Clueless Costume Designer Mona May Defined the ’90s Aesthetic

It defined the ’90s, transcended the decades that followed, and became the blueprint for the fashion-centered films that followed.  Before Sex and the City, Mean Girls, Legally Blonde, and The Devil Wears Prada, there was Clueless.

Released in 1995 and starring a now-infamous cast including Alicia Silverstone, Paul Rudd, Stacey Dash, and the late Brittany Murphy, the film is being fêted at Miami Film Festival Gems with a 30th anniversary screening featuring an appearance by a figure who played a crucial role in making the film the timeless cult classic it became: the movie’s costume designer, Mona May.

Ahead of the screening, May tells New Times that styling the film was no easy task. “I had to really come up with this whole world we’re creating,” she says. “The movie is about Beverly Hills girls who are dressing up to the nines. It’s all high fashion. There was no blueprint for that.”

Clueless is her pièce de résistance, but she also worked on other films that defined the look of the decade, including Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion (1997), A Night at the Roxbury (1998), and Never Been Kissed (1999). She also put her spin on the ’80s in The Wedding Singer (1998). Gems will recognize those contributions by awarding her the Precious Gems Award at the screening, where she’ll stick around for a Q&A after the film. And yes, there will be a costume contest.

To that end, the woman behind some of the most memorable looks of the ’90s has tips for those with their eyes on the prize.

“I want classics,” she says. “I would love to see [Cher’s] yellow suit. I would love to see Dionne’s black-and-white suit with the hat, but make sure you have the details. Make sure there’s a headband; make sure there’s knee-highs or over-the-knee stockings.”

May says nailing the look isn’t necessarily about replicating it exactly — it’s about finding your unique take on the inspiration.

“To me, clothes and getting dressed are all about creativity and fun,” she says. “Maybe you crocheted a skirt that looks like Dionne’s. Maybe you used a tie as a belt. Maybe you didn’t use a sweater that’s brown-and-black leopard, but you used a sweater that’s knit instead of a sportscoat, and now it’s red-and-black or something, but it still has the vibe of Dionne…Find your character and go with it. Have fun with it.”

Her advice comes from experience — that was precisely her approach to crafting the characters of Clueless from the ground up, avatars that have influenced fashion time and again for the past three decades.

“You have to anchor it and ground it to be real, because these characters have to be real. You have to love them; you have to know that they are true people, not just some girls running around in cute clothes,” she adds. “The characters, the inside of their hearts, and who they are inside, have to be explained in the clothes as well.”

Always observant and on the lookout for inspiration, May says she’ll have her eye on Miami fashion while she’s in town.

“I love Miami’s joie de vive,” she says. “I love color. To me, Miami is kind of a beachy town, but it’s high fashion. It’s sexy. It’s fast-paced. I love the nightclub scene. I love the way that girls give it — there’s mini skirts; there’s a lot of skin. It excites me.”

Clueless at Miami Film Festival Gems. 1 p.m. Saturday, November 1, at Coral Gables Art Cinema, 260 Aragon Ave., Coral Gables; 786-472-2249; gablescinema.com. Tickets cost $25 via miamifilmfestival.com.