"Marketing yourself must become second nature along with your design work"

Hometown
Bristol

What do you do?
I am a BBC Vision competition finalist in the costume design category. I am starting a work placement in a few weeks on a TV production.

What was your very first role in theatre?
After graduating in theatre design, my first major theatre role was set designer for the touring company Sardine Circus Productions

What else have you done?
Although my degree was in theatre design, I am now increasingly in tv/film design

However, I recently worked as a scenic artist on Papa, Please Get To The Moon for Me for Travelling Light Theatre Co / Bristol Old Vic (touring show) and Love’s Labour’s Lost at the Tobacco Factory

Film and TV work includes:
* Costume designer/maker for Think or Swim, a short film made by Calling the Shots Production Co for Bristol Natural History Consortium
* Costume assistant on Box TV/BBC’s Wind in the Willows, and on a Bristol Car Trade Centre commercial made by Street Monkey Production Co
* Design assistant/costume dresser for Ragdoll TV Production Company, In the Night Garden

Have you got qualifications?
A theatre design degree from Nottingham Trent University

What did you want to be when you grew up?
Something in art and design, which developed into a desire for designing for performance

What do you do all day?
I am awaiting starting a work placement within the costume department of a BBC drama, as part of the BBC Vision Design competition. This would involve assisting the costume designer and supervisor with sourcing, research, fittings, alterations, continuity and dressing on set.

What’s the best thing about your job?
It’s incredibly exciting being part of a team bringing a narrative to life, with amazing attention to detail. That applies to theatre, TV and film.

And the worst?
If you are working on a production of any nature you have to give it 100 percent or more, which means you often sacrifice your normal personal life within that time

What’s your dream job in theatre?
Although presently I work more within TV/film, I love the fact that when you design for theatre, you will most often be developing both the set and costumes. Ideally I would love to design for a piece of theatre with a fantasy or abstract theme, allowing for an exciting and extravagant set and costumes.

Got any wise words for someone who wants to be where you are now?
If you want to work in the design field of performance you must have incredible stamina and determination to persist, even when it seems impossible. This unfortunately means working for free at the beginning of your career to showcase as much experience as possible within a strong portfolio.

Train to degree level if you are really serious and begin to build contacts as early as possible. This means that marketing yourself must become second nature along with your design work.

Hannah Summers’ website