Hacks Costume Designer Maps Ava’s Growth Through Clothes

Hacks costume – In an interview during IndieWire’s Craft Roundtables, costume designer Kathleen Felix-Hager explained how “Hacks” used Ava Daniels’ wardrobe to track her shift from early-twenties newcomer to a more confident, financially stable 30-year-old—mirroring both the

On “Hacks,” the transformation doesn’t just happen onstage. It shows up in the quiet details—what Ava Daniels wears as her career starts taking shape, and how the clothes gradually catch up to who she’s becoming.

Costume designer Kathleen Felix-Hager made that idea the centerpiece of her explanation during IndieWire’s Craft Roundtables. She pointed to the changes in Ava’s age and mindset across the series. describing how the wardrobe evolves as the character moves from her early twenties in Los Angeles toward her thirties by the end.

“To me, the character of Ava, she starts in her early twenties coming to L.A. She has an almost juvenile aspect to her wardrobe at that point. By the end of the series, she’s 30,” Felix-Hager said. “We were really conscious every year of showing her evolution, she’s growing up a little bit. By Season 5, she’s making money, so she was able to buy investment pieces. Her basic vibe is the same, but it’s just more sophisticated and more grown-up.”.

That year-by-year attention—especially the shift Felix-Hager linked to Season 5—gives Ava’s style a sense of earned momentum. The basic look doesn’t suddenly change; it matures, which makes the growth feel personal rather than cosmetic.

Felix-Hager also said the work connected to Hannah Einbinder in a way that went beyond costume sketches and screen requirements. She described the fun—and the challenge—of mirroring a performer’s real-life trajectory in an actor playing a character who’s also finding herself in the entertainment world.

“It was very interesting for me to work with Hannah the actress. because it was a very similar journey in her personal life. ” she said. “She was in her early twenties, ‘Hacks’ was like her show. She wasn’t that confident, it was all new. There was a very similar trajectory with her growth and Ava’s growth.”.

Those parallels land with a certain kind of truth. “Hacks” follows stand-up legend Deborah Vance (Jean Smart) and her young writer Ava Daniels (Hannah Einbinder) from a road trip through America’s smallest clubs to a lucrative career comeback—and Felix-Hager’s comments make clear that the wardrobe is another way the series tracks that shift.

For viewers looking to see more of the process, IndieWire’s Craft Roundtables is now streaming on the PBS App.

Hacks Hacks costume designer Kathleen Felix-Hager Ava Daniels Hannah Einbinder Jean Smart IndieWire Craft Roundtables PBS App costume design