FIDM Magazine

FIDM Grad Leanne Marshall Wins 'Project Runway'!

We are thrilled to announce that FIDM Alumna Leanne Marshall won first place in this season's Project Runway! A recipient of FIDM's Designer of Tomorrow Scholarship Award, Leanne graduated from the San Francisco Campus in 2001. Though this season's competition has been fierce, Leanne showed the highest degree of professionalism, technical skill, and innate talent.

"Without a doubt it's been the most amazing experience," said Leanne. "I would do it again in a heartbeat."

Next up Leanne is set to start her new label with a little help from her Project Runway winnings, $100,000 seed money from Tresemmé! Watch this space for further details. --Kim

FIDM Grad Is Stylist for The Starter Wife

Strictly Fabulous Style interviews FIDM Fashion Design Grad Agata Maskiewics about her job as stylist for the T.V. show The Starter Wife. Here's an excerpt:

"Fashion is almost like another character in The Starter Wife. So much of the personality of the actors comes through in the clothing they wear. Our goal is to have the audience as excited about the fashions as they are the characters. We want the people at home to feel as though they can hear the ruffle of Molly’s Zac Posen silk dress and smell the exquisite leather of her Manolos. We want them to daydream about getting into Molly’s closet and have the opportunity to dress from it everyday as she does. And yes, the closet is huge, since as a Hollywood woman, she never repeats an outfit!"

Read the rest of the interview here. --Kim

Pierce Jeans on FOX 11's Good Day L.A.

FIDM Grad David Hwang is president of Pierce Jeans, the denim brand featured in a recent Good Day L.A. denim makeover style segment. Watch the video here. --Kim

FIDM Fashion Design Student on The Price Is Right

FIDM Fashion Design Student Alicia Furio was a recent contestant on T.V.'s The Price Is Right. To find out what she won, head to FIDM's Fashion Club Daily. --Kim

Nick Verreos on CBS's 'The Early Show'

Popular FIDM Instructor, FIDM Graduate, and Fashion Designer Nick Verreos of T.V.'s Project Runway fame, appeared on CBS's The Early Show. Click here to watch the video clip on Nick's blog. For more on Nick's career including images of his gowns, click here. --Kim

The Latest Buzz on Film & TV Major Internships/Jobs

Film & T.V. Costume Design Grads are really using their FIDM education to make a name for themselves within the Entertainment Industry! FIDM's amazing Career Development Center and our unique industry partnerships help make it possible.

It's also exciting to see that successful working alumni are usually more than willing to hire new FIDM Students and Grads because they know that they have the skills necessary to perform well on the job. Here is just a small sampling of some of the most recent jobs held by our grads within the field of Costume Design. --Kim

Kristi Hoffman, Set Costume Designer for Drew Barrymore and Ellen Page's upcoming film Whip It
Agata Maskiewicz, Costume Designer for NBC's The Starter Wife
Kelli Martin, Designer Contestant on Project Runway: Season 5
Suzy Magnin, Set Costumer for FOX's Prison Break and Costume for So You Think You Can Dance
Michelle Liu, Costume Designer for CBS's The Cleaner and Key Costumer for Steven Spielberg's Tin Tin
Rumaldo Medina, Designer/Sampler Maker for ABC's America's Prom Queen
Andrea Galer, Emmy Winner and Costume Designer for Jane Eyre miniseries
Christie Tackett, Design Guest for Tyra Banks Show
Diane Savone, Set Costume for Teen Choice Awards
Ray Baltazar, Producer for Ed Hardy's Smashbox runway show
Rumaldo Medina, Sketched Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise's wedding attire for In-Style Celebrity Weddings
Joan Lee, Intern for City Ballet of Los Angeles
Greg Lavoi, Costume Designer for The Closer

T.V. Stars and Costume Designers Attend Launch of FIDM's T.V. Costume Exhibition

On July 26, FIDM launched it's 3rd Annual Outstanding Art of Television Costume Design exhibition, featuring costumes from today's top T.V. shows, including Scrubs, Project Runway, and Emmy-award nominated Mad Men and Pushing Daisies. Also on display are wonderful retro costumes from T.V. shows of the '70s and '80s such as The Carol Burnett Show and Moonlighting.

This is an amazing opportunity to see the work of some of the most renowned Costume Designers working in the business. The exhibition runs through September 28. Visit the FIDM Museum & Galleries page for details. --Kim

Images from the Outstanding Art of Television Costume Design exhibition opening: (from top) Bryan Batt (Salvatore Romano on Mad Men) with Costume Designer Katherine Jane Bryant; Spencer Grammer (Casey Cartwright on Greek); Lloyd Segan, Producer of Greek, Costume Designer, FIDM/The Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising Grad, Mandi Line, and Shawn Piller, Producer of Greek; Marg Helgenberger, Actress, plays the role of Catherine Willows on the television show CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.

FIDM Grad Wins 1st Project Runway Challenge

When the designers on last night's episode of Project Runway were told to hit the supermarket instead of the fabric store for materials for their designs, FIDM Grad Kelli Martin proved she was worth her weight in groceries! Pulling ahead of the other designers with an innovative dress made of burnt coffee filters and vacuum cleaner bags (above, bottom pic), Kelli won the first challenge of of the season, no doubt setting the precedence for upcoming challenges. Congratulations Kelli!  We also loved FIDM Grad Leanne Marshall's delicious dress, pictured at top. --Angel

Click here to check out Kelli's collection from the FIDM 2006 DEBUT Show!

Go here if you want to see more designs from last night's premiere of Project Runway Season 5!

 

When the designers on last night's episode of Project Runway were told to hit the supermarket instead of the fabric store for materials for their designs, FIDM Grad Kelli Martin proved she was worth her weight in groceries! Pulling ahead of the other designers with an innovative dress made of burnt coffee filters and vacuum cleaner bags (above, bottom pic), Kelli won the first challenge of of the season, no doubt setting the precedence for upcoming challenges. Congratulations Kelli!  We also loved FIDM Grad Leanne Marshall's delicious dress, pictured at top. --Angel

Click here to check out Kelli's collection from the FIDM 2006 DEBUT Show!

Go here if you want to see more designs from last night's premiere of Project Runway Season 5!

FIDM Grad to Appear on New CBS Show

Brandy Yant, who holds FIDM degrees in both Merchandise Product Development and the Advanced Study Program in International Manufacturing & Product Development, not only has her own clothing line, Cross Training Clothing, but she's about to appear on the CBS television show The Greatest American Dog with her miniature schnauzer Beacon. Read the entire interview and see a pic of Brandy's cute schnauzer on FIDM's Fashion Club Daily. --Kim

FIDM Grads to Star in New Season of Project Runway

Two FIDM Grads will star in the new season of Bravo's Project Runway. Leanne Marshall, a recipient of FIDM's Levis/Dockers Fashion Designer of Tomorrow Scholarship, graduated from FIDM's San Francisco campus. Fellow Project Runway contestant Kelli Martin won a Bob Mackie Scholarship to attend FIDM's Los Angeles campus, where she graduated from the Advanced Study Fashion Design Program and appeared in the annual FIDM DEBUT Fashion Show. Watch the Fashion Club Daily blog for full coverage of Project Runway: Season 5 as it unfolds. --Kim 

Images, top to bottom: Look from Leanne Marshall's Leanimal collection; Look from Kelli Martin's Anti-Label Collection.