Hackers (1995): Roger K. Burton's Timeless Costume Design

In 1995, ‘Hackers’ introduced a bold, eclectic fashion aesthetic that was ahead of its time. Costume designer Roger K. Burton handcrafted many iconic looks based on the characters that fused cyberpunk, streetwear and club culture to create distinct visual styles that still resonate with us today. He expressed the challenges and obstacles of having limited budget allocation and the creative innovation that bloomed from said monetary constraints.

Feeling inspired by the script he was sent to New York where he spent a lot of time researching the surrounding culture and took interest in drag festivals, punk/alternative clothing & events plus the dichotomy of perceived normalcy in appearance opposed to the extreme fashion expression captured by the many unique individuals he studied. Roger himself spent an incredible deal of time into procuring a variety of garments, accessories and fashion pieces from around New York and London's thrift shops as well as occasional designer pieces. In doing so he personally retained ownership over most of the movie's wardrobe assets.

Roger spent most of his time creating the iconic looks for each character based on their personality as well as working with cast members like Angelina Jolie, Jonny Lee Miller, Matthew Lillard & others to really nail down every detail of how they wear it and why; often taking many polaroids with minute details about the contextual approach of the outfits. Roger had put this collection on display in an exhibition which included the original mood boards for each character, costume books, and the polaroids from fittings. 

“As we were filming on the streets of New York, and London I don’t think that any of us imagined for one minute that Hackers would become such a highly respected and much-loved cult movie. Amazingly I still regularly receive emails from fans fascinated with the costume 25 years after it was released…”
- Roger K Burton

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[Images sourced from the official Hackers (1995) production.]