So when the resident femme fatale of “Reminiscence” arrives in the form of Rebecca Ferguson’s sultry, markedly sad jazz singer Mae, clad in a spectacular, body-conscious crimson-red gown that could disarm any lethal human in its presence, you know she won’t be up to any good... Let’s blame his distraction on that red gown (and various other stunning evening frocks Ferguson wears throughout “Reminiscence”).
Whether creating present day or futuristic looks for Reeves and Winter, costume designer Jennifer Starzyk, who recently worked on David Fincher’s “Mindhunter,” knew no one would understand the character looks better than the film’s stars. After all, they had been with these characters for decades, since 1989’s “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure.”
Costume designer Jennifer Starzyk on Bill and Ted’s look through the ages: “At one point we travel to 2025, and Bill and Ted meet their older selves. That had several iterations. They love Van Halen, but it was what they imagined they should look like when they hit the big time. We went for a general rock star look.”
While promoting the release of Bill & Ted Face the Music, Costume Designer Jennifer Starzyk spoke to Screen Rant about her work on the film and her career in the film industry. She talks about the process of creating costumes for iconic figures like Bill, Ted, Death, and more, as well as her working relationship with the film's director, Dean Parisot.
Costume designer Jennifer Starzyk also discusses collaborating closely with the leads and passing the titular duo's fashion legacy onto their daughters.
Jennifer Starzyk had 20 years in costumes for various television and film projects. Some of her most recognizable works are across various genres, from dramas to science fiction in the Now You See Me (2013), Star Trek: Into Darkness (2013), the Netflix series Mindhunter, Showtime's Twin Peaks revival.
Rather than dressing as mini-mes, Billie and Thea have their own unique sense of style that points to their fondness for casual attire with roots in music. Designer Jennifer Starzyk has captured the essence of Jill M. Ohanneson's original Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure costumes — including putting 21st-century Ted in a shirt color that matches the one he previously wore around his waist.
For Starzyk it was an “incredible, daunting, exciting” undertaking. But while the project was intimidating, “once you see that you can accomplish something, that gets the momentum to go further and further.” “Mindhunter” is set in the 1970s, normally a fertile era for costume design, but her work on the series is distinguished by its “restraint.”
Director David Fincher is renowned for his exacting vision, and Costume Designer Jennifer Starzyk found herself falling right into step with that passion for the precise when working on the series Mindhunter for Netflix.
When all three team members are in a room or frame, it will always be Wendy who pulls focus (even when she is out of focus). Obviously, as the only woman in a scene, she commands attention. But her clothing also draws the show's gaze to her.
There is no doubt that Wendy Carr (Anna Torv) is the best dressed character on Mindhunter, however, Holden (Jonathan Groff) makes a case for himself in the season finale as he succumbs to the Atlanta heat.
