Lindy Hemming (born 21 August 1948) is a Welsh costume designer. In a career spanning over four decades, she is recognized for her prolific work across independent films and blockbusters. She won an Academy Award in the category Best Costume Design for the film Topsy-Turvy (1999).

Lindy Hemming
Born (1948-08-21) 21 August 1948 (age 76)
OccupationCostume designer
Years active1975–present

Early life and education

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Hemming was born on 21 August 1948, in Haverfordwest, Wales.[1] She is the eldest of five children in the family. Her mother was a teacher who could draw, design, and make clothes, mostly converting children's hand-me-downs. Her father was a salesman and often worked as a woodcarver. She was brought up bilingually from an early age, speaking Welsh at school and English at home.[2]

Hemming never considered design a profession nor even attended art school because her father convinced her that she should pursue a "worthwhile" job for a living. Having trained as an orthopaedic nurse instead, she later discovered that this experience was helpful in her career because it required working closely with people and observing and listening to them.[2]

She eventually enrolled at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), being encouraged by the example of friends. Hemming initially intended to study stage management; however, she switched her major to design soon afterward.[2]

Career

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A costume from Tomorrow Never Dies on display at the Dezer Collection in Miami, designed by Hemming.

Hemming began her professional career at London's Open Space Theatre, where she performed multitask duties and often operated on a limited budget, a commitment that lasted for over a decade. She also worked for several years at the Hampstead Theatre Club.[2] During that time, Hemming met many prominent directors, such as Michael Rudman, Alan Ayckbourn, Trevor Nunn, Richard Eyre, Howard Davies, and Nancy Meckler, who frequently asked her about collaboration on bigger-scale productions.[2] She consequently made various designs for some of the biggest companies on the British stage and, at one point, had five London shows running simultaneously; those include productions for the Royal National Theatre, the Royal Shakespeare Company, and the West End.[2] She also worked on Broadway and received a Tony Award for Best Costume Design nomination for the 1983 production of Shakespeare's All's Well That Ends Well.[3]

Beside her well-established theater career, Hemming is known for her prolific work on several high-profile film productions across independent films and blockbusters. In particular, she has had frequent collaborations with English auteur Mike Leigh on some of his most critically acclaimed films. She garnered great critics' praise and won the Academy Award for Best Costume Design for her lavishly detailed recreation of Gilbert and Sullivan's 1885 production of The Mikado in Leigh's 1999 period musical Topsy-Turvy.[4] Hemming has also enjoyed the long-standing association with the James Bond film series, as she has designed the franchise's attire for more than a decade, starting from GoldenEye (1995) through Casino Royale (2006).[1] Two of these pieces, which were featured in Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), have been presented among other memorabilia in a special Bond-related exhibition at the Miami Auto Museum at the Dezer Collection.

Hemming achieved further critical acclaim for providing the costumes in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight trilogy (2005–2012).[1] She won the Costume Designers Guild Award for Excellence in Fantasy Film and was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Costume Design for her work in the series' second installment, 2008's The Dark Knight.

Filmography

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Year Title Director Notes
1983 Meantime Mike Leigh Television film
1984 Comfort and Joy Bill Forsyth
1985 Loose Connections Richard Eyre
Wetherby David Hare
My Beautiful Laundrette Stephen Frears
1986 Heavenly Pursuits Charles Gormley aka Gospel According to Vic
1987 The Short and Curlies Mike Leigh Short film
1988 High Hopes
1989 When the Whales Came Clive Rees
Queen of Hearts Jon Amiel
1990 The Krays Peter Medak
Life Is Sweet Mike Leigh
1991 Hear My Song Peter Chelsom
1992 Waterland Stephen Gyllenhaal
1993 Naked Mike Leigh
1994 Four Weddings and a Funeral Mike Newell
Sister My Sister Nancy Meckler
1995 Funny Bones Peter Chelsom
GoldenEye Martin Campbell
1996 Blood and Wine Bob Rafelson
1997 The Brave Gregory Mcdonald
Prince Valiant Anthony Hickox
Tomorrow Never Dies Roger Spottiswoode
1998 Little Voice Mark Herman
1999 Topsy-Turvy Mike Leigh
The Trench William Boyd
The World Is Not Enough Michael Apted
2000 The Man Who Cried Sally Potter
2001 Lara Croft: Tomb Raider Simon West
2002 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Chris Columbus
Die Another Day Lee Tamahori
2003 Lara Croft: Tomb Raider – The Cradle of Life Jan de Bont
2005 Batman Begins Christopher Nolan
2006 Casino Royale Martin Campbell
2008 The Dark Knight Christopher Nolan
2010 Edge of Darkness Martin Campbell
Clash of the Titans Louis Leterrier
2012 The Dark Knight Rises Christopher Nolan
2014 Paddington Paul King
2017 Wonder Woman Patty Jenkins
Paddington 2 Paul King
2020 Wonder Woman 1984 Patty Jenkins
2023 Wonka Paul King

Awards and nominations

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Major associations

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Academy Awards

Year[a] Category Nominated work Result Ref.
2000 Best Costume Design Topsy-Turvy Won [5]

BAFTA Awards

Year[a] Category Nominated work Result Ref.
British Academy Film Awards
1995 Best Costume Design Four Weddings and a Funeral Nominated [6]
2009 The Dark Knight Nominated [7]
British Academy Television Craft Awards
1988 Best Costume Design Porterhouse Blue Nominated [8]
BAFTA Cymru
2018 Siân Phillips Award Honored [9]

Tony Awards

Year[a] Category Nominated work Result Ref.
1983 Best Costume Design All's Well That Ends Well Nominated [10]

Miscellaneous awards

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List of Lindy Hemming other awards and nominations
Award Year[a] Category Title Result Ref.
Costume Designers Guild Awards 2006 Excellence in Fantasy Film Batman Begins Nominated [11]
2007 Excellence in Contemporary Film Casino Royale Nominated [12]
2009 Excellence in Fantasy Film The Dark Knight Won [13]
2018 Wonder Woman Won [14]
2021 Wonder Woman 1984 Nominated [15]
Critics' Choice Movie Awards 2018 Best Costume Design Wonder Woman Nominated [16]
2024 Wonka Nominated [17]
San Diego Film Critics Society Awards 2018 Best Costume Design Paddington 2 Runner-up [18]
Saturn Awards 2003 Best Costume Design Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Nominated [19]
2006 Batman Begins Nominated
2009 The Dark Knight Nominated [20]
2018 Wonder Woman Nominated [21]

Notes

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  1. ^ a b c d Indicates the year of ceremony. Each year is linked to the article about the awards held that year, wherever possible.

References

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  1. ^ a b c Turner, Robin (20 September 2012). "Oscar-winning costume designer back in Wales to celebrate 50 years of Bond". WalesOnline. Archived from the original on 5 June 2013. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "THE ART OF COSTUME DESIGN by Lindy Hemming". Network Nine News. 17 March 2013. Archived from the original on 18 February 2024. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  3. ^ Lawson, Carol (17 May 1983). "'CATS' LEADS IN TONY RACE, WITH 11 NOMINATIONS". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 9 March 2014. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  4. ^ Lyman, Rick (27 March 2000). "'American Beauty' Tops the Oscars; Main Acting Awards Go to Kevin Spacey and Hilary Swank". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 16 May 2023. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  5. ^ "The 72nd Academy Awards (2000) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). Retrieved 29 August 2016.
  6. ^ "The 48th British Academy Film Awards (1995) Nominees and Winners". British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA). Retrieved 29 August 2016.
  7. ^ "The 62nd British Academy Film Awards (2009) Nominees and Winners". British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA). Retrieved 29 August 2016.
  8. ^ "The 34th British Academy Television Awards (1988) Nominees and Winners". British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA). Retrieved 29 August 2016.
  9. ^ "2018 BAFTA Cymru Awards". British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA). Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  10. ^ "THE TONY AWARD NOMINATIONS / 1983". American Theatre Wing. Retrieved 29 August 2016.
  11. ^ "Costume Guild reveals noms". Variety. 11 January 2006. Archived from the original on 13 May 2022. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  12. ^ Stitt, Eric (10 January 2007). "Costume designers name nominees". Variety. Archived from the original on 16 June 2020. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  13. ^ Kilday, Gregg (17 February 2009). "'Slumdog,' 'Duchess' top costume nods". The Hollywood Reporter. Associated Press. Archived from the original on 25 June 2021. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  14. ^ Pond, Steve (20 February 2018). "'The Shape of Water,' 'Wonder Woman,' 'I, Tonya' Top Costume Designers Guild Awards". TheWrap. Archived from the original on 2 July 2022. Retrieved 21 February 2018.
  15. ^ Erik, Pedersen (4 March 2021). "Costume Designers Guild Awards Nominations: 'Wonder Woman', 'Da 5 Bloods,' Mank', 'Bridgerton' & More". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 29 January 2023. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  16. ^ Tapley, Kristopher (6 December 2017). "'Shape of Water' Leads Critics' Choice Film Nominations". Variety. Archived from the original on 7 December 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2018.
  17. ^ Bergeson, Samantha (13 December 2023). "Barbie dominates 2024 Critics Choice Awards film nominations: See the full list". IndieWire. Archived from the original on 13 December 2023. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  18. ^ Neglia, Matt (10 December 2018). "The 2018 San Diego Film Critics Society (SDFCS) Winners". Next Best Picture. Archived from the original on 3 December 2022. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  19. ^ Phillips, Jevon (6 March 2003). "'Towers,' 'Report' top Saturn nominees". Variety. Archived from the original on 23 September 2021. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  20. ^ "35th Annual Saturn Awards Nominees Released". MovieWeb. 11 March 2009. Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  21. ^ McNary, Dave (15 March 2018). "'Black Panther,' 'Walking Dead' Rule Saturn Awards Nominations". Variety. Archived from the original on 16 March 2018. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
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