At any self-respecting pop star’s concert, the outfits are half the show. Structured corsets, elaborate head pieces, enough sequins to blind the front row: The costuming is an integral part of the spectacle. “Mother Mary,” a new film written and directed by David Lowery, concerns itself with the very specific gig that is designing for pop divas. In this case, the fictional pop singer Mother Mary (played by Anne Hathaway), who has reunited with her estranged best friend and former costume designer, Sam (Michaela Coel), for one final gown. With a soundtrack featuring songs by Charli XCX, Jack Antonoff and FKA twigs paired with superstar costuming, the film captures the sound and the luxe look of pop royalty.
In phone interviews ahead of the movie’s release on Friday, the real fashion minds behind the fictional one — Bina Daigeler, the film’s main costume designer, and the Dutch couturier Iris van Herpen, who created the final dress in the film — discussed inspirations, process and, to borrow a phrase from the film, fashion as “the transubstantiation of feeling.”
THE BURIAL
‘Drowning in Sequins’
One of the first shots in the film is a close-up of fabric — rich, textured silver that crinkles into peaks and valleys. As the camera widens, viewers see that the fabric is part of Mother Mary’s elaborate stage costume: a cape draped over a black sequined bodysuit with matching thigh-high boots and opera gloves, topped with a huge gold headpiece. “I wanted it to be powerful but also dark,” Ms. Daigeler said, citing a volcano as her main inspiration. The look was loaded up with the embellishments typical of pop star costumes. “We were drowning in sequins,” she added.
When creating the radiant halo headpiece, the linchpin of the pop star’s signature look, Ms. Daigeler studied halos across time, from historical paintings of the Madonna to, well, Madonna (especially at the 2018 Met Gala). Beyoncé fans might also see echoes of her 2017 Grammy performance look.
But while Ms. Daigeler acknowledged having looked at other pop stars for reference (in addition to Madonna and Beyoncé, she also considered Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift and Dua Lipa), she maintained that this Mother had a style all her own. “A lot of people said, ‘It’s so Taylor Swift-y,’ but I disagree,” she said.
THE MERMAID
‘What the Hell Is She Wearing?’
Can a piece of clothing be a film’s inciting incident? Here, it is. Mary has a fit at a costume fitting, crying while wearing a half-finished bodysuit in oceanic shades of teal, purple and silver. Rippled, 3-D-printed petals (which had to be sewn back on after each take of Mary ripping them off) sprout from the shoulders, hips and breasts of the garment, along with the matching halo headpiece. Mary hates it. She runs off to find Sam to make her something better.
Ms. Daigeler described creating something completely over-the-top, rigid and borderline distracting for this scene, designed to act as a counterpoint to the fluid, monochrome look that Sam makes at the end of the film. “It would have been stunning on the stage, but everybody would have looked only at the costume,” said Ms. Daigeler, who imagined puzzled audience members wondering, “What the hell is she wearing?”
THE GRAND FINALE
‘Something From Another Dimension’
The fruits of Sam and Mary’s tortured collaboration: a vibrant red gown designed by Ms. van Herpen, made of fabric structured by tiny micro-pleats, draped with folds hugging the chest and ballooning outward at the hips into two large fans at the back before flowing into a looser skirt that fades into black. It’s dramatic, but it’s understated compared with Mary’s other onstage looks.
Ms. van Herpen said that exact contrast was one of her main goals with the gown. “We actually wanted to go away from what you expect with a pop star stage look,” she said, since the final moment is one of transcendence. “This dress is actually not really a dress — it’s a spirit,” she added. “It’s something from another dimension.”
In the process of designing, she focused mainly on the fabric, since that’s what she thought Sam would do, and she wanted to match the fictional designer’s process. The pleats were created by folding the fabric into paper molds in the desired shape and then putting those molds into the oven to set it.
The major difference between the real-life creation of the dress and the one we see in the movie? Ms. van Herpen spent three months crafting the gown that Sam spins up overnight. The designer said she joked with Ms. Coel about her character’s impossible speed, telling her, “We need you in the atelier!”
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