Group Gold Blazer Idea

As posted on the group blog, Luke suggested that the lead singer wear a gold blazer, tying in/anchoring the 'Gold' theme of the song with the performance base.At first I was skeptical as it could look very Butlins entertainer/tacky or comical, but I now think it could work. James pointed out in the group meeting yesterday that we could be focusing too much on what Spandau Ballet & co. would do/wear with the song, rather than thinking of creating and marketing our own band over which we have complete freedom and control. I thought this was quite relevant to what I had been doing and how I had been approaching some aspects of the project. I am therefore going to be aware of this and avoid it if relevant in the future.

I think it that having it worn with tight black trousers/jeans and a black t-shirt could work well.

Costume for Detective Character

He will need to be a hardcore, conventional, cliche, iconic detective man to make his identity/character type and hence the genre of the 'film' and what is going on in the narrative clear. Hence his costume will clearly be VERY important.

Images of Film Noir era detectives:

coming soon...

Detective Hat

We must have a good hat. Quick google search of 'film noir' presented me with the following images (these all taken from first two pages I believe):

........hat hat hat hat. We must have a hat like this!

Beige/Camel trenchcoat/raincoat

I think veeeery important. Second only to hat. See above 'detective hat' pictures, and most feature such a coat.

(eBay items).

Costume for Femme Fatale (Cat)

I've been researching typical 50s clothing for women, especially dresses/glamorous outfits.

Here are some relevant images/items I found.

50s-style dresses

Clearly they liked their a-line, calf-length full skirts and halternecks.

Clothes from actual femmes in Film Noir films:

Will put some screen shots here.

Costume for Band

Just posted on the group blog asking for James' and Luke's measurements, as I'm thinking agood place to get cheap and decent costume (especially seeing as I think we're considering a slightly retro/80s feel with the blazers) would be a second hand shop (vintage or charity), tk maxx, or ebay.

James

I think we discussed him wearing a (slightly tight?), black blazer with the sleeves rolled/pushed up a little, and the buttons at least partially open.

Some images of similar/possible looks along these lines.
I think there is a shirt/t-shirt debate to be had here. A shirt certainly allows for nice sleeve-rolling (see last image) and may prevent the looking-too-young syndrome. I think it just needs trying out.

Luke
I can't recall what specific role Luke was going to fill?
However, I think a similar outfit to James could work. Maybe a different colour combination (e.g. James could wear a white shirt and dark blazer, while Luke could wear both black shirt and black blazer?). He could also wear his clothes slightly differently, e.g. more or less buttons undone. This would cement the band's image, be aesthetically appealling, whilst also cementing these band members together. The costumes shouldn't look identical I think because this could look a little big boy band or amateur?

Others
We don't know who will play the other members, but I think the previous idea about them being somewhat similar but not identical is appropriate?

What I think we need to achieve with the costume is:

• to make the actors seem slightly older than they are
• to address/convey the band's image/genre/style and cement this with the musical genre
• for the band to look physically/sexually attractive to at least the relevant portion of the target audience (heterosexual females/gay men)
• for the style of the the costume and appearance of the band in the performance to not jar too much with the visuals of the narrative.