Wardrobe: Meaning in Film Production

Wardrobe

Definition

Wardrobe is the clothing and accessories characters wear on screen, supplied and maintained by the costume department. In a script breakdown wardrobe items are traditionally circled, and each character's outfits are tracked as numbered changes tied to story days, with multiples noted for anything that gets wet, bloody, torn, or doubled for stunts.

Change numbers and story days

The costume department plans by change number, with scenes mapped onto each change. Here's how one character's scenes turn into a wardrobe breakdown:

Sc.	Story day	Situation	Maya's change
3	D1	at work, diner	Change 1: waitress uniform
7	D1	same shift	Change 1
12	D1	driving home	Change 2: jacket over uniform
22	N1	motel	Change 3: jeans, sweater
42	N4	gas station, rain	Change 6 (wet): jeans, rain jacket
61	N4	driving, continuous	Change 6 (wet)
90	D5	crash	Change 7, with blood and tear stages

Maya's scenes 42 and 61 might shoot two weeks apart, but they're the same change on the same story night, and they have to match down to how wet the jacket is. That's why story days need to be settled before the costume designer starts shopping.

What the breakdown should flag

On the breakdown sheet, wardrobe items are circled in the script and listed by character and change number. Note anything that affects quantity or fitting:

wet, dirty, bloody, or torn states, which need multiples and a plan for progression
stunt action, which needs matching doubles for the stunt performer, often with pads built in
specific pieces named in the script ("her father's watch," "the red dress")
uniforms and period clothing, which need rentals or builds and fittings
background wardrobe: counts, and whether BG bring their own

Change 7 above might need four copies of the same shirt: clean for the first half of the scene, lightly bloodied, heavily bloodied, and one for the double. Budget and fitting schedules follow from those notes.

Wardrobe and the schedule

Every change adds time. A day with Maya in three changes means three trips to the costume trailer, plus hair and makeup adjustments. The 1st AD watches for days where one actor has many changes and builds in time, or groups scenes to limit them. Fittings in prep go on the prep schedule and need the actor's availability.

Mistakes

People forget that time passes. A character in the same outfit on D1 and D3 either looks like they never went home or it's deliberate, and the costume designer should decide. People also miss wardrobe hidden in action: "she throws on a coat" is a new piece. And multiples get underestimated for rain and blood scenes, which is a problem once the only copy is soaked after take two.

The costume designer builds the final plan, and the costume supervisor runs it day to day. Storiara's Assets module pulls wardrobe from the script along with props so you can tag changes to scenes; see props and wardrobe.

Frequently asked questions

How do you count wardrobe changes in a script?

Track each character through story days. A new story day usually means a new change unless the script says otherwise, and events inside a day, like getting soaked or changing for a party, add changes too. Number them Change 1, Change 2, and so on per character.

What are wardrobe multiples?

Identical copies of a costume piece. You need them for stunt doubles, for anything that gets dirty, wet, bloody, or torn across takes, and for progressive damage, where copies are aged in stages.

Is wardrobe the same as costume?

In practice, yes. The department is usually called costume, run by the costume designer, and wardrobe is the common term on call sheets and breakdown sheets. Some productions use wardrobe for contemporary clothes and costume for period or built pieces.