Five-time Emmy winner Lou Eyrich is no stranger to the red carpets and bright lights of Tinseltown. Eyrich and first-time Emmy nominated costumer designer Sarah Evelyn are nominated for their impressive work on Hollywood, Ryan Murphy’s latest Netflix series.

When it came time for Eyrich and Evelyn to dress the talent on Hollywood, they found an unexpected amount of competition. “We were competing with nine productions, including productions in Europe,” shares Evelyn.

For Evelyn, that meant countless hours of hunting down and even making the 1940’s costumes needed to achieve the vision of creator Ryan Murphy.

Awards Focus caught up with the duo to discuss their intricate work on the show, defining Ryan Murphy’s vision, and their Emmy nominations for Outstanding Period Costumes.

Costume Design for Netflix's HOLLYWOOD by Lou Eyrich & Sarah Evelyn
Costume Design for Netflix’s HOLLYWOOD by Lou Eyrich & Sarah Evelyn

Awards Focus:

What was the early discussions like with Ryan? Do you glean anything from the scripts or is it mainly the discussions?

Lou Eyrich: 

Ryan always has a precise idea of the tone, we wanted to make sure that the color palette was really different… that meant a lot of blues, greens, and browns. We also wanted it to showcase the whole Golden Age of Hollywood, and Tinseltown opening back up after the war.

AF: 

I can’t imagine that there’s warehouses full of 1940s costumes, was there difficulties sourcing the material?

Sarah Evelyn: 

There have been so many period shows happening over the last few years that our biggest issue was competition from other shows and a lot of the original clothes are aging. We were competing with nine productions, including productions in Europe. Those challenges drove us to make a lot of the material.

Eyrich: 

Besides the fabric, it’s very difficult to find the vintage laces and vintage buttons. It’s very hard to replicate something from the 40s with modern materials.

AF:  As the episodes progressed, how did the costumes change to reflect and adapt to characters and the changing storyline?

Evelyn: 

An overarching story arc is the rise of the “have nots” like Camille where their careers then really developed. For example, for Camille we moved to a little bit more color-blocking and she got very glamorous at the end, where she had about three different red carpet looks. That helped us elevate her and signal fineness, money, being chic.

Costume Design for Netflix's HOLLYWOOD by Lou Eyrich & Sarah Evelyn
Costume Design for Netflix’s HOLLYWOOD by Lou Eyrich & Sarah Evelyn

AF: 

What are you most proud of regarding your work on the series?

Evelyn: 

The consistency of the work across the show. I think that’s because the collaboration with hair and makeup, production design, and of course the leadership from Ryan. Our crew was incredibly collaborative and made it effortless to sort of affect the vision and bring it to life.

Eyrich: 

For me, I’m most proud of the team that carried this show to the finish line in such a gorgeous fashion and the collaboration with hair and makeup, production design, cinematographer, props, it was a true collaboration of a very creative team and I’m proud of the final product.

AF: 

Lou, what would it mean to win your sixth Emmy?

Eyrich: 

It never gets old. I’d be most happy for Sarah because she just works so freaking hard to keep the look of the show, from when we started on it to where we are now. For The Politician, the same, I would love for Claire to win her first and that’s where I get my joy.

AF: 

Sarah, for you, is the first nomination everything you thought it would be? How are you feeling?

Evelyn: 

It’s so emotional and it’s so special, and I feel overwhelmed. It’s just really meaningful to work with Lou, and this this project just meant a lot, so I feel very full and overwhelmed and grateful.