At a time when the image is everything, there are those who make it speak, but above all the “dress”. In his latest SS23 campaign entitled Director’s Cut, Saint Laurent does not entrust his words to the shots of models, but to the cinematic gaze, strictly in black and white, of the ”rebel” masters of contemporary film. Elusive, haughty, almost annoyed by a photographic lens aimed at capturing a half-closed eye, a hanging mouth and a hidden hand, narrating to them, the protagonists, for the first time away from the camera, and now in the heart of the scene: David Cronenberg, Jim Jarmusch, Pedro Almodovar, Abel Ferrara are the new unexpected noir stars of the maison.
David Sims, author of the shots, guided by the creative director Anthony Vaccarello, focuses on the expression accentuated by a physical silence, and the dress seems to almost disappear, becoming a frame, costume and scenography at the same time. ”A dress is a costume that knows no recovery, it does not seek the camera’s lens, but the gaze of the wearer” explains Cronenberg, bringing the debate on the existence of a cinema that uses fashion closer to another on the role of fashion as a scenic costume interwoven with experience. Communication is made effective by a minimal use of clothing: the directors don’t wear prominent clothes from the collection, but settle down on coats and sweaters that simply reaffirm the image of the director’s role, sometimes hidden behind the camera, sometimes , as in this one, they always show themselves, however, not revealing themselves completely, after all they are the ones who know the car, and know ”how to take it”.
A balance of exposition and insight, guiding the audience’s eye into a gripping noir. The campaign represents the continuation of the filmic story telling to which Vaccarello entrusts his communication, a veiled tribute to the friendships of the founder of the 70s.
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