How Costume Designer Tanja Caldwell Built The Millennial Wardrobes In Mara Brock Akil’s ‘Forever’ – Essence
Netflix’s “Forever” is the latest addition to Mara Brock Akil’s impressive oeuvre. Known for centering Black women’s voices on TV, with acclaimed shows such as Girlfriends, The Game, and Being Mary Jane, she returns with a reimagining of Judy Blume’s classic 1975 novel for a modern generation. Executive produced by Brock Akil, Blume, and Regina King, the sweet Los Angeles-based coming-of-age story, now set in 2018, follows Keisha (Lovie Simone) and Justin (Michael Cooper Jr.) as they navigate the trials and tribulations of young love. The series also features Karen Pittman, Wood Harris, Niles Fitch, and Xosha Roquemore, whose performances add a warm and down-to-earth quality that grounds the series.
In true Brock Akil fashion, the wardrobe speaks as intentionally as the script. That’s where Tanja Caldwell comes in. The renowned costume designer, best known for her work on both “Black Panther” films, “Coming 2 America,” “Queen & Slim,” and Usher’s Super Bowl LVII Halftime Show, was tapped to craft many of the show’s looks. Keisha, our beloved girl-next-door track star, loves to wear casual, but cute pieces—from sleeveless vintage cut-offs to her layered gold jewelry.
And Justin is quirky and music-obsessed, he loves to throw on a Comme des Garçons PLAY or Anti Social Social Club. Meanwhile, Keisha’s cousins Tiffany (Paigion Walker) and Brittany (Adriyan Rae), who wore lots of Fenty pieces, cropped jackets, and mini skirts, are the more fashion-forward and trendy out of the central cast. The entire wardrobe feels like the perfect time capsule of 2018’s streetwear, while also being a “love letter to Los Angeles,” as Brock Akil wrote about her intentions for the show.
“It’s great when I get to collaborate with creative giants like Mara Brock Akil,” Caldwell tells ESSENCE. “We talked through each of the characters and discussed how we could best bring them to life. Throughout filming this season, there were lots of side conversations via text and sending images back and forth. It was amazing.”
Below, ESSENCE taps Tanja Caldwell who shares more about her costume design process, the inspiration behind her favorite outfits in the show, and why working on “Forever” meant so much to her.
ESSENCE: You’ve clearly found your lane in telling stories through fashion. I’m curious about your career journey. What initially inspired you to get into costume design?
Tanja Caldwell: When I graduated from high school and went to Spelman College, I was majoring in biology with a minor in medicine. I thought I was going to be a pediatrician. This show resonates with me so much because sometimes what you plan to do and what your passion is can be two completely different things. It wasn’t until I got to college that I was introduced to fashion styling. I started assisting stylists and then began taking on my own clients. Most of them were men, either musicians or athletes.
I then decided to put college off for a year and travel to Los Angeles, where I had an opportunity to work under a big celebrity stylist. That’s when I was introduced to costume design. I’d always been familiar with Ruth E. Carter, who’s now one of my big sisters and one of my idols. I always loved film and would dress up as different characters for Halloween or themed parties, but I never knew that there were creatives behind that. So in L.A., I was able to work on different films and television shows, and that’s what I continue to do. I still love fashion and celebrity styling, but I love bringing a script to life. I love dressing characters who feel like real people. The reason why “Forever” is so great is because Mara emphasized making it true to life, from the dialogue to the wardrobe to the lighting on brown skin. She gathered a great team of creatives, and I thank God that I was one of them.
Now that “Forever” has been out for a little over a week, how has the reaction felt from your perspective?
It’s all been overwhelmingly positive. People are so excited about this show. When I first saw it, I thought, “Wow, this is good.” I knew that when I first read the script, but when I saw it on screen, I was really impacted by it. Sometimes you’re not sure what people’s reaction is going to be, and sometimes you get jaded by your own work and don’t want to be too excited about your project because you don’t want to jinx it. But my first instinctual reaction was that people were going to love it, and I think that that has come to fruition, and is continuing to.
Sounds like the ideal alignment. Let’s rewind a bit. How did this project come to you?
I was working on Usher’s Super Bowl in Las Vegas. We were probably about 2 weeks out from the actual live show, so I was drowning in work and anxiety because I was getting ready for one of the biggest shows I’ve ever done in my life. And that’s when I got the call from my agent about setting up a meeting with Mara [Brock Akil] and Regina [King]. I’m so glad that he approached me with it, even with everything I had going on at the time. He knew that this was something I would want to be a part of, or at least sit down and have a conversation with them about. I made time to do it in between fittings. I set up my computer in a fitting room and met with them on Zoom. Mara and Regina are two of my superheroes, creatively and as a Black woman in general. So very quickly, I had to read the pilot and put some visuals together to go over with them, in maybe less than 24 hours, but it was definitely worth it, and I’m happy that I did.
When you first read the pilot, what did you see?
I saw myself. I saw people that I knew and grew up with. Hopefully, we’ll have more and more shows where we can truly see ourselves. I have some nieces and nephews who are currently graduating from high school this year, so I really related to the script. One thing I’ve always appreciated about Mara and her projects is how easy it is to visualize the characters, because they’re real.
What was your approach to styling Keisha? I loved her late 1990s, early 2000s tomboy looks.
When we spoke about developing her style, it needed to be very tomboy and sporty. She’s athletic, she runs track, and she’s popular. She has her own aesthetic, but she’s also heavily influenced by the 1990s and early 2000s. Throughout the show, you’ll see her in crop tops, baggy pants, bomber jackets, and really fly sneakers. And she’s got bamboo earrings and her gold nameplate necklace. Her accessories were really important because that’s a big part of Black women’s culture, especially in L.A., where the show is based. When I was in high school, I was an athlete as well and was influenced by TLC. I wasn’t as attracted to the feminine, trendy silhouettes at the time. I wanted to be comfortable, sporty, and fly. All of that was important for Keisha’s wardrobe, too.
How did you envision Justin’s aesthetic?
I saw him as eccentric and wise beyond his years. He has this soft maturity about him. He’s unique, but still very much relatable. He’s not so otherworldly that you don’t also see other young Black men in him. We described him as being a sneakerhead with a skater vibe, and he’s laid back. Mara loved dressing him in Dickies. She was like, “We can make that his uniform.” And then we paired it with concert t-shirts of L.A. musical icons. Justin has great taste in music, so we wanted to make sure we showed that through his wardrobe. He also does a lot of layering and wears lots of flannels. His footwear is also amazing. He not only wears Jordans, but also Converse, Chuck Taylors, and Vans.
What kind of research did you do to take yourself back to the fashion of 2018, which is the year that the show takes place?
Social media was a great tool because I could go on Instagram and easily look back at that year to see what everybody was wearing. I looked at Pinterest, too. I just studied people’s fashion and read back up on what was trending at the time. I even tried to remember what I wore. We also went back on sites like Etsy to find actual pieces from that time, whether it be a vintage t-shirt, a certain cut of jeans, or a Carhartt jacket. I wanted to make sure that we were spot on with that era.
Can you speak about some of the brands you wanted to include in your storytelling?
Off-White was popular during that time, especially for young Black men. Mara would often bring up her sons and how much they loved it. We had some Off-White sneakers that we used on Justin a couple of times. They were circa 2018, and we were able to purchase them, so it was awesome to have those authentic pieces there. We also had some Juicy Couture. Fenty X Puma came out around then, too, and we incorporated a lot of Rihanna’s Fenty fashion pieces into Keisha’s cousins Tiffany and Brittany’s looks, who are very fashion-forward and super trendy. Mara told me that they were who Keisha aspired to be, fashion-wise. They’re her idols and who she looks up to, so we had to make sure that they were always really cool, really fashionable, and fly. I love all of her cousins’ looks because Mara gave me free rein, so I had a lot of fun with them.
You also styled Keisha’s best friend, Chloe. What was your approach for her?
The dynamic between Chloe and Keisha was interesting. They went to school together at one point until Keisha ended up transferring to another school because of the sex tape, and I think their relationship is special. Outside of just race, these two girls love each other and see themselves in one another. Best friends have a lot of similarities, and they dress alike a lot of the time, so we tried to do that with this wardrobe. When we’re first introduced to Keisha and Chloe at Chloe’s New Year’s Eve party, they’re both in the same kind of silhouette: corset tops and baggy, oversized pants. We did that intentionally because we wanted to set the tone that these girls are close, as if they called each other the day before like, “Girl, what are you wearing? I think I’m gonna wear this. Let’s match.” Those are all things that I did at that age, and I think young women still do.
It sounds like such a fun process. Do you have a favorite outfit from the show?
In episode one, at the New Year’s Eve party that we were just discussing, I really love what Justin had on. It spoke to who he was and to L.A. culture. He had on a “The Chronic” t-shirt, flannel, Dickies, and Vans. It was a great introduction to who he was. He looked cool, but he didn’t look like he was overdoing it or trying too hard. Also, in episode one, they go on their first date, and I love that look on Keisha when she walks up to him, and his jaw almost drops. That outfit added another layer to her subtle girl-next-door, fly girl sex appeal. She’s got this cute little pink crop top, a green bomber jacket, and I love those jeans by Marc Jacobs. And then she coordinated with the light pink and lavender Jordan 1s.
We also put a lot of work into the finale. Not only did we have the New Year’s Eve party and all the interstitials, but we also had Keisha’s prom that we filmed at the Santa Monica Pier. I loved the concept of the sneaker ball. We did a lot of bright-colored suits and dresses with cool coordinating sneakers. It was such a juxtaposition from when Keisha went to Christian’s prom, which was a little more conservative and typical. This one needed to be more effortless, and I think we achieved that.
