Costume

The Costume Department

This department has nine members. Györgyi Szakács and her colleagues as the assistant costume designer Pascale Bourtequoi and the costume supervisor Sparka Lee Hall are responsible for providing the 25 actors and roughly 1700 extras with costumes appropriate to their roles. While many historical films require mainly glamorous costumes, 'Taking Sides' must be true to the post war period, when glittering evening dresses were rarely to be seen. Of more interest are the 'Trümmerfrauen' who cleared the rubble off the streets of Germany's bombed towns and cities; they wore little more than rags, but often added a colourful shawl or scarf in their hair to preserve a sense of beauty.

The costume department searched through second-hand shops in Berlin and Budapest for original pieces from the post-war period. They found home-sewn dresses, personally tailored suits, silk stockings and ties, Budapester shoes, silver cuff links and a coat lined with hamster fur. They took note of the resourcefulness evident in the clothing of the time.

Furtwängler as a character presented extra challenges; photographs of him show that he was very fashion-conscious and always dressed elegantly for public occasions.

Equally important were the uniforms of the Allied Forces stationed in Berlin. In cooperation with the "Alliierten-Museum" in Berlin and other military experts, the costume designers worked with original uniforms, which they found in the stocks of various archives and military outfitters. Whether for dancing in the officers club, small talk in the dining room, examinations in the office or official meetings, official 'outfits' were tailored for every occasion.

Using original materials and designs, the costume department tries to evoke the atmosphere of post-war Germany.