Crew Diaries:
SUSANNA PUISTO
Costume Designer

magically, we shared the same vision

"What a lovely story" I thought as I read the script for the first time. I cried and I laughed, felt truly inspired and thought: "I MUST do this film".

I arrived at the interview with Jim, weapons loaded and drawn -- determined to win the job. Magically, Jim and I shared the exact same vision, down to color, mood and silhouette.

Preparing for the film was a lot of fun; production designer Denise Pizzini and I collaborated closely in our quest for visual harmony and timeless look.

Working on a project that is a labor of love is by far the most rewarding experience one could wish for.

The cast was a dream to work with. They were open to all my ideas and allowed me unlimited creative freedom.

Brendan, my sweet urban cowboy with his vintage western shirts and custom made slacks was such a sport never complaining when the Texas heat made him suffer in his leather jackets, or when the vintage boots were killing his feet. One must suffer for beauty.

Joanna was a dream to dress. She had two distinct looks. Roz the con artist, dressed to thrill, and the real Roz, much more casual.

Ann Magnuson pulled off her over-the-top ensembles with such amazing grace and style and Lou Rawls happily squeezed into his customized costumes of heavy emroydered wool coats and tight velvet pants, which, considering the boiling temperature of San Antonio, was rather admirable.

Angus, Celeste and Toby all collaborated while I searched to define their characters.

All in all, I treasure "Still Breathing", its cast and crew and I hope all of you will soon be able to enjoy this tale of true love as much as I did.

...Susanna Puisto - Costume Designer

Director's note: Susanna had a complete lock on the look of the costumes from the first meeting, and did what every great film artist strives to do -- avoid obvious, easy choices, tell the story and expand the characters in every way. Looking back, I realize how much the clothes say about each character, and how good costumes feed an actor's performance. For example, Roz's early sixties looks emphasized her color palette, line and personality. The palette: magentas, violets, cobalt blue, pale yellows, cool greens. The line: "arches" -- scoop necks, dresses and tops. The looks also chronicle the emotional changes she passes though during the film, as well as make an offhand reference to a film that relates a lot to this one, BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY'S. There are many, many, MANY hours that go into discussing clothes on a film like this, especially when you have two gorgeous actresses like Joanna Going and Ann Magnuson to dress (on a budget!!) Thanks Susanna for an inspired job!

[Susanna Puisto is a costume designer whose most recent credits include "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" the series, "Dogs" a yet to be released TV-pilot and "Gunshy", a feature film.]

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