Webinar Dressed For The Screen: Costume Theatre And Cinematic Identity

Explore Rome’s position as one of the world’s most influential centres for costume design, examining its pivotal role in shaping cinematic imagery from classical Hollywood to contemporary film, television and streaming network series that are shaping the entertainment industries.

However, long before the advent of digital effects and accelerated production cycles, Rome established itself as a powerhouse of costume craftsmanship, with historic costume and fashion houses supplying garments, armour and specialised textiles for some of the most iconic productions in global film history.

The session traces the development of Rome’s costume and fashion houses, from atelier traditions rooted in theatre, opera and ecclesiastical dress to their evolution as trusted collaborators for international film studios and directors.

Through selected film and character case studies, costume design is analysed as a narrative and semiotic practice, demonstrating how costume constructs character, communicates power, status and psychology, and operates as a form of visual storytelling rather than surface decoration.

Central to the discussion is the professional role of the costume designer not only as a creative designer, but as a manager of costume and a director of image. Costume design is presented as a complex, multidisciplinary profession that integrates historical research, material experimentation, budgeting, fittings, continuity, and close collaboration with directors, actors and production teams.

Finally, the webinar considers costume as allusion, drawing on history, mythology, politics and cultural memory to shape meaning on screen across past, present and future contexts. This session highlights costume design as a viable and intellectually rigorous international career and forms part of ACM’s Master’s programme in The Art & Craft of the Costume Designer, designed for students and professionals seeking to engage critically with film, theatre, storytelling and visual culture.

At the end of the event, we will answer your questions during a Q&A.