Alumni
Student Kendra Raymond Doing Costume Design Work for Ripley's Hollywood
We recently chatted with current FIDM Student and Nebraska native Kendra Raymond, who moved to Los Angeles to pursue her dream of working in costume design for film and television.
Where were you born and raised? I was born in Omaha, Nebraska and raised for most of my life 20 minutes north of there in Blair, Nebraska.
How did you first hear about FIDM? I remember in my undergrad at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln talking about other fashion institutions in the country, but an actual discussion happened when I first moved out to California after graduating in December of 2013. Several friends and acquaintances of mine have been to FIDM and all had interesting stories to tell. I was intrigued and started looking into it since I was struggling at getting a foot in the door for industry costuming. My husband was in full support and assisted me with figuring out how we would pay for it after doing a tour on campus.
Tell us about any degrees you already have and/or are pursuing at FIDM. I have a B.S. degree from the Education & Human Sciences college at University of Nebraska–Lincoln in Textiles, Merchandising, Fashion Design with a minor in Theater (for costume design). I am attending FIDM under the Professional Designation program. I have completed my A.A. in Fashion Design for my first year and my second year I am applying for the Film & TV Costume Design program that will begin in the Fall.
What is your involvement with the famed Ripley's Believe It or Not? I was contracted by the General Manager for the Ripley's Hollywood location after seeing my work at LA Comic Con last fall. They asked me to help update the clothing on a handful of their wax figures. We have a few more I will be working on in the future as well. The ones you can go see on display are Grace McDaniels, JT Saylors, Sara Disk Wearer (Ubangi), Maria Jose Cristerna, and Walter Hudson.
Your spouse is a veteran. What are your impressions of FIDM being a military-friendly school? FIDM is very military-friendly in my opinion. Mrs. Martinez (FIDM's VA Education Benefits Coordinator) is an amazing resource and support system since all of my family, besides my husband and new son, is back in he Midwest. The activities and study room are great for you to be able to connect with other members and spouses since a lot of the other students I’ve interacted with don’t understand a lot of what the SVA (Student Veterans of America) students have been through.
What are your ultimate career goals after FIDM? The path I’ve been working on since a young age is to make costumes for film and television. My movie collection is vast and where I pull a lot of my inspirations from. To be able to work alongside and be in the history books with such designers like Edith Head, Colleen Atwood, Michele Clapton, etc. is a dream. To be able to inspire others how their work has inspired me, that is what I live for. Now, if one ends up with a golden man or two on my bookshelves at some point, I wouldn’t mind that either.
Categories: Fashion Design Film & TV Costume Design Alumni
