CDG Nominations: 'Gucci' is IN, 'Spencer' is OUT

by Cláudio Alves

My reaction, seeing SPENCER snubbed, yet again.

The Costume Designers Guild announced its nominations for the 2021 movie and TV year. Some guild award trends continue to accentuate, including the industry's lack of passion for Spencer and the resurgence of Nightmare Alley as an awards contender. House of Gucci is also getting a boost, as is Spider-Man: No Way Home, which scores an inexplicable nomination here for costumes. Overall, though, this was a good day for the Marvel industrial complex, scoring nods across the board, for big and small screen fare. As far as victory predictions go, Jenny Beavan's Disney couture for Cruella seems like the obvious choice. Check out the full lineups and additional comments after the jump…

Making the red dress, behind the scenes in CRUELLA

EXCELLENCE IN PERIOD FILM

• Cruella, Jenny Beavan
• Cyrano, Massimo Cantini Parrini & Jacqueline Durran 
• House of Gucci, Janty Yates 
• Nightmare Alley, Luis Sequeira
• West Side Story, Paul Tazewell

This is the CDG category with the most overlap with Oscars, at least if we look at their collective histories. However, it's rare for the Academy to copy-paste the guild's period film choices. Sometimes, they include a contender from the fantasy lineup. Sometimes they pick something else altogether. The CDG didn't even nominate recent winners like Little Women and Phantom Thread. Even so, Spencer's snub is terrible news for Jacqueline Durran (though she still got in for her other 2021 project) and the overall film. Every day that goes by, Kristen Stewart's Best Actress bid feels shakier and shakier. On the other hand, this recognition is great for Cyrano, who might have been a lock at the Oscars had MGM/UA not messed up their release plan so mightily.

The costume designers of DUNE

EXCELLENCE IN SCI-FI/FANTASY FILM

• Dune, Jacqueline West & Robert Morgan
• The Green Knight, Malgosia Turzanska 
• The Matrix Resurrections, Lindsay Pugh
• Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Kym Barrett
• Spider-Man: No Way Home, Sanja M. Hays
• The Suicide Squad, Judianna Makovsky

Six nominations and still no space for Sammy Sheldon's Eternals costumes - a shame. They run circles around the Spider-Man nostalgia trip, as far as I'm concerned, though it seems that one movie's critical failure and the other's box-office records are playing a role in how the industry sees them. Obviously, Dune is the likely winner and the surefire transfer from this ballot to the AMPAS final five. Still, I'd like to live in a world where Malgosia Turzanska's work got the hosannas it deserves. Her inclusion here is one of the most joyful surprises of the season.

Can Ruth E. carter win again?EXCELLENCE IN CONTEMPORARY FILM

• Coming 2 America, Ruth E. Carter
• Don't Look Up, Susan Matheson
• In The Heights, Mitchell Travers
• No Time to Die, Suttirat Anne Larlarb
• Zola, Derica Cole Washington

Despite Don't Look Up's inclusion, this is a strong list. If Carter hadn't been so recently snubbed for Dolemite Is My Name, I'd predict her as a likely winner and possible Oscar morning surprise. After all, Coming 2 America was shortlisted for its makeup, so the Academy's watching it. In other news, Zola is an inspired choice (the runner-up in my dream ballot, behind The Green Knight), while No Time to Die continues to prove itself a guild juggernaut. It's starting to feel like the latest Bond movie will majorly overperform in "under the line" categories. I'm also happy for Mitchell Travers, who should have won everything under the sun for his Hustlers' outfits back in 2019.

Caroline Eselin-Schaefer, behind the scenes on THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

I don't have much to say regarding the TV nominees, though one must applaud the inclusions of The Underground Railroad. I'm rooting for Caroline Eselin-Schaefer's brilliant mix of period and fantasy, rugged ragged details, and hardwon beauty.

EXCELLENCE IN PERIOD TELEVISION

• The Great: Seven Days, Sharon Long
• Halston: Becoming Halston, Jeriana San Juan
• The Underground Railroad: Chapter 8: Indiana Autumn, Caroline Eselin-Schaefer 
• WandaVision: Filmed Before a Live Studio Audience, Mayes C. Rubeo 
• What We Do in the Shadows: The Wellness Centre, Laura Montgomery 

EXCELLENCE IN SCI-FI/FANTASY TELEVISION 

• The Book of Boba Fett: Chapter 1, Shawna Trpcic
• The Handmaid's Tale: Nightshade, Debra Hanson
• Loki: Journey into Mystery, Christine Wada
• What We Do in the Shadows: Gail, Laura Montgomery
• The Witcher: Family, Lucinda Wright 

EXCELLENCE IN CONTEMPORARY TELEVISION 

• Emily in Paris: French Revolution, Patricia Field & Marylin Fitoussi
• Euphoria: F*ck Anyone Who's Not a Sea Blob, Heidi Bivens 
• Hacks: Pilot, Kathleen Felix-Hager
• Mare of Easttown: Miss Ladyhawk Herself, Meghan Kasperlik
• Squid Game: VIPS, Cho Sang-kyung

EXCELLENCE IN VARIETY, REALITY-COMPETITION, LIVE TELEVISION

• Annie Live!, Emilio Sosa
• Dancing with the Stars: Semi-Finals, Daniela Gschwendtner & Steven Norman Lee 
• The Late Late Show with James Corden: Crosswalk Cinderella, Lauren Shapiro 
• The Masked Singer: 2 Night Season Premiere, Part 2: Back to School, Marina Toybina & Gabrielle Letamendi 
• Saturday Night Live: Rami Malek / Young Thug, Tom Broecker & Eric Justian

Will CRUELLA inspire two victories at the CDG Awards?

EXCELLENCE IN SHORT FORM DESIGN

• The Bold Type: "Cruella" (Commercial), Mandi Line 
• Cadillac: Edgar Scissorhands ft. Timothée Chalamet, "Hands Free" (Commercial), Melissa DesRosiers
• Ed Sheeran: "Shivers" (Music Video), Ami Goodheart
• Snoop Dogg's Triller: Fight Club "We're Bringing Boxing Back" (Commercial), Dawn Ritz
• Swarovski: "Welcome to Wonderlab" (Commercial), B. Åkerlund

Who are you rooting for in the CDG Awards race?

Comments

[cal roth]

It's ridiculous that they are ignoring Canonero's incredible work in The French Dispatch. Of course, it's a case of Most Costumes, but they are all brilliant. She's conceived the costumes for different color palettes, making every episode of the movie very specific. It's a very detailed work. Not even Cruella is better.

[cal roth]

(And Annette deserved a nomination in Contemporary)

[Amy Camus]

The SAG awards were a harbinger, not an anomaly. By the time nominations morning rolls around it will be a bigger surprise if Kristen Stewart is nominated than if she isn't

[Finbar McBride]

I am curious to see if the decision to release Nightmare Alley now in black and white will impact its award trajectory.

[Roge]

I don’t like SPENCER, nor Kristen’s Diana performance, but Jacqueline Durran should be nominated. POTD’s costume design being ignored also doesn’t sit right with me at all.

[Peggy Sue]

I don't understand the nominations for Don't Look Up and the Bond movie.

Canonero and Durran should have been nominated. No discussion.

I'm Team Tazewell and that wonderful golden dress.

[Joe G.]

I love the No Time to Die and In the Heights nominations. In particular, No Time to Die is one of the better outfitted Bond films because there were new character types. I thought they did an excellent job outfitting the women as professionals at different levels (007 and Moneypenny) as well as Paloma's stunning dress. Even Bond's final comando outfit was well-fit, but also fit the character we met in his first outing.

I do wonder if Nightmare Alley could still make it across the BP finish line if enough craft branches push it forward. It seems like it's a film that's being remembered and watched by individual guilds (SAG included), and while not loved, could make it in the 10th spot.

I love the Hacks nomination. The thing that's so great about the pilot is that in the first 3 minutes they burn through a lot of costumes, each that gives us a sense of the type of comedian and character that Debra plays. There's also a ton of great work with the extras and guest players, establishing the differences in class and taste among the people in Vegas.

[Joe G.]

Also, the Don't Look Up nomination is odd. I don't think any of the costumes were especially noteworthy. It must be a really strong BP contender to show up here.