in the Upside. The battle begins. Jane and Edward are enjoying the show Ellie, a hacker who works in an electronic factory, science and tech expert. with the court, but the actors leave the stage and Jessie comes. The father stands The plan is to get Jessie into the theater company - the new ban is open - and to kill in front of Jane to protect her. But Jane pulls out a gun and points it at Ed- the Prime Minister and his descendant, thus leaving the government without a ward. Face in tears, she finally shoots. The rest of the rioters come in and Jessie leader and starting the coup. follows them to enter the government building. Jane remains with her father until his death. They forgive each other, but when he passes away Jane is grief-stricken. One evening, Jane confides in her nanny Anne all her doubts and fears about her future: she has the sensation to live in an illusion, where she can’t see what it’s true or The government has fallen: Jane, together with Jessie, Key, Ellie, and Crystal, not. Anne then urges her to grow and try to know the truth. form a new government, organizing soon the elections. For a new future. THEMES: power and injustice

When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending the best. they're sending people that have lots of problems and they're bringing those problems. d. trump

Orientals ... have larger brains and higher IQ scores. Blacks are at the other pole. b. johnson

Mexican wall Donald Trump Protests for the polluted water in Flint [on Hurricane Katrina Evacuees in Houston’arena] "Everybody is so overwhelmed by the hospitality. And so many of the peo- ple in the arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway so this... this is working very well for them.'' B. Bush

democracy:

the belief in freedom and equality between people, or a system of government based on this belief, in which Boris Johnson Immigrants in the Mediterrean Sea Matteo Salvini power is either held by elected representatives or direct- ly by the people themselves

-cambridge dictionary-

“26,000 unreported sexual assults in the military-only 238 convictions. what did these geniuses expect when they put men & women together?” d. Trump

Protests for Afro-american rights Vladimir Putin Students protest in Hong Kong

families are made on one mum and one dad. I’m curious about these sort of feminists, who talk about womens’ rights and try to not see the real problem here: islamic extremism. m. salvini

“Outrageous that married couples should pay for ‘the single mothers’ desire to procreate independently of men” b. Johnson Harvey Weinstein arrested “MeToo” protests in Usa Roger Ailes at Fox News The hierarchy of a democracy

UPSIDETOWN’s PEOPLE

THE PRIME MINISTER: he/she is at the head of the hierarchy. The role is inher- ited from parent to sons: at the age of 17, the older descendant becomes the new prime minister. This role is not elected by the people of UpsideTown. The Prime Minister with the family lives in the Main Palace, a big building surrounded by gar- dens and woods. A whole skyscraper is used just for it and it is linked with the seat of government, where the Prime Minister works with the other parliamentarians.

POLITICIANS: the Government of Upside Town is divided into the Parliament and the Senate. The first one is formed by 12 parliamentarians elected by the people every 7 years. In theory, everyone can be part of the Parliament, but for being el- igible you must complete your studies in politic science at the university - at least 5 years of study -, and for many reasons - as the costs of the school - just people from the Upside can access to a good education, therefore are the only eligible. The Senate is formed by old Parliamentarians chosen by the Prime Minister and they stay in office for the entire duration of the Prime Minister.

THE UPSIDE PEOPLE: all the inhabitants of the Upside, at the top of the skyscrap- ers. The most important ones become part of the Court, the closest to the Prime Minister’s Family. Businessmen and businesswomen, scientists and designers, artists and celebrities: anybody is powerful and rich, or useful to increase that, live in the Upside. Of course, they must please the Prime Minister. They have access to the best sanitary and educational systems, but as well as food, clothes and leisure activities.

THE ARMY: they are the only ones who can stay both in the Upside and the Down- side - based on the rank and the needs of the country-. The Senate controls it, but it needs the Parliament’s approval for using the army outside a defensive form. But, in case of emergency, the army answers directly to the Prime Minister. Everyone can become a soldier, but a strong selection is active and, in general, is through descendants.

THE INVISIBLES: the workers of the Upside, as cleaners, waiters, chefs, delivery men and women... they are selected after the middle school to get specialized in one profession. They must be invisible to the people of the Upside, who can’t have any direct contact with them. They live in the skyscrapers, in run-down apartments and they can’t have a family unless they give up their job and come back to the Downside. The performers and artists of the Prime Minister’s theatre company are Invisibles too, with the only exception that anyone from the Downside can try to become part of, every year. They live separated from the rest of the Invisibles.

THE DOWNSIDE PEOPLE: all the rest of the population. They live in the down- side and they can’t access to the skyscrapers and the top of them. They are mainly labourers. They have their own schools and hospitals, of really poor quality, and they can study until middle school, then - if not selected as Invisibles or, in rare cases, as soldiers- they are directed towards a professional course. At 16, they start working in the field chosen for them based on their skills. Who failed or can’t work - for medical reasons for example - is killed. The only way to grow professionally and socially is to become a member of the Theatre Company owned by the Prime Minister. concept statement

My goal for this project was to bring glamour into the screen, to show and demonstrate the importance of cos- tumes in film production. I wanted to design more than a costume: something that people would like to wear. I look to the old creations of costume designers like Adri- an and Walter Plunkett, to inspire me in their eccentric and unafraid designs. But to stay related to our present, I took inspiration from contemporary high fashion and cou- ture, searching for a style close to our aesthetic, but fresh and innovative at the same time. I wanted as well to bring more inclusion, both in the char- acters and costumes. I designed different styles and moods, where everyone can feel represented, inserting details from Africa, South America, and Japan. Based as well on the social class of the characters, I created several looks, linked each other through some elements, as materials or shapes. Each social class is a world of its own, with its color palette, fashion, and needs. Of course, I tried to create a thread between the three worlds: in the end, they are all part of UpsideTown. I created so many different characters in the story to explore several aesthetics and combine all my passions. My inspira- tions come from catwalks, burlesque, music industry, theatre and cirques, art, and street fashion. CHAPTER TWO

the upside historical references Portrait M.L.de’Medici,1708 ofJ. WilhelmvonderPfalzandA. Portrait ofPrincessElizabeth,1612 “The Favourite” byYorgos 20018 Lanthimos, Fashion fromthe17thCentury Detail ofthesleevesfromaSack-backGown,18thCentury “Marie Antoinette”bySofiaCoppola,2006 Portrait ofSuzannaDoublet-Huygens,1669 exander McQueen,withstrongerandgeometricshapes. for differentfashiondesignersasTomo KoizumiorAl- intheshapes.Istartedlooking be morecontemporary relatedtoourpresent,sothecostumesaswellshould ry result: Iwantedtotellasto- wasnotenoughmodern Treacy’s.But Philip like hats Dior,royal for inserting ortheuniqueGalliano’screations dresses byGaliaLahav inspiration fromsomeofRodarte’scollections,wedding style.Itook fairy the fashionelementswithamoresoft, butwithoutfreedom.ThatisthewayItriedtocombine erful highlight aswellthefragilityofpeoplethesetimes,pow- ofthetextilesregardingstyle.ButIwantedto patterns I wasfascinatedbythe big sleeves, the eccentric hair, and the or “theFavourite” byYorgos toportraitthecharacters. Lanthimos Coppola Sofia by Antoniette” “Marie as movies at looked I designs. centuries- periodssymbolofFlamboyance-totake inspirationformy 18th and 17th the of fashion old the in researched I andexcess. ury fore, forthesecharacters,Iwassearchingnotjustelegance,butlux- ones becomepartofthePrimeMinister The UpsideistheéliteofsocietyUpsideTown. Theluckiest designing theéliteofademocracy: first ideas Philip Treacy ’s Court,thehighestlevel.There- Rodarte the Galliano forDior First sketches fortheUpsidecharacters Galia Lahav towards MINIMALISM: FASHION REFERENCES AND COLORS MINIMAL SHAPES

Tomo Koizumi Fenty THE NATURAL ELEMEN T THE NATURAL

Rihanna in Chanel Haute Couture Burberry THE TEXTILES

Simplify the shapes

Owen Gaster Marc Jacobs

From a soft and romantic style, I moved to geometric Thinking to our days, I tried to keep always the outfits com- and clean lines, reflecting the minimalism of our present. fortable: flat shoes as trainers, soft dresses, stretch materials... The costumes should be a mirror of the environment of the today sportswear is becoming really important and high Upside: modern architecture surrounded by a controlled Na- fashion as well is incorporating some aspects from this world. ture. Therefore, I opted for soft natural colors, on pink and It was important for me to distinguish the Upside from the warm tones for the Court, while cold blues for the Politicians. other social classes: I kept the detail of the big sleeves, I es- I researched how to insert natural elements in my designs, tablished a color palette for this social group, and I decided like flowers, always keeping a simple and clean image. I was to add the element of the tattoos. Today tattoos are really interested as well in unusual textiles, like PVC or latex, and popular, but we do not see them a lot on screen. In the past, transparencies, playing with the brightness of the fabrics. in many cultures tattoos represented the role of a person in About the accessories, I wanted something big, to underline society. I did the same: to identify the people from the Up-

THE ACCESSORIES the richness of these characters, without however to weight side, they use tattoos. Who has tattoos on the face is one of down the design of the costume. the Upside.

Traditional african tattoos Savage x Fenty THE LOCATIONS

Vincent Callebaut, Ruichang

The Upside is built at the top of high skyscrapers, far away from the Downside. Elegant and minimal architecture, surrounded by Nature, is the peculiarity of the area. The materials are eco-friendly and the buildings them- selves become part of the landscape, without contrasting with nature around. As well inside, water and trees are the main characters, with huge windows to let the light come into, as we still are outside. There is perfect harmony between men and nature. The skyscrapers are linked with bridges covered by ivy, in this way the peo- ple from the Upside can move from one place to another without going down. Up in the sky, there are big fans to clean the air and bring down all the pollution caused by the many factories in the Downside. All the Upside is built in a way that people who live there can’t see the Downside and they live detached by the rest of the city. Jean Nouvel, Paris Sergi Godia and Berta Barrio, Barcelona The colors and the tones of the Upside are blue, green and brown, the colors of the Earth. It is a beautiful and quiet place, full of trees, flowers, and brooks. A perfect place where to escape from the reality.

Vincent Callebaut, Ruichang Guz Architects, Singapore

Frank Gehry, Los Angeles Zaha Hadid, Baku UPSIDETOWN: THE DRAWINGS

The Main Palace, the Upside

First sketch of the UpsideTown

Drawing of the UpsideTown

Inside the Main Palace CHAPTER three

the court and politicians: characters’ development JANE: THE PRIME MINISTER’S DAUGHTER

Jane is the Prime Minister’s daughter. At 17 years old, as tradition, she will become the new Prime Minister. She lives in the Upside and she has not any contact with the DownSide, due to his father. The first time we see Jane at the age of 4 is at the beginning of the story. Then, for the rest of the nar- rative, she is 16 years old.

Jane is a sensitive girl, with a strong sense of empathy. She is curious and naive because she grew up in a fake world built by her father. He forbids her to go out alone, without his permission; she has to stay always with the ladies of the court - selected by him-. She lives and knows just the Main Palace of the Upside, and the Government Palace, where her father works. The vision that she has of the world is given from the shows of the acrobatic theatre that she watches every evening: the performances recreate a beautiful and enchanted version of Nature and the World. The theatre performs for Jane every day with a new show, to surprise her: it’s the only leisure that she has and she loves it.

She is smart, but she has the knowledge of a child: she doesn’t have any contact or experiences with themes as sexuality, racism, disparity, precariousness, homelessness, drug addiction or abuse. She will be shocked when she will discover that the world where she grew up isn’t the same, and all her beliefs and certainties will fall apart. But she will show bravery and strength, becoming the new leader of her country. the fabrics first ideas Hand-cut PVC flower: exerciseforthemask Princess pleating samples,naturalandsynthetic dyes Digital printing file

the development DESIGN DEVELOPMENT: first costume To contrast withtherigidityofcorsetandheavypres- andthebigsleevesunderlineherstatus. The hugeearrings symbol ofherprison.Thefaceiscoveredbyagoldmask. in thesociety. Themainelementisthe long corset, the toshowimmediatelyherelevatedposition Elizabethian ruffs, lection, Idrawabigfanontheback,thatremembersme the tion. Taking inspirationfrom AlexanderMcQueen’s lastcol- to living. Ioptedtodesignanelaboratedcostume,morerelated tume shouldtelltheaudienceprisoninwhichJaneisstill throughwhatshewears.Therefore,thiscos- the story is aroundher. IwantedtoshowthechangeofJaneduring sion builtbyherfather, andshejuststartedquestioningwhat her is it movie, the of beginning the at outfit this in WeJane see a monarchic style,thatgivesaswelltheideaofconstric- first costume. At this stage, Jane is still trapped in the illu- Inspirations forthebodiceandpleatedskirt Inspirations forthevolumeandaccessories FASHION REFERENCES which Janeisgrowing. imageoftheworld:sameonein as wellapastoral,soft between the Upside and Nature, and they give the harmony torepresent of Japanesekimonosandpaintingsareperfect Thedelicatedrawings the traditionalJapanesepatterns. ral elementsinthecostumetoo, takinginspirationfrom has animportantpresenceinherlife,soIputsomenatu- evening representsabucolicNature.It she watchesevery by Jane flowersis andsurrounded plants, and the shows that future murder. the Court.Iinsertsomeburgundy details,asasignofthe to Jane’schildishside.Pink/goldtonesarethecolorsforall About thecolors,Ioptedforpeachtones,tolinkcostume highlight -ence ofthecostumeitself, Icreatedaskirtofpleats;alsofor the naivetyofcharacter,andheryoungage.

DESIGN DEVELOPMENT: second costume

FASHION REFERENCES the development

Ideas for the neoprene jacket with laser cutting technique

Materials, colors and shape inspirations for the dress

Jane here is closed to murder her father. I imagine this At the same time, Jane is getting free from all the limits im- costume for the confrontation’s scene with the Prime Min- posed by her father. She is becoming rebellious, so I add- ister, where Jane tries to save him, asking him to step aside. ed some details like the hat, the hood, and the trainers, to She is now completely involved in the political situation of her give a more teenage image. country and she starts taking some responsibilities: she is be- About the materials, I played with scuba jersey, to create a coming the future Minister. That is why, from the warm tones of contrast with the romantic tulle. I tried to mix contemporary the Court, the colors here are the cold blues of the Politicians. elements with some older ones. I kept as well a reference I wanted something more contemporary and slightly to Nature, in a less evident way: Jane is now far away from simpler than the previous one. Therefore, I designed a the world of her childhood. However, I designed a pattern soft dress of tulle, keeping the big sleeves, but less bulky. At to laser-cut on the jacket, with leaves as a damask fabric. the top, I tried to create a sort of jacket, to give a more severe From an occidental suit cut, the jacket became closer to a and professional look to the costume. I kept the contrast samurai traditional dress, to underline that Jane is ready to between her childish side (the dress) and the woman fight. she is becoming (the jacket). the fabrics

3D neoprene decorations Dyed tulle, scuba jersey and jersey samples Laser-cutting file preparation the development File inpreparationforlasercutting the fabrics 3D fabricmanipulation Scuba jersey DESIGN DEVELOPMENt: thirdcostume ity ofthecostume, the big buttons on the waist, volume in references. Therigid- but atthesametimewithsomemilitary fashion wholooked atthatperiod,tohavesomethingclassic I change. At first, the dress is simple, without many elements. So,ning ofthestory. Icreatedacostumetoshowthisbig pletely differentpersonfromtheonewemetatbegin- deTown’sfinal scene of the movie,weseeJanewiththeother people,readytocreateanewworld.Sheiscom- characters holdingtogethertheirhandsinfrontoftheUpsi- In and contemporary took inspiration from the 40sstyleandcontemporary the Shape andstyleinspirationsfortheneoprenedress FASHION REFERENCES ity ofthedress. style ofthecostume,buttoaddastrongdetailsimplic- to keep the minimalist rings are made with laser cut acrylic, present inallJane’scostumes.Thebuttonsandtheear- About thematerials,Imaintainscubajersey, fabric blank page.Theotherelementsareblue,thecolorofPolitics. Butaswelltohighlightthenew Jane,asortofrebirth, try. The maincoloriswhite,tosymbolizethepeaceofcoun- Jane justcameoutfromabattle. the sleeves...they want to give a senseofseverity. Intheend, EDWARD: THE PRIME MINISTER

Edward is the Prime Minister of UpsideTown. He is 45 years old and he is Jane’s father. Like many politicians, his interests and social position are the main issues for him and all his pol- itics are based on keeping them safe. He loves his daughter Jane, but at the same time, he sees in her a completely different person from who he is. He knows she wouldn’t approve his politics and he thinks she is not strong enough for doing the job. So he preferred to keep her far away from the government, far away from the reality, to avoid the risk of any conflict with her.

Edward thinks to himself first, and he prefers the ease instead of what is right. He built a strong, healthy, rich society, but for doing that someone else must be exploited and Edward was ready to do it. The same with his family: instead of trying a debate with Jane, he decided to prison her far away from the problems, giving her what he thinks to be a beautiful life.

He loves to have control over people and things. He is ambitious and determined to obtain everything he wants. Since he was young, he always has people ready to serve him, to do what he orders. So when his world is falling apart, he can’t handle the situ- ation and he loses control of his rationality, becoming more impulsive and dangerous. He is using his power as well to receive sex from Lucrezia, her daughter’s best friend, who gives in to his blackmail to protect her and her family. CREATING edward’s character

From tradition to our days

Japanese fashion the development fashion references and textiles references fashion

Inspirations for the shapes

For Edward I tried to design a costume which infuses I researched in contemporary Japanese fashion to cre-ate power, but without being eccessive. Edward is a charac- a good balance between old and present. Like for ter who stay hidden, who acts in the shadows. Therefore the other characters, I added some natural elements on his costume should not attract the attention. My the waistcoat: the koi carp. This animal in Japan is often first idea was something a bit more contemporary, with associated to a resolute warrior, a good link to Edward’s some hip-pop influences: in fact, I liked the idea to in- character. sert a long quilted jacket, with a high collar. I wanted to The final design was a rigid waistcoat, with a korean col- create a masculine character and, today, the most iconic lar shirt with big sleeves and two snakes as buttons, and representation of masculinity is the music world, with large pleated trousers. I mixed West and East fashion, rappers and hip-pop singers. for coming with a new style, that however leaves some But the result wasn’t what I expected: that style creat- connections to something that we know. ed too much contrast with the age and the appearance Like for all the Politicians, I opted for different tones of of the character. So I moved to a more traditional look, blue and white: they are elegant and soft colors. Blue is taking inspiration from the Samurais and Japanese always chosen to instill calm, perfect for a public admin- cloths. istrator like Edward.

Ideas for the patterns and the accessories the politician donna

Donna is a woman around 40 years old and she is the only female delegate in the Parlament of UpsideTown. She is not only a politician, she is an activist, trying to bring more democracy into the governement’s politics. She is the only one who tries to represent the DownSide, speaking about their issues, their needs and rights. Seeing that she doesn’t obtain any result, she will get in touch with Jessie to organize a revolution and drop down the government. But she will die for that.

Donna is a strong, self-confident woman, with strong ideals and ready to sacrifice everything for them. She cares about the others and she fights for what she thinks is right. She has a strong personality and she will become the “mentor” of Jane, giving her a new perspective of reality. She is so frustrated by the situation of her country, that she is ready to create a revolution and to kill the Prime Minister. She is ambitious and determined too: after all, she is a politician.

In Italian, “donna” means woman: I chose this name for the character because I wanted that Donna was the symbol of female empowerment. Not just because she is strong and independent, but because she will become Jane’s mentor, a role in general played by a man. It is rare to see a woman teaching and guide a character, especially in this context. Donna will free Jane not just from her prison of illusions, but from the patriarchy too, in which they are both trapped. the birth of donna’s character

the development

Some ideas for the hair and the blouse

Inspirations for the pleated half dress and the trousers fashion references and textiles references fashion

Donna’s character was really clear since the beginning, so its men who dislike her: a politician’s outfit is like a uniform, so design. The main element was her confidence and power: I want- Donna’s costume should be similar to her male colleagues. That’s ed to create a costume to show her strength. Even if she is not the why I decided on simple trousers and a blouse. But I wanted to leader of the Country and she is not welcome at the Court, Donna underline her femininity, especially for a character like Donna, is a key character in the story, and she will have such a strong proud to be a woman, fearless to go against the authority and speak influence on Jane and on UpsideTowns’ destiny. So since her first up. Textiles and patterns ideas appearance, the audience must understand that Donna is Both for the accessories and the general shape of the costume, I important. Therefore, her costume should show something regal. look to many Afro-American references. Donna is a minority in her I designed a classic suit: she is a politician, so I thought of tailored society and I wanted to create a character to bring under attention trousers with a blouse, adding the big sleeves typical of the Up- the critical situation of Afro-American women, who are one of side. But half of the costume is covered by a big, elegant fan, like the most ignored and vulnerable minorities in our society. a sort of dress. Both trousers and shirt, even if they are linked to The colors are blue and white, like for all the Politicians. There are male wardrobe, I draw them to underline Donna’s female shape. some green and yellow details in the accessories and the trousers’ She is the only woman in the Parliament, she is surrounded by pattern, to underline the African inspirations.

References for the accessories Lucrezia, the lady in waiting

Lucrezia is Jane’s best friend and she is one of the most important members at the Court of the Upside. She is an influencer, her family own the biggest company of textiles of the country - Jessie works in one of their factories -. Lucrezia is as well the lover of the Prime Minister, a fact that keeps her and her family in a good and safe position in society.

Lucrezia is 21 years old. She has a big passion for fashion; she is classy, sexy, and she always has a style ahead of the trends of the moment - thanks as well to her family’s business. She made of her passion a profession: everyone in the Court wants to be like her.

For Jane, she is like a big sister. They have a close friendship but based on lies. Jane will not forgive her for her secret relationship with her father, even if Lucrezia had not a lot of choices: she accepted that for fear of the Prime Minister. Lucrezia knows what happens to people who go against him and she does not want to risk that or put her family in danger. She loves as well her “preferential position” and she is ready to do everything to keep that.

At first, she seems really determinated, self-confident, with no morality, butin deep she is a fragile, scared girl in need of help. lucrezia’s development and references

Colors, brightness, applications ideas the development

Textiles possibilities and accessories fashion referencesand textiles referencesand fashion

Inspirations for the shape and the color palette

Lucrezia is an important member of the Court. For her Both for the colors and the shape, I looked to the design, I tried to keep some key elements of the Up- 30s style, to create a sophisticated and elegant side style but adding some new details, for example, dress, with some sensuality in it too. I liked the deep V the materials and the patterns. She is always ahead neckline, the soft nude tones, and the shiness. of her time, so her costume must have some dif- I designed something feminine and seductive, but at ferences. In fact, I decided to use natural fibres and the same time delicate: Lucrezia is an object of pleas- embroidery. For the other costumes, all the patterns ure for the Prime Minister. I wanted to highlight not are digitally printed or laser-cut, to give a more con- just her beauty, but as well her horrible condi- temporary image. While Lucrezia has “something vin- tion as victim of abuses. From one sketch to anoth- tage” in her style. The dress is linen with gold threads er, I added always more accessories, really to create a and embroidered branches with floral applications. sense of materialism in her.

Ideas for natural elements and applications THE LADIES OF THE COURT

From the visual album “Lemonade” by Beyoncé, 2016

Portrait by Daniel Huntington, 1816-1906 “Marie Antoinette” by Sofia Coppola, 2006 Portrait by Laurits R. Tuxen, 1896 Portrait by Alfred Borron Clay, 1864 A portrait of a French Court Print of George Wohlking

The ladies of the court are selected people between Every monarchy had its court, selected aristocrats the Upside who have the permission to be part of the cir- who can stay close to the King or Queen, and their fami- cle of Jane. Of course, they are chosen by the Prime Minis- ly. When you have so much power, you are as well real- ter. They are the only friends of Jane and the only peo- ly alone. It is difficult to find someone you can trust, who ple who can have direct contacts with her. They spend all stays close to you not for personal interests. So you se- their time with her, to keep her under control and help the lect few people to have advice, but as well to spend your Prime Minister to maintain the illusion he built. But, at the time with. I put this social dynamic in UpsideTown too. same time, they are a support for Jane, and they try to give I created some characters who were the mirror of Jane, with her some sort of happiness and fun in this imprisonment. a style in common but personalizing it in the base of each The idea for these characters started with an image from Be- individual. Seen that Jane is the center of this circle, I wanted yonce’s visual album “Lemonade”: she is surrounded by to keep a sense of femininity in every character, with- different girls, everyone with their own peculiarities, out considering their gender: female domination. but similar too, like a big family. designing the court

the development

Denim, stripes, ruffles, casual elegance

New interpretations of the sportswear fashion references and textiles references fashion

Like the other characters from the Upside, also here we I find their designs fresh and new, perfect for this project. have the key elements like the volume in the sleeves, natu- I paid attention to accessories and details, adding some eth- ral patterns and details, geometric lines, and a combination nic influences, to design a diverse and inclusive style. between modernity and tradition. About the materials, I used stretch fabrics as jersey or denim The colors of the Court, like we saw already, are pink and with natural fabrics as organdy or silk. To continue the idea Collar, accessories and flower applique ideas nude tones, with some burgundy and blue colors. I wanted of the contrast between old and new, elegant and casual, I to create a color palette for the costumes in harmony used different textile techniques and materials, like PVC. I with the setting, where the natural element is the centre. tried natural and synthetic dyes, digital printings, and laser So soft and delicate colors were essential to do not contrast -cutting. with the environment around. Every costume as a unique style, but with some elements in My main references are contemporary fashion design- common with the others: I tried to reflect the diversi- ers as McQueen, Tomo Koizumi, and Rihanna Fenty. ty now present in fashion and how people wear today. Their collections combine elegance with street fashion, past I wanted to create credible characters, even if we are in a with the present. fictional world.

Ruffles, volumes, sleeves... CHAPTER FOUR

THE PERFORMERS MAGICAL INSPIRATIONS

Every night at the Main Palace, enchanted shows take place in ster - where there is the recreation of Neverald: the setting and front of Jane, the Prime Minister, and the Court. The performers the costumes are beautiful and the atmosphere is magical, like a recreate on stage a world full of wonders, with a bucolic rep- sweet dream. I was imagining Jane imprisoned in this sort of world: resentation of Nature and Life. Their bodies move around stun- so wonderful to get lost in it and forget all the rest outside it. But, ning settings, following the rhythm of the music, the only voice creating a fantasy world with fairies and mermaids it would have present. revealed the fiction in it, while the performances should rein- I was always enchanted by the live performances of the circus and force the illusion built around Jane. That is why I decided to dancers. The connection with their bodies is so powerful to be able represent natural characters as flowers and animals. to tell a story through that, without using any word. I wanted to For the designs, I looked at the Cirque du Soleil: their shows are insert some acrobatic characters in my story. really close to my idea and their costumes are amazing, even if of My first inspiration was one of the final scenes from“Finding Nev- course they remain comfortable for the artists. erland” - a 2004 historical fantasy drama film, directed by Marc For-

From the movie “Finding Neverland” by Marc Forster, 2004 Some shows of the Cirque du Soleil, main reference for the design process about the Performers researching in nature colors, patterns, shapes and textiles ideas COLORS ANDREFERENCESCOLORS FROMTHENATURAL WORLD the characters are performing forthestage,there the charactersareperforming world too. I wanted For thecolors,Itookinspirationfromnatural leaves orpetals. infurs,and color combinations,originalpatterns feathers, scales, interesting find to species animal features inthetextiles.Iresearcheddifferent tumes, focusingmoreonrecreating theanimal cos- I kept simpleshapesfortheperformers’ resentations, I didnotwanttocreatetoochildishanimalrep- but neithertoorealistic.Therefore bright andstrongcolors: ting itintopractice. reasons, I justdidaresearch about it, without put- animals inthescene.Unfortunately, forbudget ness, where you canstill recognize the different completelyinthedark- parts oftheperformances with light effects. Iliked theideaofhavingsome in the costumes andrecreate some skinpatterns I thoughtaswellinthepossibilitytoinsertlights seeing thattheyaretwodifferentsocialclasses. I wantedaswelltoseparatethemfromtheCourt, - foretheymustbewellvisibleandeasytolocate. the performers on stage

The Cirque du Soleil

“The Most Incredible Thing”, ballet The Cirque du Soleil “The Lion King”, musical

I chose to develop a character from each animal That is why I looked at many circus performances, to see kingdom: a bird, a fish, a lion, and a chameleon. I want- what kind of design is necessary for acrobatics. ed something from the flora as well, so I designed a sort About the costumes, I worked on simple unitards, of bush in flower. playing more with the textiles to create an interesting My research moved from different theatre shows, like aesthetic. I did not want just to print digitally feathers “The Lion King” or “Swan Lake”, to find inspiration about or scales, for recreating the texture of the animals, but animal shapes and textiles, but as well as makeup and playing with 3d shapes and effects. Of course, this accessories. had to be comfortable and do not impede the move- The main difficulty was combining my design ideas ments of the bodies. with the hypothetical needs of the performers. fashion referencesand textiles CREATIVE PROCESS THE MERMAID

Inspiration for the textiles: waves, corals, sea plants... THE BIRD

Feathers possibilities and ideas DESIGN DEVELOPMENT DESIGN THE LION

African patterns and colors To recreate the movements of a Fish in the water, I thought For the Lion, I took inspiration from the costumes of “The that the best performer would have been a trapeze artist. I Lion King” musical: I liked the idea of inserting African pat- liked how pleated or cut fabrics can appear like corals, marine terns in the unitard, to add as well some color to the costume. plants, waves, or scales. I tried different textile techniques I thought to a suede laser-cut with circles and fill them with like dyeing, pleating, Canadian smocking, painting, and em- colorful pearls, with some geometric embroideries. Seeing broidery, and all my research was focused on finding several that a fur would have been too warm to wear during a per- textures and pattern ideas. formance, the mane could be made through different dyed For the Bird, I looked at many different tropical species and fabrics. their courtship rituals. In fact, during these episodes, a lot A contortionist couldn’t be better to personify a Cameleon. of birds amplify their feathers, creating interesting shapes. I The texture here is the key to the costume. I searched for sev- liked how some of them have some big collars and I inserted it eral references about how to replicate the scales. As well on in my design. I drew soft wings, imagining them floating in the this occasion, I mixed different techniques like laser cutting, air, following the performer’s movements. I wanted to cover digital printing, paint... the artist with feathers, so I created them with the laser-cut, For the Bush in Flower, I designed a delicate costume, with and color them, mixing dyes and paint. For the headpiece, I a helmet covered by many different flowers. I liked the idea of

imagined a bonnet covered with french knots, as the plumage, having 3D flowers all over the unitard. I tried several ways AND FLOWER CHAMELEON and soft padding for the beak. to create the petals and the leaves. Scales and skin reproductions, flower applications and bodysuits references CHAPTER FIVE

THE INVISIBLES OF THE UPSIDE : behind the scenes workers’ conditions

“Revolutionary Road” by S. Mendes 2008 A Starbucks’ Team Member

The people from the Upside can enjoy their lives thanks to the hard work of the Invisibles, selected people from the Downside in charge of many unskilled jobs. Even if they are allowed to live in the Upside, the Invisibles have a different life from the other inhabitants. They are called in this way because the Upside people must not see them while they are working. The post arrives at the front door, hot coffee is ready on the table, the house is clean and the dresses ironed: everything has to happen like for magic. No one must asso- ciate all this work with a real person. Therefore, the Invisibles are living and not living at the same time in the Upside. Their accom- modations are in the skyscrapers: each of them has a really small and dark room where to sleep or less. They work for most of the day. Workers in a chinese factory I created the Invisibles to talk about an important theme for me: the workers’ condition and the exploitation of labor. Even today, a lot of workers all over the world are underpaid, unrespected, and exploited. Most of the time the industries hide these conditions, but we also try to not see what really happens around us. From China, where big manufactories like Foxconn have to put suicide-prevention netting around the factories, to Bangladesh where people work 16 hours a day in unsafe buildings for less than 50 dollars a week: in our world, there are so many Invisibles who support our economy and well-being. But we don’t have to go so far away to see unequal treatments in the workplace: waiters, sale assistants, caregivers, day labourers, receptionists, chefs, delivery men, drivers... there are so many jobs underpaid, that brings people to work more than 50 hours per week to have enough for surviving at the end of the month. Even in better workplaces, the situation is still critical: it is more than a century that there are Day labourers in the fields no new regulations, and the hours per week are generally 40 - but in concrete always more. With the rhythm of our societies nowadays, you finish to do not have any time to dedicate to yourself. Your life is a constant series of obligations. In the last years, other problems came under the light: gender disparity, sexual abus- es, power abuses and corruption. Especially in the entrainment industries - where there still is a big lack in the supervision of workers conditions- but not only, the desper- ate competition to have a job “allow” people to abuse of their high business positions to exploit in any form their employees, forced to accept that in the most of the cases. Our society is based on an endless economy, who wants always more and more. But the people and the Erath aren’t endless, and we are arriving at the limit of our forces.

Illustration for the MeToo Movement against sexual abuse on workplace

Female workers in a textile factory, Bangladesh “Bombshell” by Jay Roach, 2019 THE LOCATIONS

The backstage

The performers are part of the Invisibles and, when off stage, they spend their time in the skyscrapers organizing the next show. Since the frenzied pace of the per- formances, there is no time to loose. They live in the backstage, surrounded by costumes, pieces of settings, lights and several equipments. The dressing rooms, the workrooms, the rehearsal rooms are improvised in the middle of dark corridors or big empty spaces, like a construction site. There is not much light, because no one from UpsideTown must notice them. The costume makers sew in the darkness, someone is at the piano improvising a song, acrobats are stretching everywhere, a technician takes a nap on the cautch: even if the spaces are cold, dark and empty, there is a warm atmosphere of home, and family. I imagine the company like an old bohemian theatre: loud, messy, free, eccentric... they work during the night and sleep in the day, to get ready for the evening shows. They are nocturnal animals.

Performers while rehearsing

How the Invisibles live behind the scenes the performers off stage

“Burlesque” by Steven Antin, 2010

“Some like hot”, M. Monroe, 1959 Dancer Conor Mckenzie “Moulin Rouge!” by Luhrmann, 2001 Savage x Fenty Show, 2019

Offset, the performers are like in a cabaret night. Their they can be what they want, in the most extremist and life is a never-ending show, surrounded by sequins and extravagant ways. No one will judge them. The performers shiny beads. After performing for the Prime Minister’s live like in their most secret fantasies: it’s the only pleas- daughter, Jane, they start preparing the next show. In- ure they have, to escape from their reality, from their con- nocent, naive, kind, and delicate on stage, behind the dition. scenes the performers show all their passion, sen- For their designs, I took inspiration from different movies suality, and vices. They are like a family, a married couple: like “Moulin Rouge!” or “Burlesque”, but as well from drag they share everything, without the boundaries of the em- queen fashion, lingerie collections, and music videos. I barrassment. imagine a sparkling world of satin and lace, on the They are part of the Invisibles and, one of the few good tones of black, red, and purple. aspects of that condition, is that no one cares of them: crystal, the art director

Crystal is at the head of the theatre company, and he is the art director. He is around 30 years old and he lives in the Upside for more than 10 years. He performs too in the shows: he is an amazing danc- er. Crystal is the only one of the whole company to have tattoos on his face: this means he is officially a member of the Upside, not an Invisible anymore. Since the extraordinary work he did during the years and the loyalty he demonstrated to the Prime Minister, Edward decided to rewarded him with this unique honor - thanks to Jane and her love for Crystal’s exhibitions.

Of course, Crystal still works hard as the other Invisibles, but the tattoos guarantee him the perma- nence at the Upside, even when he will be retired. That’s why Crystal doesn’t want to get involved in the rebellion, at the beginning. He is a close friend of Donna, who helped him to become a mem- ber f the Company, so he accepted to let the rebel Jessie stay as a sewer for the company. But that’s all, he doesn’t want to support her in any other way.

Crystal had a hard time in the Downside, where people were attacking him constantly for his transgender identity. While, when he escaped and became a dancer for the theatre company, he could be for the first time himself, without being bullied or judge, or isolated again. But when Donna will be killed by Edward and Jane herself will ask for Crystal’s help, he changes his mind and decides to be part of the revolution. DESIGN DEVELOPMENT DESIGN DEVELOPMENT DESIGN

Beyoncé for the music video “Partition”, 2015

fashion referencesand textiles For the performers offset, I liked the idea of recre- My main inspiration was a music video from Be- ating a “Moulin Rouge!” atmosphere, in a contem- yonce’s first visual album, “Partition”: in this video, porary key. Therefore I looked into many lingerie they recreate the performances and the costumes styles: the performers were rehearsing in those out- from the Moulin Rouge’shows in Paris and Be- fits, so they had to be comfortable too, but for Crys- yonce is wearing amazing sparkling lingerie. I com- tal, I wanted something outstanding, fabulous. bined different elements of those outfits together. He is in a better social condition, and even if he Crystal is a transgender, therefore his costumes are does not feel superior or want to act like that, he feminine. But, in a fashion exhibition in Edinburgh is, however, an eccentric character. He is the “Body Beautiful: Diversity on the catwalk” I saw a art director and, here in the Upside, Crystal can be Chromat design, that underlines the model’ shapes. whatever he wants, so all his peculiarities are exag- I thought to build a superstructure on Crytal, gerated, as his costume. to create a sort of female body on him. I designed something sophisticated, but as well as I wanted Crystal as an explosion of sensuality, beau- outre. I decided to stay on the black tones, but add- ty, and womanliness even if he is a man, to demon- ing some purple, pink details, with a lot of spar- strate that these qualities are not linked with your kles. Like a light in the darkness. gender, but with your way of being.

Sparkles. velvet, lace, corsets and robes CHAPTER six

the downside taking inspiration from the music world

The Downside is the poorest area of UpsideTown, and its inhab- unconventionally. I didn’t want to create worker uniforms: the Down- itants are exploited workers. The Downside is very polluted, caused by side characters aren’t just poor, they are upset, angry, they will unite the many factories present and their incessant activities for supporting for a revolution. So their clothes should show all this anger. the fast economy. The environment is dark, dirty, and neglected. My main inspiration became the music world, especially the hip pop and In the air, are suspended some huge fans to clean the air on the top, R’n’B, who has, in a certain way, its own style, really close to my ideas. and leaving the pollution on the bottom of the city, in this way the Artists as Beyoncé, Rosalia, Kendric Lamar, Kanye West took stereo- Upside can breathe clean air. types of the street/gangsta style and they transformed it into a The people can wear just dark colors, for blending with the environ- fashion establishment. ment and not being noticed by the Upside. They spend a big part of I look at many music videos, taking different elements, and combined their days working and in the few free time they have, the go to the them together for creating my Downside characters. Some outfits run-downs pubs of the neighborhood. which were my references are really extreme, maybe too much for For creating the Downside, I look at historical novels as “Germinal” by a media as a film. Even if is a fictional world, I wanted my characters Emile Zola’, or documentaries on the labour exploitation as “The true to appear realistic. So from the fist ideas, pretty eccentric, I simplify Cost” by Andrew Morgan. Even if the stories of these characters are the costumes until obtaining something strong, but credible. inspired by a real issue of our society, I decided to design them “Lemonade” visual album by Beyoncé, 2016

Music video “Run this Town”, 2009

Music Video “Malamente” by Rosalia, 2018 American rapper Kendric Lamar Singer and songwriter Jessie Reyez K. West, Rihanna, Jay-Z in “Run this Town”, 2009 Billie Eilish in “Bad Guy”, 2019 COLORS AND urban REFERENCES

Jessie Reyez “Run this Town”, 2009

Billie Eilish Designer Lynn Ban new concepts and versions of rebellion

Today the most iconic figures are coming from the music Like for the Upside, I wanted to include in my designs system. Since the years of the Beatles, pop singers had a diversity and create different types of characters and huge impact on our popular culture. The youngest gener- concepts of rebellion. I tried to create a strong contrast ations changed so radically following the style, the ideas, with the Upside, especially for the colors and the environ- the freedom of artists as Madonna, Micheal Jackson, or ment. If the Upside is soft, on natural tones, the Down- “This is America” by Childish Gambino, 2018 Fenty x Puma, first collection David Bowie. Therefore, for the rebels of the Down- side is the opposite: its palette is a greyscale, with just red side, I took inspiration from international artists adding some color to the darkness. The characters should who are impacting our culture and giving us the idea disappear in the environment, like if they are not there. of “rebellion”. They inspired me not just for the main The style of the Upside is definitely more elegant, roman- costumes, but for building the entire characters. Fe- tic, and delicate, but I kept some common details and male empowerment, discriminations, sexual liberation, materials. There are elements as PVC, laser cutting and no gender constrictions... I tried to blend these subjects digital printing techniques, sportswear references, and into my characters. jersey.

Rihanna, “Rated R” album Alexander McQueen THE LOCATIONS

Hong Kong, China London, Uk

I imagine the Downside like a big working-class area, with dozens of grey high buildings and some factories, small windows, no green and a lot of smog. Unfortunately, unlike the Upside, I did not use a lot of imagination for creating the Downside, I just took inspiration from the thousand of peripherical boroughs present around the world, in cities as London, New York, Paris or Milan, and many others. The Downside is crumbling, dirty, bleak, that neither a sunny day can illuminate. Even if a lot of people are living there, there is always a sense of desolation in the empty streets. On the walls, graffiti tell the hanger of the people for Rio de Janeiro, Brasil Taranto, Italy the Upside. Outside the small windows or on the few balconies, the laundry is waiting to be dried. The buildings are surrounded by cement, no grass or trees paint the area. Grey smoke from the factories covers the city. In the town, there are just a few pubs and small shops. The only sound present is one of the cars and the busy life of its inhabitants. This kind of environment kills the peace of the minds, leaving a sense of sadness and depression in who lives here.

Rome, Italy Paris, France

London, Uk Paris, France jessie, the head of the rebellion

Jessie is a girl around 25 years old, and she works since she is 16 in a textile factory in the Down- side. Even if she was one of the best at school, she had to finish her studies because, like all the others in the Downside, her family could not afford the high costs of the private schools in the Upside. She is working for almost 10 years, every day doing a job she does not care about, without any prospect for her future.

Like in any other factory of UpsideTown, there is no attention to workers’ safety and Jessie is in touch every day with chemicals. She knows she will get sick soon. Meeting Donna, who proposes her to create a revolution and overthrow the government, gives her hope, a reason for living again.

Jessie is really strong, both physically and behaviorally. She is self-confident but cynical. Her experi- ences brought her to do not have trust. She does not speak a lot, she has just a close friend, Ellie, with all the others she is cold and arrogant, having often arguments. She is instinctive and pretty aggressive. That is why she needs Key for her mission: he is popular, he knows a lot of people in the Downside who like and admire him. But the adventure she will live in the Upside with Key and Ellie, meeting Crystal and Jane, will change her: she finds the strength in believing again in life and hope. building jessie’s character

A rebel from “Run this Town” music video, 2009

Fenty x Puma, first collection

Leather, vinyl, net, upholstery nails...

Rihanna in “Run this Town”

My first idea for Jessie’s costume was something a bit more sculptural and futuristic, definitely more similar to a soldier’s uniform. I started to simplify it in the shape, creating something more wearable and close to our present. I wanted a credible character, in which the audi- ence can mirror itself. I designed an aggressive look but keeping it feminine. I imagine Jessie as a Latin- American, she is a passional character, so is her costume. I looked at many bodysuits, sportswear, and fabrics like leather or vinyl. I liked the idea of having something to cover partially her face: I opted for a net, in this way we can still see her face. I extended it to all her body: I wanted a costume that shows her skin, but not giving the idea of naked. After all, she is going into a battle.

Beyoncé “on the Run” Tour ELLIE AND KEY: THE REBELS key development ellie development

Key and Ellie are the other two members of Jessie’s team to organize the revolt. Key is working in a metallurgic factory: there he lost an arm and he has a metallic prosthe- sis. He is strong, pleasant, and pretty charming. But he is as well conscientious and ma- ture. Key is really popular in the Downside, in fact, his charge is involving as many peo- ple as possible into the revolt, to attack the Upside. He gets really close to Jessie. Key is related to metal, therefore I wanted to insert this element in the costume, always trying to be credible. From upholstery nails, I decided to attach directly some metallic scraps on the shoes. I played as well with the colors, using metallic grey and opaque gold ellie for the bomber. Seeing that he hasn’t an arm, I liked the idea of a costume falling apart. So I designed the bomber’s sleeves as several pieces attached together and a laser-cut shirt with many squares. I decided on this pattern because I imagine Key as a meditative and precise, almost a meticulous person, opposite to Jessie, more instinctive. Oversize clothes, mangas and 90’s vibes As all the Downside designs, I drew something comfortable: they work, they live in a very casual environment and they will fight: they need to move easily. Ellie is Jessie’s best friend. She is really smart and she has an admi- rable knowledge in tech, in fact, she must seep in the security system of the Upside, to permit the rebels to access in the Upside. She has a KEY passion for weapons, and she will fabricate some to help the rebels. She appears as a sweet girl, but Ellie is actually pretty sa- distic and cruel. I designed her character giving her an an- gelic face, but with a masculine outfit. She wanna show Big jackets, confy outfits and street style that she is not like people think: she is not a sweet girl. I took inspiration from mangas and Billie Eilish, both for the style and the character. She is wearing oversize clothes, to hide her shapes. My reference is the skate look of the early ’00s, with some gothic elements. Billie Eilish wears a lot of printed clothes: I liked the idea of printing some illustrations. I designed a cute skele- ton, which is keeping in his hand a heart bleed-

ing. I digitally printed on a PVC fabric, for her jacket. TEXTILES This element is a perfect symbol of Ellies’ personality. Digital printed illustration from Jessie Reyez’s the music albums, laser-cut squares for Key’s shirt CHAPTER seven

from the page it comes to life buildinG UPSIDETOWN: THE SET

the making process

This year I tested myself building a scale model of Then, I laser-cut on a plywood sheet shapes of win- my set. I decided to recreate a small part of Upside- dows and doors, and I spray painted them on the Town: some buildings with a factory of the Downside houses. and the skyscraper, with on the top the Main Palace I used laser-cutting as well for the skyscraper and surrounded by woods. Seeing the quantity of the ele- the Upside, to recreate the windows’ shapes. I painted ments needed, I opted for a 1:500 scale. the fountains of the Upside and I decorated the envi- Laser cutting for the skyscarper and the main palace, acrylic Spray painting the buildings of the Downside I used foam and cardboard for all the set, covering ronment with bushes and trees. the skyscraper and the Main Palace with clear acrylic I used some printings for recreating the asphalt of and mirror sheets. the streets too. I put some cotton wool as the smoke I started creating all the buildings. of the factories. With glue and newspapers, I created a I found some difficulties in color them, giving a realis- raised level in the Downside, to give some movement tic aspect. I tried to paint and spray paint, but it didn’t to the landscape. really work. In the end, I tried to print some pat- I added at the end some details like gates, walls, park- terns of facades and cover all the little boxes with it. ing... and UpsideTown was ready.

Building the city Laser cut plywood for windows’shape Completing the set

The illustrations of UpsideTown

Finishing the factory Printed patterns with spray painted windows for the buildings the model of upsidetown

The Downside

The main Palace of the Upside experimenting WITH textiles techniques

Recycled plastic net from a construction company Digitally printed lycra, over painted with a laser-cut leather

Canadian smocking Clear PVC Princess pleating Final samples Laser-cut samples Painting with dyes

Illustrator files for laser-cutting sessions Illustrator files for laser-cutting sessions

My aim for this project was to play with textiles. In a big part of my designs, I natural and synthetic fibres. I saw a video from the Royal Opera House of I used as well spray paint to add silver or gold nuances. alternative materials or plastic ones, like PVC, neoprene, or recycled kept linear silhouettes, simple shapes, focusing more on the patterns and colors, London, where they were dyeing the fabrics with brushes, like a paint- Many designs present techniques like embroidery, Canadian smocking, and materials. which are the main element in the costumes. I tried many different techniques, ing. I tried the same technique: dyeing the fabric first of the main color I princess pleating. I wanted to experiment with the dimensions and shapes of I tried to employ not just common fabrics like cotton or silk, but combine from dyes to printing, from pleating to laser-cutting... needed, then I added a darker shade with the brush. The result was like a the fabric, without using it just like a flat surface. That is why I insert many laser-cut them with vinyl, PVC, neoprene, scuba jersey... Especially for the costumes of the Upside characters, I had a specific palette, made watercolor painting. elements, to give a three-dimensional aspect to the costume, or creating dif- I insert as well different digital printings, using directly my illustrations of a few main colors, but a lot of different shades. Therefore, dyes became essential In other cases, I use directly the paint, especially for the performers where ferent layers. or modifying some pictures, as the skeleton for Ellie’s jacket or the fish for to obtain the exact effect that I was searching for. I tested myself both with dyeing I needed stronger colors. Especially at the beginning of the project, I was fascinated by the idea of using Edward’s waistcoat. - first steps in the making process: jane’s costume

Studying the shape of the costume Realizing the bodice

I decided to realize as my first costume Jane’s second design. The main challenge was the laser-cut jacket. After preparing the pattern on Illustrator, I chose a white cotton coutil to be cut. The jacket is made by a navy blue scuba jersey, with a hood of grey jersey and the laser-cut over layer of cotton. I added a military-style trimming, to decorate the edges. Under the jacket, Jane wears a soft tulle dress. The costume has three layers: the first one is dyed poplin cotton, then crystal organza to give a silver nuance, and the last one is a light blue tulle. I had to work a lot to create the correct silhouette. It was tricky to realize the volume of the sleeves and the skirt as I designed. I used the toile to understand the quantity of fabric needed to find the perfect shape of the dress. About the accessories, I started making the earrings: I bought a sparkling base with floral decorations, and I added metal threads to create two circles, where I put different beads.

The dress with the jacket in toile from the front The dress with the jacket in toile from the back

Laser-cutting the pattern for the jacket Dyeing the poplin cotton Trimming detail The earrings

The laser-cut jacket from the back Development of the final jacket first steps in the making process: mermaid’s costume

As the second costume, I decided to realize the Fish performer’s design. I wanted to test myself with shapes and materials that I never tried before. In this case, the main challenge was the Canadian smocking bodice. I followed a pattern to recreate a fish scale effect. So, I realized before a sample, to understand how much the fabric would have been reduced. Then I drew the pattern on a bigger lycra fabric, for the toile. And finally, I remade it on the final material. While making the toile, I realized at first that I needed some pads to keep the heart shape in the bodice; and my first choice as fabric for the shoulders and hips pleated decorations was not working on a big scale. I used for the sample synthetic chiffon, princess pleated, and then spray painted. But it was too soft, so it was not to be able to stay up once bigger. I changed for pleated organza. Since this material takes the dye very well, I slightly changed my first idea, dyeing the organza in a light shade of blue, adding with a brush some darker tones, to recreate the movement of the waves and the color of the sea. I spray painted on the top, to add some shiny silver. For the scales to attach on the top of the legs and the arms, I foiled the lycra with silver and light blue sheets. For the headpiece, I opted to create a lycra swimming cap, to cover with pleated dyed cotton and plastic net, Studying the shape The pattern cutting with twine all over. I wanted some shiness, but seeing that this costume should be used for an acrobatic performance, I did not want to add beads, risking to hurt the performer. Therefore, I decided to spray paint all the fabrics with silver, and decorate the edges with silver sequins and trimming.

Canadian smocking on the final lycra

Dyeing the organza Final color Pleating

Developing the second costume in toile CHAPTER eight

the final illustrations Jane at the beginning

Hand cut golen PVC for the mask textiles Digital printed neoprene corset Dyed burgundy synthetic taffeta

Pleated synthetic chiffon for the skirt Peach taffeta for the sleeves Dyed peach chiffon for the collar Striped jersey for the bodice technical drawings technical Jane growing up

Denim and clear PVC for the hat Grey jersey for the hood textiles

Dyed light blue cotton, crystal organza and tulle for the Navy scuba jersey with laser cutting cotton coutil for the dress jacket technical drawings technical Jane final scene

White neoprene with laser cut acrylic buttons textiles technical drawings technical Edward, the prime minister

Digital printed silk with an under layer of Navy blue cotton twill for the trousers textiles pelmet vilene for the waistcoat

White cotton poplin for the shirt technical drawings technical donna, the politician

White elastic poplin for the blouse textiles

Dyed synthetic taffeta

Digital printed cotton twill for the trousers technical drawings technical Lucrezia, the lady in waiting

Pleated synthetic chiffon for the sleeves textiles

Embroidery on linen with golden threads for the dress

Golden braided PVC for the belt technical drawings technical the ladies of the court textiles

Laser-cut acrylic flower with dyed organdy for the Flowers with pink tulle for the head helmet textiles

Laser-cut organdy petals, dyed and sewed onto an Dyed synthetic taffeta and clear PVc for the jumpsuit organdy base for the skirt

technical drawings

Dyed and pleated chiffon for the collar Striped jersey for the bodysuit

technical drawings the ladies of the court textiles

Jersey for the shirt, digital printed silk for the corset Denim dress with pink tulle and a dyed chiffon layer with pleated dyed organdy underneath textiles

Dyed pink jersey for the trousers Striped jesrey with pink tulle for the boots

technical drawings technical drawings THE FISH PERFORMER THE BIRD PRFORMER textiles

French knots and Feathers for the collar Blue voile for the base Laser-cut dyed and painted feathers, for the Lycra for the unitard, with polyester for the of the wings wings and the bodice folied metallic details on the technical drawings headpiece legs

Spary painted nude elastic net for the top of the bodice, with silver trimming technical drawings

Dyed, pleated and spray painted organdy for the shoulders and hips textiles

Pleated and painted cotton and plastic net with twinse for the headpiece

Canadian smocking lycra for the Foiled hand-cut lycra for the scales bodysuit THE cameleon and THE lion PERFORMER the bush in flower textiles

Painted fringes of several fabrics for the mane

Laser-cut suede with beads for the unitard Embroidery Digital printed lycra, overpainted, with laser-cut leather and painted burnt PVC textiles

Nude lycra with flower appliques of taffeta, and laser-cut leaves of dyed organdy technical drawings

technical drawings crystal, the art director

Net fabric with embroidery for the robe textiles

Elastic nude net with shiny embroidery for the corset

Lace, net and bias tape for details and superstructure technical drawings technical JESSIE, HEAD OF THE REBELLION

Lycra net for the unitard Elastic PVC for the top and the shorts textiles

Foiled polyester for the lining Black vinyl for the coat

Metallic aplliques on PVC leather for shoes and details technical drawings technical the rebel key the rebel ellie

Waterproof opaque fabric for the bomber Dyed grey jersey textiles textiles

Laser-cut leather with fur for Golden waterproof lining textiles the shirt

Digital printed PVC for the jacket, with white PVC details

Dyed grey jersey

Metallic appliques on PVC leather PVC trousers

technical drawings technical drawings