Los Angeles Times: The first thing you are likely to wonder about Tom Broecker, who has spent more than 30 years as the costume designer at “Saturday Night Live,” is whether he ever sleeps. Indeed, he does — but not much. Broecker says he averages about five hours a night, and tends to get more shut-eye earlier in the week.
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I remember watching a 10 minute youtube video a few years ago that briefly took the viewers on a tour through the process of costuming, hair, and makeup at SNL. I don’t remember much from it, but what stuck with me was the sheer number of costumes that have to be created within such a short timeframe. The ability of the costume team to churn out costumes at this rate is incredible.
What stuck out to me in this article was the actual hours for tech, dress rehearsals, and the live performances. What Tom Broecker said about emotionally detaching from his work was some invaluable advice, and I think that when you work on such a tight schedule and make so many costumes, it’s probably easier to detach emotionally from the work you are doing. Currently, I can recall in great detail the projects I have worked on, but that is because I don’t have the same years of experience that Broecker has.
The first thing I noticed when reading this article was the education and experience this designer had to support his success in the TV industry. He has been working on the show since 1986, which is a really long time especially when you think about it. I know this person has many TV credits on SNL but my favorite was the lobster one for One Day More. That was my favorite SNL skit I think it's very funny. Beyond all of this, I'm very impressed with this designer because he manages multiple skits a week And also overseas a whole team of people who are helping him design these costumes. he has just a few days to come up with 12 different costumes per sketch I believe which is very stressful and puts a lot of pressure on him. I think that costuming for television is super cool and I commend all of his hard work to keep SNL alive and on its feet.
As a born lover of SNL, I've always wondered how the magic happens. One of my dream jobs is to work in SNL someday! The entire show is proof that the impossible is possible, putting together 80 costumes and the span of a few days is insane. Tom talks about the important skill of being able to invest in a thing while staying emotionally detached. The skill is vital being that things are constantly changing and moving forward. As important as the skill is, it is one I still have yet to master. directly equivalent to theater, where we build and then soon after destroy hundreds of hours of work, being able to move forward quickly is vital. as Tom also mentions nostalgia is warm and comfortable, but in such a fast-paced environment they're simply isn't the time to look back. The span of Tom's work is incredible; he even created the Moo Deng costume!
This article was a really fascinating deep dive into the process of costuming for SNL. I genuinely cannot imagine what the daily schedule of Tom Broecker and his team looks like and how they manage to not only do that job but also (sometimes) sleep, and it’s definitely impressive that he has managed to maintain working that schedule for thirty years without some serious burnout. Like he mentioned in the interview, it definitely takes a pretty special team with some insanely talented people to make the chaos of a week of SNL work. One of the things I found most impressive in this article was the discussion of the storage of all of the previous costumes, as well as pieces that will someday become future SNL costume pieces. I really wish this article had some photos of this mysterious storage room floor, since I can only imagine the vastness of that space, and the sheer quantity of pieces they have in storage.
Saturday Nigh Live is a staple in the entertainment/TV industry. I love watching it and laughing my head off with my family. On the other side, I have an incredible appreciation for the technicians and backstage people who are able to pull it off. One my mother’s high school friends works for the The Late Show as the Props head, and has barely a week of turn around to make the show happen. Often he gets a notice that a prop is needed for a show that day and must rally his team members and connections to get it finished. Considering all this, I am amazed that costumers are able to pull together so many incredible costumes in the same amount of time. It really is a skill to be able to pull it off. One thing that stuck out to me was Tom Broecker’s comment to no get emotionally attached to any of your work. The script is always changing, sometimes even day of, and once the show happens they are already moving to the next one. While it’s hard for an artist to let go of their work, especially for me, it a necessity for the industry that we work in. I commend the costume designers and artists that are able to work on such a tight schedule and create wonderful costumes for SNL every week.
Working on Saturday Night Live is my dream job. I love the thrill of live television and the face-paced ever changing environment. This article highlighted just how chaotic and fun the space is. I did not know that it was wednesday when the sketches are finalized. Which in hindsight makes sense, as the writers need time to write, however is an insane timeline for production. I have always been in awe of specifically the costumes in SNL as the sheer amount of them are remarkable. Not to mention the finesse that they have. I would love an article specifically about the hair/makeup department because knowing now what I know about the timeline of each episode I am so curious as to how they create these insane wig looks for rotating hosts in such a short amount of time. I also thought Broecker’s remarks on the art of detachment were quite poignant as this is something that Susan drilled into us first year.
Tom Broecker is such an incredible artist. I can't imagine doing everything he does, on 5 hours of sleep, to the degree of excellence we have gotten accustomed to watching SNL. The idea of having to source quality costumes within 3 days is one thing, but designing and making them from scratch is incredible. I love that he mentioned the fact that it is easier to work with theatre kids. Watching SNL, you realize that every celebrity is just a former theatre kid who gets to relive those days on SNL. Mentioning that all the former costumes are in storage at a warehouse in Brooklyn, what I would not GIVE to be able to look through some of those costumes. There are so many I remember so distinctly from my childhood. And the way Broecker picks up pieces while shopping is so interesting and makes so much sense. It is so weird to think that 60% of SNL costumes are things available to the general public. I wonder how many SNL costume pieces I have unwittingly walked past in my life.
Not only is the sheer quantity of costumes impressive, the detail and care of the team is incredible. I hadn’t thought of the emotional implications of having to pour all of your efforts into costumes to have them be used once and then having to jump right into making more. I guess you have to be at least partially emotionally detached in order to continuously move forward week after week, staying stuck on one piece for too long would cause a holdup in production, and that cannot happen. The way Tom Broecker is viewed as someone who can do anything you ask of him is a daunting feeling for anyone. To have to figure out how to make something happen and do it fast is hard especially in such a high stress environment. I am surprised Tom has any time for himself with the amount of effort and time it takes to make just one episode of SNL.
I loved seeing this in depth process on SNL costume creation. I have not personally watched much SNL, but wow that is a lot of costumes to create in a week. The napkin sketch to the final costume was cool to see in how close the final stayed to the first draft, it kind of highlights the fast pace of work that has to be done. The research and passion that they all have while still being professional about cuts is inspiring to see. I know it is easy to get emotionally attached and it is harder to work hard when there is no emotional attachment, so it is cool that they are able to regulate that attachment to make the show and their workflows better as a whole. The story about getting a real lobster as reference is so much fun, especially that they got to eat it in the end instead of throwing it out, a fun end to research.
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