We recently connected with Clémentine Gelly and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Clémentine thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Earning a full time living from one’s creative career can be incredibly difficult. Have you been able to do so and if so, can you share some of the key parts of your journey and any important advice or lessons that might help creatives who haven’t been able to yet?
I make costumes and props for a living. These days, I work for companies only (film, commercials, video games, events and so on), but I used to make custom outfits for cosplayers.
When I started, my pay was barely covering materials, and once you remove taxes you are basically not getting paid. It went on for quite some time, I was steadily rising my prices, but I was still working 12 hours a day, no weekends, no holiday, and got almost nothing in exchange.
The problem is: nobody teaches you that stuff. You can learn about all the techniques you want, you still won’t know a thing about the price of custom costumes. With the ever rising popularity of fast-fashion website, even for cosplay, people have a distorted sense of what garment should cost. As a young artist, you will often feel like you are asking way too much for what it is.
I ended up stopping private commissions altogether to focus on company work. Now don’t get me wrong, big firms have money, but not for you. However, you feel less like you are asking 2 months worth of salary to an individual who just wants to dress up. It’s easier to price projects, and if they want to say no, they will just say so.
I wish I could have even a vague idea of what the industry prices are. I keep looking at videos of what creators are making and wondering ” how much did they charge for this” in order to see where I fit on the price scale.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I bring fiction to life. That’s it, that’s the job. I build, and sometimes design, objects that do not exist in this universe. Articulated wings and tails, fantasy armour, and so on.
I guess what I’m known for is straight up stubbornness. I have a vision and want to make it real. I’m constantly confronted with technical issues, the thing with fiction being that’s it…fiction. How do i make this entire piece light up without any visible wires? How do I make this move?
I work a lot for video games companies as it is a medium with very rich settings aligning perfectly with what I do.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
If my work makes the bystander feel something, then I’ve won. It doesn’t matter if the feeling is positive or not. It makes them react, it makes them think.
In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?
Remember our existence! We often work in the shadows and the general public doesn’t realise how much we contribute to culture. If an artist you like is on social media, the best you can do is interact with what they post.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://arborealkey.com/en/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/arborealkey/reels/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/arborealkey
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cl%C3%A9mentine-varenio-gelly-ab603a113/
- Twitter: https://x.com/arborealkey
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@arborealkey
Image Credits
All photos by DrSparkeor.