In Urban Outfitters on Fifth Avenue on a Sunday afternoon, he makes his way through the maze of displays until he\u2019s standing in front of these bright, floral-patterned, men\u2019s button downs.<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes ugly clothes make more of a statement than pretty clothes,\u201d he says, whipping through the shirts on the rack.<\/p>\n
The smell of Chanel overwhelms Saks Fifth Avenue, where he finds a women\u2019s white T-shirt-style crop top with a white racerback tank on top. He needs one that is revealing but not overly-exposing. Is this the right one? How much will he have to alter the shirt to make it what he needs? If it\u2019s too much work, it\u2019s not worth it.<\/p>\n
Moving\u00a0briskly from rack to rack, Broecker explains that fashion designers have a specific ideal for their clothes; but as a costume designer, he always has a specific person in mind. Today he\u2019s shopping for characters on Armistead Maupin\u2019s Tales of the City<\/em>, which will premiere on Netflix in 2019. But sometimes, something else will catch his eye and he\u2019ll pick it up for his other job as the head costumer\u2014and now producer\u2014for NBC\u2019s Saturday Night Live.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cThe psychology of the clothes and the people I\u2019m dressing are more interesting to me than the actual garment. Fashion is more about making someone look pretty, whereas costume design is telling a story with clothes, reinforced with text.\u201d<\/p>\n Broecker might as well call himself a part-time therapist anyway, given the nature of his job.<\/p>\n \u201cI had two actors break down in front of me just this week,\u2019 Broecker says. \u201cBut that\u2019s what you\u2019re there for.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you shut the door, it\u2019s a safe zone. You take your clothes off here\u2014both physically and emotionally. That\u2019s a really quick, intimate experience. It\u2019s an exercise of trust. They have to know that I will take care of them and that they\u2019re in good hands. I have to make them to feel comfortable.\u201d<\/p>\n Broecker has worked on shows from House of Cards\u00a0<\/em>to 30 Rock <\/em>and even the Emmys<\/em>, but nothing compares to the craziness of SNL<\/em>. Inside the NBC Studios he may create a safe place for cast members to be vulnerable, but he can\u2019t get attached to his own work. He might costume\u00a0a sketch featuring\u00a0SNL <\/em>veteran Keenan Thompson and that by the\u00a0end of the week puts\u00a0Kate McKinnon in Thompson\u2019s role.<\/p>\n \u201cYou have to be able to throw your designs out. The best thing the show has taught me is to be able to throw out whatever I\u2019m working on at any given moment and start over. You have to be able to change, move, throw something upside down.<\/p>\n \u201cLife will always bring you a problem, and you have to solve it. The more you hold it tight, the harder it will be to really think about it.\u201d<\/p>\n