Saint Laurent and Anthony Vaccarello are taking over Cannes Film Festival
Saint Laurent Productions
Saint Laurent Productions, the subsidiary for the French fashion house, was announced in 2023. A first of its kind, it marked the luxury Maison's move into filmmaking. And it was off to a flying start, with Strange Way of Life, the film directed by Pedro Almodóvar, starring Manu Rios, and produced by Saint Laurent, becoming a massive hit at last May's Cannes Film Festival. "I want to work with and provide a space for all the great film talents who have inspired me over the years," Anthony Vaccarello, creative director of Saint Laurent, said at the time.
And now in an announcement from Cannes Film Festival organisers, Saint Laurent will be tightening its grip on the world famous film fest when it takes over the French Riviera next month. The brand will have three featured films in this year’s Official Selection, the most prestigious category of Cannes Film Festival. Typically, the films chosen for this get the big moments, the massive red carpets and the major headlines.
The Saint Laurent films are a diverse mix. Jacques Audiard's Emilia Perez follows the story of a lawyer who helps a cartel leader withdraw from his business, and stars Zoe Saldaña and Selena Gomez. The Shrouds by director David Cronenberg, and starring Vincent Cassel, Diane Kruger, Guy Pearce and Sandrine Holt, depicts the tale of a businessman coming to terms with the death of his wife, while the third film, Parthenope by Paolo Sorrentino portrays the life of the main character, and stars Isabella Ferrari and Gary Oldman.
Not much has been announced regarding Saint Laurent's involvement with the aforementioned films, but it can be expected that, like with Strange Way of Life, the costumes will be designed by Vaccarello and crafted in the Saint Laurent factories, while the Maison will be behind funding and production.
What is telling, however, is where fashion's big players are positioning themselves. While Saint Laurent is loudly building its film repertoire, and will certainly make a splash next month, LVMH announced the launch of 22 Montaigne Entertainment, a new platform that aims to connect its massive roster of 75 maisons with the entertainment industry, earlier this year.
Fashion and film have long gone hand-in-hand, whether in the productions themselves, or on press tours and the backs of celebrities, but is this a signal that fashion needs film to survive in 2024?
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