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From her parent’s house in Ontario, Canada, the first thing costume designer Antoinette Messam does during our Zoom is open up the curtains to let more light in. It illuminated her glowing, supple skin. This action of ushering in light became symbolic of Messam’s career throughout our time together. Her career has taken her on an impressive journey, and it has led to her working on films with directors who are household names such as Jeymes Samuel.
At seven, she migrated to Toronto from her birthplace, Montego Bay, Jamaica. She grew up in a family of craftspeople. Her mother was a dressmaker, and her grandfather a tailor. Messam draws on her roots in styling and modeling to tell compelling stories on screen as a costume designer, so it makes sense that she has traversed the worlds of fashion and Hollywood with sincerity.
Wardrobe departments hardly get the recognition they deserve, however necessary and demanding their roles are. And Hollywood has been especially slow to acknowledge Black costume designers compared to their white peers. Even when it does, when we do, the same names are rotated. Messam is opening up the conversation. “I started an organization last spring called the International Society of Black Costume Designers because people just don’t know how many of us are out there,” she explains. “[There’s a] group of UK-based costume designers [who are] huge and doing amazing things, working on Baby Reindeer, the list goes on.” (Mekel Bailey spearheaded costume designer for a key episode of Baby Reindeer–he was nominated for an Emmy Award last year).
Black costume designers are everywhere, from North America to Europe to Australia to Africa, and have the talent and skill to work within all kinds of genres. Messam, who is a pioneering figure knows this all too well. She is primarily known for spearheading costume design for Creed, The Book of Clarence, and The Harder They Fall. At the moment, she’s bringing her narrative knack to The Bluff, a 19th-century period film set in the Cayman Islands. “It’s a pirates and extraction movie, a folklore we know in the Caribbean,” she says. It’s also a chance for the world to witness more of her range.
When it comes to period films, what actors wear plays a big part in what makes them believable. That’s a challenge the designer faces and seemingly masters without much effort. The other notion that makes her work stand out is her ability to give her characters a contemporary spin for relatability. This allows her to establish a connection with viewers through historical figures on screen, even if the era in which they’re set is far, far away.
Below ESSENCE.com catches up with Messam, in conversation the costume designer opens up about her career working in film and her approach to breathing life into actors and acts including LaKeith Stanfield, Kevin Hart, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Zazie Beetz, and more.
You got your start in the fashion industry. What was it like transitioning from that into film?
It was tough. I moved from modeling as a teenager, and then to a baby stylist. I was a young parent wanting to have a more stable income, and fashion is not always consistent. I segued into buying [for costume departments] and support staff in prep for a film. But I was able to bring in the skills I had as a stylist, to bring that sensibility, those contacts, those relationships.
I did a movie called Lift in the UK, and we traveled to Ireland and Italy for it. My background as a stylist was really helpful in a movie of that size where I had teams in different countries. There was no better training. I miss those days sometimes.
Do you have moments where you think, “Wow, I can’t believe I get to do this work?”
I’m privileged that I pulled it off. You read the script and the world is coming to life in your head. It’s creatively building that world with my team. It’s not always right in front of you, because you’re doing multiple things at the same time. And then you stop and see the puzzle has come together. You look at what you’ve created and you’re like, “Wow, I did that. The vision in my head came to life.”
On the surface, the costume in The Book of Clarence is quite uniform. How did you create depth in the characters’ clothes?
There’s obviously a basic template: the look of biblical costume. Although the main characters are wearing a tunic robe over a top, they all have very distinct looks within that. Especially somebody like Omar. As the story went along, he added some jewelry, he was able to now afford a robe. That’s part of what the story is about. [It’s about] these men who try to do fraud and play a game with the public. Clarence, the leader, LaKeith Stanfield, goes from pretty neutral, mundane colors to refining his costume with more color and jewelry, making it sleeker. If you follow the story and see their transition throughout the film, you gradually see it in their clothes as well.
What’s your preparation process?
It depends on the project. [The Book of Clarence] was unique. Normally, I would have proper research and development time to research the period, [and] research the materials. The best places to sort them. Even if I’m prepping from Los Angeles, [I’m] assessing where it’s coming from and starting to put that in place—setting up accounts and getting things organized. With The Harder They Fall, I had three months. I like a movie that gives me some time, when there’s a character arc and you get to know different sides of them.
Which character in The Harder They Fall was the most exciting to work with?
That’s a tough one. The most obvious would be Danielle Deadwyler, who was androgynous. I didn’t necessarily go out of my way to make her look masculine; I dressed her as her character, a female who dressed masculine because she wanted to be taken seriously in the role she played.
Not so obvious would be Jonathan Majors’s character. I loved his costumes, but I had the most time with him. We really workshopped it. He’d come into the fitting and we’d try things on. We’d have the tailor, the jacket maker, the bootmaker in the room. Jonathan is very engaged and involved with fittings.
You received a nomination from the Black Reel Awards and the Costume Designers Guild for Excellence in Period Film. How does that feel?
It feels really good. I don’t feel that The Book of Clarence got the love it should’ve. I was very disappointed by the assumptions of what the movie should or should not be, or people’s assumptions of religious or non-religious—I felt that hurt the film. So, I was really surprised and happy that they saw my work.
Aside from that, I hoped that this award season, more of the people who contributed to this movie would have been seen. Especially [since] some of the actors really put their heart and soul into this movie. I guess I’m honored that my work rose above the fold. The fact that I got any nominations is especially meaningful.
Can you talk to me about showing up for Black costume designers in the industry?
One of the reasons I wanted to have this organization [The International Society of Black Costume Designers] is to build a community of support and mentorship, to share our work and say “We’re out here.”
But also, the Black costume designer title means so much in America, whereas I was just a working costume designer in Canada that then started to bring up more people who look like me, opening the door. I’m a woman who happens to be a costume designer who happens to be Black.
My race doesn’t define my career unless I allow it to. That’s a harder fight across the border than it is anywhere else. [Race] doesn’t lead in any other country. The point I’m trying to make is I love the ability to do whatever script comes to me that interests me.
