As he did with the climactic fashion show - a dramatic white on white set - Blake let the apartment serve as a backdrop for the colorful characters and constant activity that takes place there during the film. "The girls are the decor he says. In a unique collaboration with noted fashion designer Tracey Ross and cinematographer Plummer, the overall concept for Head Over Heels was to convey a contemporary, but classic, fashion approach. "We wanted the film to look very up to the moment' says Plummer. "But at the same time it had to have a certain timeless look so that it doesn't date too quickly"
Dressing Prinze was easy since he spends the entire film in suits from such noted designers as Gucci and Giorgio Armani. But the six central female characters allowed Ross and Blake to be innovative. China Chow, who plays Amanda's friend and workmate Lisa, got to be extreme and avant-garde, in sharp contrast to Monica Potter's J. Crew-style button-down look for Amanda. With the four models, the whole approach was "mix and match," Ross explains. "They borrow each other's clothes, but since they have such distinct personalities, they can take another girl's skirt and someone else's top and come up with an entirely different look for themselves."
Some of the clothes come from Ross's own collections. For the climactic fashion show and the party scenes, more dramatic outfits were constructed with influences from such classic designers as Vivienne Westwood and Alexander MeQucen, "but again, in a very timeless way," Ross emphasizes.
That concern with the timeless elements, says Waters, is emblamatic of the style of Head Over Heels overall, which takes its tone from classic Hollywood screwball comedies, but evidences a contemporary sensibility. This required a concerted team effort as well as a flexibility to try different comic approaches. "Everyone was in on the collaboration, trying different things, going out on a limb," says Waters. "There was a real sense of adventure," he says.
The collaborative effort went beyond just working with the director. It spread to all the cast members. For instance, to get the feel of actually being roommates says Shalom Harlow, "We all decided we should spend a night on the apartment set before we started shooting there. It helped give us the feel of actually living together in that space.
The presence of six beautiful women and the tight company they keep in the film spilled over into their lives. "Even when we're not working together," says China Chow, "we're all up in each other's rooms talking and running lines." "And then at night we'd go out and party," laughs Milesevic. Simonds confirms that some evenings, the six young women took Vancouver by storm, hitting all the top nightspots. "You can imagine the look on people's faces when these six gorgeous women enter a disco and hit the dance floor," says production designer Blake. "Let's just say it was magic."
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