Fashion People Miyako Supreme
Mar 20, 2026
Miyako Bellizzi, an Oscar-nominated costume designer known for her Safdie collaborations, blends period authenticity with modern relevance. She recounts moving from fashion editor to set life. She explains building characters through clothes, collaborating with directors and composers, and making period costumes feel contemporary. She also shares her personal vintage-forward style and favorite designers.
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Grandmother Sewing Sparked A Career Pivot
- Miyako Bellizzi began in fashion via family vintage and learned sewing from her grandmother, which shaped her early love of clothes.
- She moved to New York aiming to be a fashion editor, worked at Details and The New York Times, then Vice, before trying student films.
Film Frees Designers From Fashion's Commercial Limits
- Bellizzi feels the fashion industry narrowed by celebrity and commerce, which limits creative freedom compared with film.
- She values film because it prioritizes storytelling over selling, letting designers explore character-driven choices free from market constraints.
Student Film With My Own Closet Launched Her Path
- Her first film was a no-budget student movie Diamond Souls where she used her own clothes and wasn't paid.
- That early hands-on set experience hooked her and led to four films in a row, launching her costume career.