While creating costumes for the movie directed by John Madden, costume designer Sandy Powell gave a lot of attention to colors. The designer used gold, blue and crimson knowing how important the meaning of the color was during the Elizabethan period. During this time, to make sure of the separation between classes, the Queen regulated what the lower classes could or couldn't wear, focusing more on the latter. These rules did not apply to the Queen, so the designer allowed herself to play with various colors while creating the costumes for her, creating rich looks, but creating opposite-looking costumes for those who were of the lower class.