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Thursday, February 20, 2025
'Star Trek: Section 31''s costume design was literally 'Star Trek by Balenciaga'
Space: Hairstyles and makeup choices for a hardcore Empress of the Terran Empire ducking her duties in Starfleet's under-the-radar black ops espionage division Section 31 to run a space disco and casino on the outer fringes of Federation space means that nothing exceeds like excess, as the old saying goes.
7 comments:
Julian Grossman
said...
I don’t really keep up with modern Star Trek even remotely, but admittedly the premise of this film sounds fun. The variety of looks the costume, makeup, and hair designers were able to concoct for this singular character are pretty stunning. I especially appreciated the “gentler outfit” specifically because its exaggerated shape is kind of goofy and out of the ordinary. It feels like a nice return to the Star Trek camp aesthetic of long ago, which is one of my big gripes with more modern iterations which utilize a lot of CGI and feel very sleek. I did feel like just at a glance, the young Georgiou look is pretty basic and honestly feels like a carbon copy of a Dune stillsuit, but that may be too harsh of a judgement to make based on a singular frame from the film. Anyway, I really loved the blue/purple gown look, it’s just so gorgeous and it was great to read about how much attention to detail went into it.
If there is one thing I LOVE, it is sci-fi costume design. Nothing gets closer to the high fashion world than costume design for shows set in a futuristic world, and I'm obsessed with it. Getting to apply the insane creativity of high fashion to character design and expression is one of the funnest design tasks out there in my opinion. "ducking her duties in Starfleet's under-the-radar black ops espionage division Section 31 to run a space disco and casino on the outer fringes" is an absolutely insane sentence that sounds SO fun to work with. I like how much they focused on the little things, like specific eyeliner and nail colors and even custom made eyelashes. It can be hard to successfully incorporate little details like that into design for the stage when so much of it will get lost to physical distance, but the screen is the perfect opportunity for that level of detail. I also really appreciated how the designer talked about wanting to contrast Michelle Yeoh's performance in Wicked with these costumes- acknowledging the surrounding social and cultural context of the actors you're working with is a super important part of designing for your audience.
Ugh, the silhouette the gown creates with the shoulder pads is so good. Definitely plays into power dynamics and gives her an upper hand. The choice of yellows and purples as the main complimentary colors in her look kind of play into a sense of unease as well as dreamy-ness. Having a color-shift fabric as her main textile also elevates her, harkening back to when divine figures were portrayed in such color-shift fabric. The custom nails and lashes are the type of attention to detail only truly appreciated on camera, the medium of film allowing for far more depth when it comes to wardrobe.
The hair and makeup team had the opportunity to showcase their skills, and I believe they succeeded flawlessly. Michelle Yeoh’s character starts off looking like a full-on space queen with this iridescent Balenciaga gown, a structured updo, and custom lashes that somehow held up through intense fight scenes. I love how they leaned into the high fashion, very over-the-top vibe while still keeping it super functional. By the end, Yeoh’s character shifts to something softer but still stunning. That final Balenciaga gown ties everything together, and I really appreciate how much thought went into making her look unique compared to her past roles. The hair and makeup heads had the freedom to experiment, and it shows. This isn’t just another Star Trek film; it has a whole new aesthetic that makes it stand out, and I’m really excited to see how we use these different brands and companies in the future for these shows.
The hair and makeup team at Star Trek: Section 31 had the opportunity to showcase their skills, and I believe they succeeded flawlessly. Michelle Yeoh’s character starts off looking like a full-on space queen with this iridescent Balenciaga gown, a structured updo, and custom lashes that somehow held up through intense fight scenes. I love how they leaned into the high fashion, very over-the-top vibe while still keeping it super functional. By the end, Yeoh’s character shifts to something softer but still stunning. That final Balenciaga gown ties everything together, and I really appreciate how much thought went into making her look unique compared to her past roles. The hair and makeup heads had the freedom to experiment, and it shows. This isn’t just another Star Trek film; it has a whole new aesthetic that makes it stand out, and I’m really excited to see how we use these different brands and companies in the future for these shows.
I’ve been so excited for Section 31 since it was announced! With Michelle Yeoh’s performance on Star Trek: Discovery, alongside all of the Section 31 lore just waiting to be uncovered after decades of Star Trek series, I had such high hopes for the series-turned-movie. I’m disappointed to see such terrible reviews, but I’m trying to remain optimistic for my own viewing. I don’t know why I’m surprised that Balenciaga worked on the show in collaboration with Gersha Phillips, but I am. I love how the hair and the costume are so intrinsically connected. The challenge that is repeated is that Yeoh has been in so much that the designers had to consciously differentiate the looks from her most recent or most similar works. The innovation that they had and the free-rein elements are something that I’m sure a designer could be envious of. However, I feel as though without context, some of the more high end ‘Balenciaga-esque’ costumes could take away from the Trek charm. Perhaps there's a balance in the overall costume design in the show that I'm not aware of yet! I still look forward to seeing how the costumes play into the characters and plot.
7 comments:
I don’t really keep up with modern Star Trek even remotely, but admittedly the premise of this film sounds fun. The variety of looks the costume, makeup, and hair designers were able to concoct for this singular character are pretty stunning. I especially appreciated the “gentler outfit” specifically because its exaggerated shape is kind of goofy and out of the ordinary. It feels like a nice return to the Star Trek camp aesthetic of long ago, which is one of my big gripes with more modern iterations which utilize a lot of CGI and feel very sleek. I did feel like just at a glance, the young Georgiou look is pretty basic and honestly feels like a carbon copy of a Dune stillsuit, but that may be too harsh of a judgement to make based on a singular frame from the film. Anyway, I really loved the blue/purple gown look, it’s just so gorgeous and it was great to read about how much attention to detail went into it.
If there is one thing I LOVE, it is sci-fi costume design. Nothing gets closer to the high fashion world than costume design for shows set in a futuristic world, and I'm obsessed with it. Getting to apply the insane creativity of high fashion to character design and expression is one of the funnest design tasks out there in my opinion. "ducking her duties in Starfleet's under-the-radar black ops espionage division Section 31 to run a space disco and casino on the outer fringes" is an absolutely insane sentence that sounds SO fun to work with. I like how much they focused on the little things, like specific eyeliner and nail colors and even custom made eyelashes. It can be hard to successfully incorporate little details like that into design for the stage when so much of it will get lost to physical distance, but the screen is the perfect opportunity for that level of detail. I also really appreciated how the designer talked about wanting to contrast Michelle Yeoh's performance in Wicked with these costumes- acknowledging the surrounding social and cultural context of the actors you're working with is a super important part of designing for your audience.
Ugh, the silhouette the gown creates with the shoulder pads is so good. Definitely plays into power dynamics and gives her an upper hand. The choice of yellows and purples as the main complimentary colors in her look kind of play into a sense of unease as well as dreamy-ness. Having a color-shift fabric as her main textile also elevates her, harkening back to when divine figures were portrayed in such color-shift fabric. The custom nails and lashes are the type of attention to detail only truly appreciated on camera, the medium of film allowing for far more depth when it comes to wardrobe.
The hair and makeup team had the opportunity to showcase their skills, and I believe they succeeded flawlessly. Michelle Yeoh’s character starts off looking like a full-on space queen with this iridescent Balenciaga gown, a structured updo, and custom lashes that somehow held up through intense fight scenes. I love how they leaned into the high fashion, very over-the-top vibe while still keeping it super functional. By the end, Yeoh’s character shifts to something softer but still stunning. That final Balenciaga gown ties everything together, and I really appreciate how much thought went into making her look unique compared to her past roles. The hair and makeup heads had the freedom to experiment, and it shows. This isn’t just another Star Trek film; it has a whole new aesthetic that makes it stand out, and I’m really excited to see how we use these different brands and companies in the future for these shows.
The hair and makeup team at Star Trek: Section 31 had the opportunity to showcase their skills, and I believe they succeeded flawlessly. Michelle Yeoh’s character starts off looking like a full-on space queen with this iridescent Balenciaga gown, a structured updo, and custom lashes that somehow held up through intense fight scenes. I love how they leaned into the high fashion, very over-the-top vibe while still keeping it super functional. By the end, Yeoh’s character shifts to something softer but still stunning. That final Balenciaga gown ties everything together, and I really appreciate how much thought went into making her look unique compared to her past roles. The hair and makeup heads had the freedom to experiment, and it shows. This isn’t just another Star Trek film; it has a whole new aesthetic that makes it stand out, and I’m really excited to see how we use these different brands and companies in the future for these shows.
Sorry forgot to put my name!
I’ve been so excited for Section 31 since it was announced! With Michelle Yeoh’s performance on Star Trek: Discovery, alongside all of the Section 31 lore just waiting to be uncovered after decades of Star Trek series, I had such high hopes for the series-turned-movie. I’m disappointed to see such terrible reviews, but I’m trying to remain optimistic for my own viewing. I don’t know why I’m surprised that Balenciaga worked on the show in collaboration with Gersha Phillips, but I am. I love how the hair and the costume are so intrinsically connected. The challenge that is repeated is that Yeoh has been in so much that the designers had to consciously differentiate the looks from her most recent or most similar works. The innovation that they had and the free-rein elements are something that I’m sure a designer could be envious of. However, I feel as though without context, some of the more high end ‘Balenciaga-esque’ costumes could take away from the Trek charm. Perhaps there's a balance in the overall costume design in the show that I'm not aware of yet! I still look forward to seeing how the costumes play into the characters and plot.
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