One of the elements that made Star Wars: The Force Awakens so great are the costumes. They are needed not only as props, but as a way to describe and tell the story of each character in the film. In The Force Awakens, the person responsible for the characters' iconic looks is costume designer Michael Kaplan.
In an interview with IGN, the award-winning designer discussed his work and shared unseen concept art for the film. He said:
When you're watching a movie, color, texture, details of silhouettes and all help you understand where you are and what's going on.
I knew it was important to give people the world they remembered, but people have become a lot more sophisticated as filmgoers, so it was a case of taking on the origins and adding 30 years and a bit of patina and sophistication.
Take a look at the costumes and the highlights from Kaplan's interview.
Kaplan discussed how he improved the previous costumes those who were coming back had problems with.
Everybody who was coming back had some complaints about their previous costumes, so it was my job to correct those issues.
There were shirts collars for Harrison that would drive him crazy, boots that were uncomfortable, and C-3PO's costume was a nightmare to get in and out of and pinched as well. So, it was an honor to be able to go back and adjust those things.
As for Rey's costume, Kaplan put a lot of thought about the society she was in, the setting, as well as her emotions that he needed to incorporate into the costume:
We knew she was going to be in a world of men doing things like climbing and dealing with rocket parts and living this Spartan life, so we had to make her practical, but we also wanted a glimmer of femininity about her.
I also knew there were going to be sandstorms and dust, so I wanted the character to be in light colors. It also felt right for her emotionally and for the desert. It also felt very Star Wars especially when you look back at Luke and Leia
We eventually gave her a wrap, which could protect her face against dust storms. Everything is there for a reason, but it gives her a very beautiful image when all the pieces are put together. Rey wears the costume throughout the film, although we had 25 copies made and about 12 pairs of boots.
Meanwhile, Finn's costume needed to be different from what Stormtroopers wore on the inside of their armor in past movies.
We started by thinking about what a stormtrooper would wear under their armor. In the original movies, they wore leotards but that's not something we want our leading man running around in, so we ended up with a black jean pant and more of a shirt than a leotard. But we didn't want him all in black, so thankfully the desert covers everything with dust and makes the white shoes dark and the clothes dusty. Then when you put on the leather jacket, you have a very different look.
The designer added:
We painted on red patches of acrylic paint [on the leather jacket] and then wiped them back so they got ingrained in the leather to give it more depth and character. Then we put it through various washes, adding oils and wiping them off. We've also added a solution of permanent dust as, of course, normal dust would fall off.
As for everybody's not-so favorite bad guy, Kylo Ren, Kaplan revealed how it unnerved him to create the villain's costume, as well as of the Resistance and the First Order.
Check out the entire interview here.
Read: Rey's Force Vision in The Force Awakens Gets Hilarious Parody with Darth Jar Jar and Bug-Eyed Yoda
Read: Why Ben Solo Became Kylo Ren, According to J.J. Abrams and Adam Driver
Read: That Island in Rey's Force Vision Has Been Revealed
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