Alumni

DEBUT Grad Profiled in Hometown Publication

Madison, Wisconsin publication The Capital Times interviewed DEBUT Grad Robin Giles, who recently participated in the FIDM x HBO Max GENERA+ION Un-Fashion Showcase at The LAB in Orange County, California. The former student at James Madison Memorial High School shared her experience studying at FIDM and her unique background as a former emergency dispatcher. 

Although she planned to pursue a career in social work, Robin said she was still interested in design, and “finally decided she should take a shot at pursuing a career in fashion, knowing she could always return to her old job if it didn’t work out.” After vetting several different schools in Los Angeles and New York, she decided that FIDM was the right fit for her.

“I learned exactly the stuff that I liked learning,” Robin told The Capital Times. “The teachers are very experienced, and taught me a lot about what the consumer is looking for and what an interviewer is looking for.” Her DEBUT collection drew inspiration from the 1969 Philip K. Dick sci-fi novel Ubik. Robin's line of retro-futuristic athleisure wear had elements that referenced digital glitches and copy-and-paste images.

For the GENERA+ION showcase last month, Robin created looks for one of eight characters on the show, all high school students navigating their sexuality in a conservative environment. She worked with the show’s acclaimed costume designer, Shirley Kurata, and was assigned Greta, played by Haley Sanchez. After watching an advance copy of the pilot episode, Robin got to work. 

“I was kind of getting a sense that a long-running story arc for Greta might be that she’s trans but doesn’t know it at the start of the show,” she said. “Going off of that, I was like, how would a teenager dress if she’s trans but doesn’t know it yet, but maybe she’s starting to get a sense of that? And if she’s literally trying to blend in with other people, but she’s interested in her Hispanic culture, how could I come up with a look that would show all those parts of her personality?”

Robin is currently working as a full-time intern for Star Fades International, a new denim company in Los Angeles. “I really like working with denim,” she said. “And they’re a cool company, because they’re trying to come up with environmentally sound ways of achieving the same look."

Categories:  Advanced Fashion Design Alumni