Soki Mak Talks Pamela Anderson, Creative Direction and Hulu's 'All's Fair'
We speak to the creative director-turned-costume designer to find out more about the creative process behind the new show.
If Soki Mak is a name you’re unfamiliar with, allow us to introduce you. Renowned for her work with the likes of Pamela Anderson, Rosalía and PUMA Fenty, she’s also just entered the world of TV for the very first time, thanks to Kim Kardashian.
Joining the team behind Ryan Murphy’s All’s Fair, Mak was first approached by Kardashian in her DMs, initially asking her to collaborate on some personal projects. Following the success of their work together, Mak was asked if she’d take on the role of costume designer for Kardashian’s major acting debut.
Not knowing the scope of the project, she agreed and set out to create all the killer looks for Kim’s character, Allura Grant. Featuring one-of-one archival pieces from the likes of Jean Paul Gaultier, John Galliano and Balenciaga, the result is a fashion lover’s dream, so naturally, we had to get the inside scoop…
As All’s Fair finally releases on Hulu, we caught up with Mak to find out more about her career journey, the creative process behind the show and her plans for the future.
Scroll through for the full interview.
Tell us a bit about how you got started in creative direction and styling.
I knew I always wanted to work in fashion or the arts, so I dabbled a bit between fashion and fine art when I was in Glasgow and then I went to Central Saint Martins to study womenswear as I thought I wanted to be a designer. I began interning for Dazed and Vivienne Westwood and assisted some stylists whom I really respected at the time, and after a while, I decided to pursue styling full-time. I dropped out of university and the rest is history.
I fell in love with styling and the challenge of the creative process. When you’re an independent artist without a budget, and you’re working to create these shoots, you have to do everything yourself. You just learn what your skills are and where your strengths are, and what you love to do. I was coming up with concepts and creating all these kinds of treatments and moodboards, which just came naturally to me. It wasn’t until later on that I realized that people actually get paid to do this, and the creative direction evolved a few years down the line from there.
How did that eventually translate into costume design?
Costume design felt like one of those natural progressions. I like to be involved in all areas of the creative process, even if it’s something I can’t do, I always see the bigger vision. I also know how to source the right people to do the job. With costume design, I never envisioned it as a part of my career journey until I entered All’s Fair. I know that previously, when I’d worked on editorials or other jobs I’d done, I was also always heavily involved in the concept from the beginning, and I would be involved in it from then on into the end. To me, styling is only one part of the end result.
You’ve just worked alongside Kim Kardashian for the new Hulu show, All’s Fair. How did that relationship and partnership come about?
I actually met Kim not long before she reached out to me on Instagram DMs. I thought it was a fake message when she reached out to me, but very quickly, we found ourselves going back and forth with creative ideas. When she was asking me to be part of the show, she really trusted the process. It really started from that one shoot that I did with Michael Bailey-Gates. It was a really great, creative introductory project that we worked on together, and from then on, she would pull me in for other things she was working on. One day, when we were on set, she just said to me, “I’ve got this show, I think you’d be perfect for it.”
I was pulled in at the very last minute, and everything moved really fast, going straight into filming. Now we’re on the other side of it, Kim and I have a good understanding of what she likes, dislikes and where we are looking to be. We speak the same visual narrative; she’s really great to work with.
What can you tell us about your creative process while working on the show?
In the beginning, it was a bit of a creative mess as I was finding my way in a role and in a new environment. I had to put feelers out, not just with Kim, but with the rest of the team. I’d never worked on a TV show before, and I was trying hard to be very respectful of everyone’s job. The way I worked was very different from the costume designer who was handling the rest of the cast, so we had to figure out a creative flow, which we did. It’s quite rare for two costume designers to work on one show, so we had to learn a new dynamic.
After like five or six days, I began to treat it like it was one big editorial shoot. I elaborated on the character by working on my own creative boards for Allura. Kim and I were sharing images back and forth of hair and makeup references, archive looks and the designers we wanted to work with. It was very much the two of us at the start and we would help glam with where we wanted the looks to go. The fittings happened and when we got into filming, it all moved so fast and it just began to flow. The first few weeks were quite intense because everyone had to learn to trust each other quickly.
What were some of your favorite looks or pieces that you sourced for the show?
Honestly, I would say the journey of working with Jean Paul Gautier. To be able to work with and have the support of a brand like that, having them open up the archives to us without understanding entirely what the final result would be, that was a bit of a dream. Having access to these works of art and history was amazing. Some of these looks date back to the 1980s. So I would say, pretty much every look that Jean Paul Gaultier supported us with, they all ended up being my favorite parts of the whole show.
Outside of Kim and Hulu, you’ve worked with amazing names like Nadia Lee, Cohen and Pamela Anderson. What do you say you’ve learned from them?
Trust the journey and trust the process. When I first worked with Pamela, I was a very, very young stylist, and I remember at the time feeling like I was completely out of my depth. When I got there, Pamela was the most down-to-earth, inspirational, real, genuine, loving person, and I realized that at the end of the day, we’re all just women at the core of it, with the same worries and the same issues and we’re all striving for the same thing. I’ve just learned to try and be patient and trust the process and stick to your ethics, because that does get you far.
You don’t realize it at the time, but when you’re a young talent or a young artist, you worry so much about the future. For me to have this opportunity and to actually reach my dream, I know a lot of people don’t get to achieve that, so I want to be grateful for the fact that I did end up getting here, but I’m still glad to hold myself in value along the way.
What advice do you have for aspiring creative directors?
My advice for any creative person is to pick yourself up and keep going, no matter how many times you fall or how hard it is. It’s taken me a really long time to get here, and there were many times along the way that I thought I was going to give up. It’s just about resilience. I would say that there is a space for everyone in this industry creatively. There is no right or wrong. So just to keep being true to what you love, because that’s essentially why we all work in the creative field.
Finally, what’s next for you?
I keep saying that I’m going to take a holiday, and I say after this job, and then after that job, and then the next job comes around. I guess that’s ultimately what’s exciting about all of this, the fact that you can’t really plan anything. I’m not entirely sure what’s next for me, but I’m excited for what that opportunity may be. I feel like I’m only getting started, so I’m looking forward to seeing what’s next.
