When Hollywood needs a character that looks like a giant slice of pizza running a marathon, or a skinny boy that needs to turn into muscle-bound super hero, or a nervous penguin costume, they call James Hayes, designer and fabricator of specialty costumes.

Since 1990, the Emmy-nominated designer has been creating and building specialty costumes for motion pictures, television, stage, and national ad campaigns. James’ whimsical designs have graced actors, puppets, animatronic characters, and animals.

James was “discovered” in classic Hollywood style on Halloween night 1990. Running amuck in a self-made T-Rex costume on Santa Monica Blvd, James attracted the attention of Jeffery

Lambert, producer of the ABC/Disney prime time comedy series Dinosaurs. Lambert was so bowled over by the seven-foot tall tailed and toothsome creature, he arranged for James to interview with Dinosaurs’ costume designer Polly Smith. James landed a job creating oversized clothing for the show’s animatronic dinosaurs, launching his design career.

In the years since Dinosaurs, James has designed and built specialty costumes for dozens of feature films, including Batman & Robin, Team America, the Royal Tenenbaums, Disney’s Haunted Mansion, Hostage, Muppets in Space, Dawn of the Dead, Death to Smoochie, The Master of Disguise, Torque, Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back, Buddy, Grind, The Edge, Jingle All The Way, The Bear, Ticket to Ride, Don’t Mess with Zohan,  Drillbit Taylor, Semi-Pro, Enchanted, Chipmunks “Squeakwill” and “Chipwrecked,” House Bunny and Grown Ups 2.

TV viewers have also been treated to James’ whimsical creations on such shows as Scrubs, My Name is Earl, Third Rock from the Sun, Friends, Will & Grace, That 70s Show, Just Shoot Me, The MTV Movie Awards, The Drew Carey Show, Angel, Cedric The Entertainer Presents, Boston Commons, Muppets Tonight, Greg the Bunny, Crank Yankers, Prime Time Glick, The George Lopez Show, Trigger Happy TV, Good Morning Miami, Cousin Skeeter, Nickelodeon Kid’s Choice Awards, The Sarah Silverman Show, Wizards of Waverly Place, It’s A Laugh, The Wedding Band, Weeds, This is Awkward, Imagination Movers, Hard Times Of R.J. Berger, Warren the Ape, United States Of Tara, Yo Gabba Gabba and Glee.

Some of the biggest names in Hollywood have sported James’ one-of-kind costumes, including Susan Sarandon, Ashton Kutcher, Jack Black, James Marsden, Lisa Kudrow, Miss Piggy, Zack Braff, Sarah Michelle Geller, Sean William Scott, John Lithgow, Dana Carvey, Ann Magnuson, Judy Tenuda, John Goodman, Rachel Hunter, Kermit D. Frog, Topher Grace, Ru Paul, Steven Seagal, Jan Hooks, Rachel Hunter, Chris Katan, Anna Nichole Smith, Adam Sandler, Rumour Willis, Bruce Willis, Valerie Bertinelli and Ellen Degeneres and Emma Stone.

James has also designed and built highly stylized character costumes and walk-around suits for scores of high profile national advertising campaigns. These include comedic cave men (Pepsi), giant mosquitoes, meteorites, and fish (Discovery Channel) paper bag puppets (Fandango.com), the Hunch Back of Notre Dam (Cheez-Its), donkey’s in business suits (CareerBuilder.com), and a giant chicken selling chicken ceaser salad, (Fresh Express), and for Honda, Old Navy,R.I.F. KIA, Credit score.com, Rotten Tomatoes, Frito Lay and Bud Light.

In 1997 James was nominated for an Emmy award for his costume work on the PBS children’s series The Puzzle Place. 

James attended Parson School of Design and worked in the garment industry designing clothing for Bugle Boy, Tommy Hilfiger, and J. Crew prior to working in the entertainment industry. He continues to design and build specialty costumes and wardrobe in his tree top Silverlake Studio with his canine companions Hedy and Joey.