{"id":12263,"date":"2026-06-30T10:41:30","date_gmt":"2026-06-30T14:41:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/?p=12263"},"modified":"2026-06-30T10:41:30","modified_gmt":"2026-06-30T14:41:30","slug":"building-worlds-one-costume-at-a-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/2026\/06\/30\/building-worlds-one-costume-at-a-time\/","title":{"rendered":"Building Worlds, One Costume at a Time"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Ann Foley (\u201998) did not set out to design costumes for Emmy\u00ae Award-winning television.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In fact, when she arrived on Georgia Southern University\u2019s Statesboro Campus to pursue a degree in fashion merchandising, a future in her hometown of Savannah was fully lined up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI had it all figured out,\u201d she recalled with a laugh. \u201cI was going to work as a buyer at The Limited and marry my boyfriend at the time. My mom was very happy with that plan.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then a movie came to town.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While still a student, Foley visited the set of \u201c1969,\u201d a film starring Robert Downey Jr., where a friend was working as a production assistant. As she watched extras move through the set in carefully constructed period clothing on the downtown Statesboro location, something clicked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI met the costume designer, Julie Weiss, who\u2019s a legend in our business,\u201d Foley recalled. \u201cI thought, \u2018wow, this is amazing.\u2019 I didn\u2019t even realize costume design was an option.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Until that moment, Foley assumed fashion careers lived in showrooms and buying offices, not on film sets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat was the end of me becoming a buyer at The Limited,\u201d she mused from her home in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After graduating from Georgia Southern, Foley made a decision that still surprises her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI moved to Los Angeles with $500 and one phone number,\u201d she said. \u201cIt was a friend of a friend in the business.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That single connection led to her first job assisting costume designer Hope Hanafin, who was designing her first project at that time. Foley was hired, and never looked back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her earliest years working her way up through costume departments gave her a technical fluency that now defines her work, especially on physically demanding productions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s important as a designer to understand how clothes actually move in a scene, \u201d she explained. \u201cDo we need stretch panels? And where? Is this safe for a stunt? Do we need a flatter shoe? Pants instead of a skirt?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For several years she served as a costumer, a craftsperson who assists a costume designer with sourcing materials, sewing and maintaining wardrobe continuity, where organization and memorization are essential. That role continues to inform every design choice she makes today, particularly on action-heavy productions like HBO\u2019s post-apocalyptic drama television series, \u201cThe Last of Us,\u201d where costume must balance realism, storytelling and performer safety.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019s a huge part of my job \u2014 working closely with stunts to make sure costumes support the scene and keep people comfortable and safe.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Foley is known for her deeply collaborative approach across departments to include actors, directors, hair stylists, makeup artists and props.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On season two of \u201cThe Last of Us,\u201d Foley worked especially closely with the latter building worlds through clothing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her work on the series, which earned multiple Emmy Award nominations during her time with the show, includes the introduction of two feuding factions, the militaristic Washington Liberation Front and the cult-like, religious Seraphites. Each central to the season\u2019s storyline, they are built with distinct palettes, textures and histories that communicate character before dialogue ever does.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf the actors don\u2019t believe in what they\u2019re wearing, it shows on screen,\u201d Foley said. \u201cThey have to inhabit these characters.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWatch everything. Read everything. Study architecture, photography, old films, new films. Those references live in your brain, and they come back when you\u2019re designing, and when you\u2019re communicating ideas.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\u2014 Ann Foley<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Costume designer Ann Foley\u2019s sketch of Pedro Pascal as Joel in HBO\u2019s \u201cThe Last of Us.\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Georgia Southern\u2019s Lasting Influence<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Though Foley\u2019s path veered sharply from merchandising into film, she credits Georgia Southern with preparing her in unexpected ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNot necessarily the major itself,\u201d she said, \u201cbut the way all those classes train your brain.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She recalled a chemistry professor explaining that long, frustrating problems were teaching students how to memorize and retain complex information, which is something Foley now relies on daily.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat stuck with me,\u201d she said. \u201cEspecially as a costumer. Memorization became huge for me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Foley also values the formative experience of living independently for the first time while learning responsibility and discipline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI had a great time at Georgia Southern,\u201d she says. \u201cIt was wonderful.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looking Back and Forward<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

While Foley\u2019s career spans film and television well beyond \u201cThe Last of Us,\u201d with a reputation for craftsmanship, ingenuity and emotional precision, she still remembers the leap of faith it took to leave Georgia and chase an uncertain future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen I look back, I can\u2019t believe I did that,\u201d she said. \u201cI was 22, and I had no idea what the future held.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That uncertainty is exactly what she encourages students to embrace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cJust go for it,\u201d Foley said. \u201cWhat\u2019s the worst that happens? Someone says no. The best is someone says yes, like they did for me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To stay grounded, she relies on the teams she works with, many of whom become extended family during long productions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSurround yourself with people who lift you up and make you better,\u201d she said. \u201cThat\u2019s everything.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her advice for aspiring creatives is simple but powerful: build your internal library.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWatch everything. Read everything. Study architecture, photography, old films, new films,\u201d she noted. \u201cThose references live in your brain, and they come back when you\u2019re designing, and when you\u2019re communicating ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dreams, it turns out, not only begin at Georgia Southern, but continue to call you back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI still have dreams about driving between Statesboro and Savannah,\u201d Foley said with a smile. \u201cIt\u2019s kind of nice. Magee\u2019s in Statesboro was my favorite hangout. Best chicken fingers on the planet!\u201d \u2014 Melanie Bowden Sim\u00f3n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ann Foley (\u201998) did not set out to design costumes for Emmy\u00ae Award-winning television. In fact, when she arrived on Georgia Southern University\u2019s Statesboro Campus to pursue a degree in fashion merchandising, a future in her hometown of Savannah was fully lined up. \u201cI had it all figured out,\u201d she recalled with a laugh. \u201cI […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":12264,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[91,92],"class_list":["post-12263","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","tag-fall-2025","tag-spring-2026"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t