New Technology- Case study The Hobbit revisted- Interview with Ann Maskrey

The recent release of The Hobbit: The Battle of The Five Armies signalled the end of the highly anticipated prequels to The Lord In The Rings Trilogy (LOTR), not only because people where curious to see how Peter Jackson was going to string out one tiny book into three films but also because he was filming in 48 frame rate. He wanted to make the film look even more realistic than previous films but for some it was “oddly cold, and too much like digital footage from live sports channels or daytime television”.

The video shows the difference between the images in 24fps and 48fps

Ann Maskrey (The Hobbit Costume Designer) was relatively new to costume design having worked mainly as a cutter on other high profile films like, Batman Begins and Alice in Wonderland. The Hobbit was a hard project for her to come into as her first big costume design opportunity. I was able to contact her and ask her a few questions about her experience working on the hobbit and with the New Technology.

The Dwarfs from the Hobbit in there costumes

How did you approach designing for The Hobbit? Where did you start?

I had very little prep time for The Hobbit and had to do a lot of research at the beginning, not just looking at the LOTR films but period and ethnic costume research. One always starts with the script and reads where it takes your mind and then have talks with the director and producers. I had little opportunity to talk to Peter at the beginning because he was suddenly taken ill and had to have an operation. We got to know each other more as the film progressed but with only 3 months prep time and a huge workforce to deal with I was always chasing my tail. I looked at early Dutch and German art for the Hobbits, Russian art and photographs, Inuit and Himalayan reference for Laketown, Art Nouveau for the Elves, and a lot of nature reference for many of my fabric designs.

Ann's designs of the Wizard Radagast

How did working with the Red Camera affect your design process and what were the pressures and challenges of working with these new technologies?

The Red Camera did throw up some problems with fabric choices and I was very aware just how much detail it picks up compared to the more traditional way of filming. Some fabrics were impossible to use, while others were really enhanced by it. Generally , I referred to it as ʻthe all seeing eye of evilʼ. Mostly it just meant being a little more cautious about my fabric choices and didnʼt inhibit me too much, but the workroom had to be exceedingly careful with the finish on the costumes.

Do you think Hollywood will move towards Higher Frame rates and higher resolutions or do you think The Hobbit has put them off?

There are mixed feelings about the use of the Red Camera and every director of photography I speak to prefers the traditional method of filming. There’s something very clinical about the new technology and less ʻmagicʼ, but this also depends on how movie sets are lit. I think the style of the project should affect the choice of which type of camera one uses.

What do you say to the critics who say the costumes are too artificial and look too new?

Its news to me that the costumes were criticised for looking too new and artificial. The costumes were broken down by the textile department, although they were often under pressure to do them at a very late stage in proceedings, due to a number of reasons. One couldn’t take the breaking down too far as the red camera would pick up on this and the added problem was the time scale of the movie and the level of graded breaking down throughout the story. I am not alone among the crew in thinking that the majority of our work couldn’t really be seen.

Bilbo's Costume

What would you do differently if you could do it over again?

If I did it again there would be a lot I would want to do differently. A major difficulty for me was getting to know the skill base in New Zealand having never worked there before. I would want to choose who I worked with rather than inheriting a staff. Many were lovely and talented but it took time to figure out who these were, and as a foreigner there was a degree of mistrust to begin with and they obviously had to get to know me too. One can always look back in hindsight and think what one could have done better or differently, but everything is a learning curve, and even if one makes a huge mistake, there is always the benefit that one has learned something. 

How did you get involved with the whole process?

I was specifically asked to go to New Zealand primarily to manage the costume workroom. Once I arrived there, after passing through many loopholes to be allowed to work in NZ there was a reshuffle and I was lucky enough to be asked to design it.

Do you have anything on the Horizon?

I do not have anything on the horizon for definite although there are some possibilities coming up, neither of which I can speak about.

Do you have any advice for someone who is interested in going into costume design? 

My biggest piece of advice for someone wanting to go into costume design is that they know their craft, learn the methods of costume cut and construction, research properly, and present as much information possible to those they are working for and who are working for them.

Thank you so much to Ann Maskrey for speaking to me she raised a lot of issues that designers will face if the higher resolution cameras do become the industry standard. She also mentioned a number of issues about working in the industry in general for designers. Namely the lack of time you have. A lot of Ann’s answers boiled down to there not being enough time for the basic costuming process, let alone getting to know a new technology.

Thanks again Ann.