In Walter Mosley’s haunting psychological thriller, The Man in My Basement, the line between reality and imagination blurs inside a claustrophobic Sag Harbor home. Bringing those layered characters to life meant grounding them in a visual language that feels both period-accurate and emotionally resonant.Costume designer Lynn Ollie took on the challenge of rooting the story in the 1990s while weaving in subtle details that reflect class, identity, and transformation.She explains, “Charles (Corey Hawkins) starts out as the odd man out, a dash of grunge, and possibly living out of a pile of clothes on his floor. As he starts to come back to life, he experiments with a more put-together look and even tries some of his father’s old suits. That was written in the book, and it’s such a great way to see Charles try to figure out being a man again.”In the conversation below, Ollie breaks down her creative process, from her early inspirations to collaborating with director Nadia Latif, and reveals how wardrobe became an invisible yet vital force in shaping the film’s unsettling atmosphere.The Man in My Basement is now streaming on Hulu. - YouTubewww.youtube.comNo Film School: What prompted you to become a costume designer? What was the first film where you really noticed the wardrobe?Lynn Ollie: I studied fashion design in school, and I have always been interested in clothing as a means of self-expression. I moved from fashion design to being an assistant stylist at VH-1. I met a makeup artist there who knew...
Published By: NoFilmSchool - Yesterday