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Dallas and Delilah
A USC Thesis Film by Lizzie Green
Two women in their 70s embrace living life with no regrets. Dallas & Delilah is a vibrant story that will inspire you to follow your heart.
Dallas
Dallas, described as a "single lesbian with a couple of cavities and a motorbike", is a hardcore, motorcycle riding old woman, living life to the fullest after growing up gay in a small town.
Dallas is not ashamed of her identify and want to make it known to people. When creating her outfit I was inspired by Punk DIY Fashion. Growing up in a small town, Dallas likley had to find solace and community within something, as she couldn't with the people around her - I thought that for someone like her it would be music.
The punk subculture, which was coming into popularity during the time that Dallas would've been a teenager/young adult, has lots of anti-establishment, rebellious ideas that I think that Dallas would have resonated with.
AI generated art
It was also, depending on the particular subset of the subculture, was accepting of queer people. Because of this, I wanted her outfit to be Punk-inspired in some sort of way.
When creating her colorboard, I really wanted her to stand out against every other character in the film. I made her bright yellows, pinks and oranges (also a nod to the colors of the lesbian flag), where as all the other characters are blues and cooler toned colors. Also, being the motorcycle-riding-badass that she is, she of course needed some boots and a cool, retro helmet. For the jacket I wanted it to be a more vintage style - Like this is something she got in the 70s and has been wearing since. I used AI (Dall-e 2) to generate the concept image on the far right.
The Jacket
Going back to the DIY Punk fashion aspect, I wanted to hand embroider the back of the jacket, making it seem as though Dallas Herself had done it. First- I had to draw out the design.
Inspired by traditional tattoos style art, I hand drew the design, then touched it up in photoshop before finalizing the image.
I then got to work, hand embroidering the vintage leather jacket I had sourced, for 20+ hours
I aged the jacket, which was in perfect condition, to make it look older and more worn. I did this with paint and filing down certain areas to mimic road rash.
The rest of Dallas' outfit consisted of a customized bag, fun rings, funky sunglasses, jeans, T-shirts, boots, and of course, a gold helmet!
Delilah
Delilah, described as "a 70-year-old woman who has been a good wife to a mediocre husband", is an old-fashioned, put together woman who is getting over the death of her husband and finally able to be free and do the things she wants.
When creating Delilah's outfit I wanted her to be classic and old fashioned, as she is used to keeping up appearances for her husband, who would judge her body and looks. For her color palette, I wanted her to blend in with the background, as she's not someone who wants to be noticed. I decided on a turquoise/aqua color, as it contrasts Dallas, yet they compliment each other well. For the style of her dress, I sourced it from a vintage store, its a homemade "house dress" which women would wear for quick errands, or around the house as its casual and easy to slip off and on. For her accessories, I went with a classic sting of pearls, matching studs, as well as a white cardigan and loafers.
Laura Speer
Laura Speer is the long lost love, one who got away from Dallas. Unlike Dallas, she stayed put in the town they grew up in. When Dallas goes to reconnect with her, she soon finds out that Laura suffers from Alzhimers and dosen't remember Dallas.
For Laura, I wanted her in the same color palette and imagery as Dallas, but a desaturated version of her, to show their connection, but also show a version of what Dallas could've been, had she stayed put.
For Laura Speer, I wanted her in florals, to mimic Dallas' jacket. I found the perfect pair of pants, but they were too saturated for the older, destaturated look I was going for. I was able to put them in a bleach solution of 1 part bleach to 10 parts water for about 30 seconds and got the results I was looking for (pictured on the right). I also have her in a light yellow top, again, mimicking Dallas and big quirky glasses.
All costumes made within a $500 budget.
(Not pictured, security guard, hospice nurse, dentist)
Follow Dallas and Delilah on Instagram!
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