We all know the evil Cruella who wanted to make furs and coats from cute Dalmatian dogs. A woman with a strong personality, a bad attitude and a compulsive smoker. From now on, however, Cruella, in this film, does not smoke, since the company has not allowed anyone to smoke in its films since 2007.
If you haven’t seen this Disney animation, which was released in 1996, you should definitely check out the movie. It stars Emma Stone and Cruella’s hair and makeup designer, Nadia Stacey.
The family action comedy is based on the film adaptation of British author Dodi Smith’s 1956 novel of the same name, from Disney’s original 1961 animated film.
And a piece of information that not many people know is that Cruella‘s name is ranked 13th on Forbes’ list of the richest 15 fictional characters. The same list includes Tony Stark and Scrooge McDuck.
The following is a translated interview with Nadia Stacey… to see what’s behind that hair, after all?
-How were you inspired and created the Cruella look?
It was mainly the time we were in. Punk fashion was exploding on the streets at the time and the looks were so big you couldn’t ignore it and I wanted to do the same in Cruella. I was inspired by Debbie Harry of Blondie for Estella’s performance and by a German singer called Nina Hagen. For the Cruella, I didn’t just want it to be punk, I also needed to mix a classic shape, so I looked a lot at avant garde hair shows, high fashion shows like Alexander McQueen, John Galliano and Vivienne Westwood. Everyone seems to take classic period styles and make them their own, so I wanted to do the same.
-Can you tell us, the development process of Emma’s appearance Stone for key moments in the film?
I always go with a script. I think about what’s happening at that particular moment, that’s how I operate. For example, when we see the crash, in the fashion show, I needed something that would make it look like it would have the same effect. Before I do the hair, I work closely with the costume designer to see what he’s wearing for each scene. For example, on stage, with the red dress at the dance, the red dress, the red dress, it was too high up in the neck, so the hair had to be shorter and sit above the dress, so there’s always a lot of thought.
I always wanted to keep the black and white of her hair separate from each other, so I never merged the colors together. I like the idea that she plays with her style all the time, adding length, or changing the curls or texture. Obviously, because of the history of the change from Estella to Cruella, she had to wear wigs, so I had a lot of freedom to change styles. I just wanted every appearance to be different because he’s an ever-evolving character, so the metaphor was a great reference.
-You also designed the make-up for the film. What is it like to cover both hair and makeup for a production?
I’ve always done both. In the UK, we don’t tend to split departments, so the specialist who takes responsibility for such a job should be able to do both. I couldn’t work any other way, because I think of a character as a whole, so the look has to be a combination for me. I like to create, to design, a character from scratch… his whole look.
-What is the background behind Cruella’s black and white hair?
Well, her natural hair [Estella] is black and white and she dyed it red to try something else and see if it suits her. But when she begins to find herself and develop Cruella, she returns to her roots (literally) and embraces black and white. It’s a sign of empowerment and confidence in the film. It finally accepts and emerges, who it is.
Initially black and white is used as a tool of deception when she goes to the Baroness’s ball. Because Estella was known to the Baroness, she had to start creating Cruella.
-How many wigs did you use for Cruella’s character and how did you keep them looking so well groomed and good during the shoot?
Because the wig companies were so busy, we only had two black and white wigs and two red wigs at the beginning. I then added pieces of hair to change styles, so it was quite stressful and needed lots of quick changes. There were so many processes to them, rolling, heat, backcombing, crimping and the white hair is so processed I had to take care of it all the time. I put a lot of masks and overnight treatments on them whenever I could. I also used them during filming, on Emma under the wig, to adjust her hair.
-During the filming, what was technically the most difficult part, in terms of your work, of Cruella’s hair?
The styles are so wild that in moments of action they’re everywhere, which is fine at times, but when it’s happening all the time, it’s difficult and you shouldn’t be distracted by it. Also, the two sides to the hair reacted so differently. The black side was much softer and curled in a different way than the white side, so I spent a lot of time making the wigs, trying to balance the styles.
The black side looked thicker and more dense, whereas on the white side it was just the opposite and you could see inside, so there was no balance. It was difficult and I never expected that to be the challenge.
-What is your favourite moment from the film, in terms of hair, and how did you go about creating it?
I love the 18th century style trash wig. I had this idea because when Estella was little she remembers all these incredible hairstyles from the dances at the Baroness’s house, and so when she threw all the clothes on the Baroness’s doorstep years later, she almost mimicked the style, but it had to be done, of course, in the Cruella way, a one-sided and messy way.
I really liked playing with classic shapes and then punking them. As I did at the end, in Hell Hall, where Cruella walks, with the front toe waving like a 1930s style, but the back is a punk-inspired style.
Interview:hji
Photos:source Disney
