The Costume Designers Guild Awards (CDGA) honor achievements of excellence in Costume Design in film, television, short form design, and costume illustration.
– Excellence in Contemporary Film
– Excellence in Period Film
– Excellence in Sci-Fi / Fantasy Film
– Excellence in Contemporary Television
– Excellence in Period Television
– Excellence in Sci-Fi / Fantasy Television
– Excellence in Variety, Reality-Competition, Live Television
– Excellence in Short Form Design
– Excellence in Costume Illustration
January 1, 2024 – December 31, 2024
Costume designers may nominate themselves and their CDG-member assistant costume designers (ACD) in all categories. Agents, studios, and PR departments may also nominate costume designers and the project’s CDG-member ACDs in the costume design categories. Only CDG-member illustrators may submit themselves in the illustration category. Costume designers may not submit other costume designers or illustrators. If a designer and a third party both submit the same project and all necessary documentation, the costume designer’s entry will take precedence.
Both union and non-union costume design projects are eligible for consideration. However, if working within Local 892’s jurisdiction submitted individuals must be members of the Costume Designers Guild (CDG) under the correct classification (costume designer, assistant costume designer, or costume illustrator) and the project must have been produced under Local 892’s collective bargaining agreement.
Submission forms must be submitted online via the CDGA Submission site.
Costume Designers
Assistant Costume Designers
Illustrators
Project eligibility is subject to the review of the Costume Designers Guild Awards Balloting Committee. If you feel your project warrants inclusion in a different category than allowed by the guidelines, the costume designer may submit a petition to the Awards Balloting Committee via email (awards@cdgia.com). The Committee has sole discretion to make the final decision. The Awards Balloting Committee reserves the right to change an entry’s category or disqualify the entry, should the Committee determine that the entry was submitted in the incorrect category. The costume designer will be notified of any changes and will have the option to maintain the entry in the new category or to withdraw the submission.
Eligibility may also be denied for any entrant who fails to comply with the submission rules and guidelines. All submission forms must be complete or the submission will automatically be deemed ineligible.
All entries must be released and distributed within the United States during the eligibility period on a platform accessible for general public viewing. Projects released only at festivals are ineligible. Social media content creator projects are ineligible.
Decisions made by the Costume Designers Guild Awards Balloting Committee, and if petitioned are final.
Friday, September 13, 2024:
CDGA Submissions open and accessible on CDG website at 9:00 a.m. PT
Monday, October 14, 2024
Submission Entries close at 5 pm PT
Monday, November 18, 2024
Nomination Ballot voting opens online at 9 am PT
Monday, December 2, 2024
Nomination Ballots voting closes at 5 pm PT
Friday, December 13, 2024
Official Announcement of Nominees to the Press
Monday, December 16, 2024
Ticket Sales Open
Monday, December 30, 2024
Final Ballot voting opens online at 9 am PT
Monday, January 13, 2025
Final Ballot voting closes at 5 pm PT
Thursday, February 6, 2025
Winners Announced at the 27th Costume Designers Guild Awards
CEREMONY TO BE HELD ON THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 6 AT THE EBELL OF LOS ANGELES
There is a $250 non-refundable fee per entry for costume designers who are not current members of the CDG. Payments must be made online through the submission site via the secure payment portal before an entry may be finalized.
All films, over 15 minutes, whether theatrically released, aired on television, or streamed, will now compete collectively in the Excellence in Film category.
Submissions are for a single television episode rather than an entire series.
A CDG-member illustrator may submit up to 5 illustrations in total within this category. Submissions may come from one or multiple projects and are not limited to one illustration per project.
Excellence in Contemporary Film
Any entry with at least 55% of all costumes (including background) existing within the last 25 years from the current award year [on or after January 1, 1999] will be considered a Contemporary Film entry.
Excellence in Period Film
Any entry with at least 55% of all costumes (including background) existing in a historical era, or a stylized historical era, greater than 25 years [on or before December 31, 1998] from the current entry year will be considered a Period Film entry.
Excellence in Sci-Fi / Fantasy Film
Any entry with at least 15% of all costumes (including background) being Science Fiction or Fantasy, i.e., costumes that are not reality-based, but based on a fictitious magical, mythical, and/or alternate world will be considered a Sci- Fi / Fantasy Film entry.
Excellence in Contemporary Television
Any entry with at least 55% of all costumes (including background) being contemporary, i.e., costumes existing within the last 25 years from the current entry year [on or after January 1, 1999] will be considered a Contemporary Television entry.
Excellence in Period Television
Any entry with at least 55% of all costumes (including background) existing in a historical era, or a stylized historical era, greater than 25 years [on or before December 31, 1998] from the current entry year will be considered a Period Television entry.
Excellence in Sci-Fi / Fantasy Television
Any entry with at least 15% of all costumes (including background) being Science Fiction or Fantasy, i.e., costumes that are not reality-based, but based on a fictitious magical, mythical, and/or alternate world will be considered a Sci- Fi / Fantasy Television entry.
Excellence in Variety, Reality-Competition, Live Television
Any entry of a variety, reality competition, or live television or special, i.e., sketch show, award show, live musical, pre-recorded stage production, live music performance, competitive reality show, and talk show will be considered a Variety, Reality Competition, Live Television entry.
Excellence in Short Form Design
Short films, commercials, music videos, and individual episodes of a web series under 15 minutes will be considered a Short Form Design entry. If a film or an episode of a web series has a running time of over 15 minutes, it will be considered in the appropriate film or television category. Multiple commercials made for the same product or business by the same costume designer may not be entered more than once. Commercials and music videos longer than 15 minutes will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
Excellence in Costume Illustration
Any submitted entry by a CDG-member Illustrator of original artwork commissioned by a studio or production company will be considered an illustration entry if it is approved by both the costume designer and the studio. Proper supporting documentation must be provided.
*CATEGORY DISCREPANCIES
In some instances, costumes may cross over or exhibit multiple genres. These projects will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Costume designers are invited to share their intent in a written petition to the Awards Balloting Committee via email (awards@cdgia.com), as well as to share any materials they can provide to determine the appropriate category. A final decision will be made following a review by the Awards Balloting Committee.
Submissions open on September 13, 2024, at 9:00 a.m. Pacific Time and close on October 14, 2024, at 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time.
When entering info: No ‘all caps’ please. The proper casing is appreciated! Titles with “A or The” should be placed at the end of the title separated by a comma. All entries with these placed at the beginning will be corrected to uniform an A-Z listing. Example: “Lone Ranger, The”, “River Runs Through It, A”.
Submitter note: After making all your entries, you must click SUBMIT to finalize your submissions. If you are submitting on behalf of the designer or studio, you may add two (2) additional email recipients to receive an email confirmation. You will receive your own confirmation as well.
If you do not receive a confirmation email following your submission, please email the CDGA at (awards@cdgia.com).
All nominated teams will be recognized and acknowledged in the awards program magazine.
The winning costume designer(s) in each applicable category will receive a statuette and be listed on the CDG website and Instagram. The winning costume illustrator in the Excellence in Costume Illustration category will also receive a statuette and be listed on the CDG website and Instagram. Only the CDG-member “Primary” ACD(s) on winning teams in each applicable category will receive an award statuette and be recognized on the CDG website and Instagram.
All winners eligible for an award statuette are responsible for collecting their statuettes. If you are not attending the ceremony, you or your studio must arrange for pickup or shipping within 30 days, covering any associated costs. Please note that CDG is not responsible for delivering, shipping, or storing the award statuette.
Awards certificates will be available only by request for nominated teams. Nominees will be responsible for requesting certificates for their teams and covering postage. If you would like to receive a certificate, please make your request within 30 days from the nomination announcement. If we do not receive a request, no certificate will be issued.