We all get to see what happens on the runway at fashion week, but so much more goes on behind-the-scenes. And this fall, three new fashion documentaries are giving us an inside look into the lives of the most influential tastemakers in the industry. Directors have captured the worlds of shoe designer Manolo Blahnik, designer Zac Posen, and influential editor André Leon Talley, to showcase their legacies like never before. And if documentaries just aren’t your thing, the co-founders of the innovative fashion label Rodarte have got you covered with their debut feature-length film that mixes fashion with an intricate narrative. Keep scrolling to see the trailers for these debut fashion films and get ready to plan your next movie night!
Manolo: The Boy Who Made Shoes for Lizards
If you want to see the behind-the-scenes magic behind creating the world’s most-sought-after shoes then this is the movie for you. Manolo: The Boy Who Made Shoes for Lizards is an 89-minute documentary, directed by British fashion journalist Michael Roberts, and the film delves into Manolo Blahnik’s fascination with footwear design, which ultimately led him to create his luxury brand. The doc features historic footage and exclusive one-on-one interviews with the biggest names in fashion (Anna Wintour, Rihanna, Naomi Campbell, and André Leon Talley) as they explain why ‘Manolos’ dominate the fashion world as the most iconic footwear of all time.
House of Z
Take a look inside the world of renowned fashion designer Zac Posen with this documentary focused on the label he launched at just 21-years-old. The compelling trailer shows Posen’s rise to fame as a “child genius designer” and his sudden fall to what he calls the “dark side” of fashion. The film emotionally captures how Posen’s influence on the industry took its course and what he had to do to regain his status as a prominent tastemaker behind a well-respected brand.
The Gospel According to André
Former Vogue editor-at-large André Leon Talley uses his first ever documentary to showcase that his impact on the fashion industry was so much more than just sitting in the front row at fashion week. Director Kate Novack puts Talley’s entire life on display and nothing is off limits: from his childhood in the segregated South to his first gig in New York at Andy Warhol’s Interview to his big break as editor-at-large at Vogue. The raw footage of Talley and the who’s who of fashion, paint a vivid and personal portrait of the fashion legend like you’ve never seen before.
Woodstock
Rodarte’s co-founders, sisters Kate and Laura Mulleavy, are taking the designer-turned-director route with their debut feature-length film, Woodstock. Kirsten Dunst, who is close friends with the Mulleavy sisters and often wears their designs, stars in this trippy film as a grieving woman who deals with a very traumatic loss through heavy drug use. The film depicts Dunst’s character through her emotional downfall as she battles between facing her intense emotions and the distortion of her reality. Staying true to Rodarte‘s vibe, the film is set in California against the backdrop of the visually stimulating redwood forests (the sisters are LA-based and grew up in the forests of Santa Cruz) and all of the costumes are designed by the sisters.