Alumna Alix Friedberg Is Costume Designer on Big Little Lies
FIDM Alumna Alix Friedberg is the Emmy-winning costume designer on HBO's hit series Big Little Lies starring Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, Shailene Woodley, Zoe Kravitz, Laura Dern, and Meryl Streep.
Based on the novel by Liane Moriarty, Big Little Lies, the darkly comedic tale of murder and mischief in the beachfront town of Monterey, California, was an instant hit when it debuted on HBO in February of 2017. Told through the eyes of three mothers--Madeline (Reese Witherspoon), Celeste (Nicole Kidman), and Jane (Shailene Woodley)--the series explores perfection, marriage, parenting, and friendship. For the second season of the series, filming now, Meryl Streep was added to the cast, playing Kidman's character's mother.
Celebrated costume designer and FIDM Alumna Alix Friedberg (Without a Trace, True Detective, Modern Family) outfits the ladies of Monterey in contemporary looks that reflect their affluent, beachy community, as well as the characters themselves. Woodley's Jane is a young, single mom trying to make it in jeans and dark coats, Witherspoon's Madeline favors upbeat florals and color, Kidman's Celeste is often hiding bruises with turtlenecks and scarves, while Laura Dern's super successful Renata drips in designer looks. "We dressed them to their character, their means, their level of masking how much was going on in their lives," Friedberg said after receiving the Emmy Award for Outstanding Contemporary Costumes for a Series, Limited Series, or Movie. "So each woman was specific to their character."
Friedberg, who got her big break designing looks for the 2000 independent film But I''m a Cheerleader, was born and raised in Los Angeles. She served as an assistant costume designer on films such as Gone in Sixty Seconds and Office Space before moving into television. Later this summer, we'll see more of her talents on the small screen when the miniseries Sharp Objects, based on Gillian Flynn's novel, airs on HBO. She told W magazine, "One of the most rewarding parts of being a costume designer is watching the actor transform into the character in the fitting room. My job is to give an actor the second skin they need to become another person."
Learn more about the Film & TV Costume Design Program at FIDM.
Categories: Film & TV Costume Design
