Saint Laurent has opened a film production branch

Saint Laurent has decided to launch itself into the world of cinema. If since the days of its founder, the brand has had relationships with the big screen, signing costumes or playing the role of commissioner of non-narrative shorts (as it was with Gaspar Noè's Lux Æterna in 2019), today this effort has reached a new level. Saint Laurent Productions is the latest offshoot of the Kering brand dedicated to film production-the first of its kind since casting a prone between fashion and cinema with a dedicated company is a feat no one had attempted so far. The production company's first products will be short films, including Pedro Almodòvar's Strange Way of Life, which will be presented at Cannes in a month and will star Ethan Hawke, Pedro Pascal, and Manu Rios. But the intention is to make real commercial films while having control over the media circle around them.

The next project in the works, however, is expected to feature David Cronenberg and Paolo Sorrentino - though it is unclear whether the two will work on a single film or there is a feature film each in pre-production. «Communication-wise, doing a film has more impact on people than a collection», Anthony Vaccarello told WWD, adding that cinema is « a media that stays longer than clothes in a store». The films produced will have all the trappings of indie cinema; Saint Laurent's creative director said he intends to give creative freedom to the filmmakers involved, without backing down from adult and potentially controversial stories.