Noëlle Raffy

Designing characters.
Creating worlds.

Noëlle Raffy (Porter) is a Los Angeles-based costume designer and educator with more than 20 years of professional experience across theatre, film, television, and commercial production.

She earned her BFA from Otis College of Art and Design and her MFA in Costume Design from Carnegie Mellon University.

Noëlle's professional experience spans a diverse range of film productions, including Robin Hood, Adventureland, Bridge to Nowhere, Shelter, and the Oscar-nominated The Road. Her commercial production experience includes projects for internationally recognized brands such as Weight Watchers, Oral-B, Cadbury, Samsung, and Quaker Oats. Her industry credits also include work associated with Warner Bros., Universal Studios, Ridley Scott Films, and MTV.

Her international experience includes continued professional collaborations with the English National Ballet School, The Tricycle Theatre, and Academy Costumes in London. Her costume designs for The Birds were exhibited at the 2007 Prague Quadrennial, and her designs for The Oresteia Trilogy were part of a production named Best Play of 2007 by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

While attending Otis College of Art and Design, Noëlle received the Rudi Gernreich Scholarship from Fashion Group International of Los Angeles. Her professional theatre work continues to include local and regional companies and productions, including Utah Festival Opera, Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, and 5-Star Theatricals.

Equally committed to education and professional practice, Noëlle has served as a costume designer and lecturer at the University of California, Riverside, Los Angeles City College, and Idyllwild Arts. She currently serves as Department Chair and tenured Associate Professor of Theatre Arts, as well as Head of Costume Design, at California Lutheran University, where she combines professional design practice with academic leadership, teaching, mentorship, and interdisciplinary collaboration.