The Paley center for media presented Ready-to-watch: TV and Fashion, The minds behind some of televisions best fashion moments explored the influence film has had on the fashion industry throughout the years. The panel consisted of costume designer Jenn Rogien, Isaac Mizrahi, Zosia Mamet alongside esteemed moderator Bridget Foley of WWD.
The evening began with a video montage of several films and TV episodes that have been influential to fashion and design over the decades. These films included the iconic Breakfast at Tiffany’s scene with Audrey Hepburn in her little black dress, Grace Kelly wearing a floral gown in Rear Window, Blair and Serena on The Met steps in Gossip Girl, and Carrie strutting around in Manolo Blahniks in Sex and the city.
The panel explored the influence of film on clothing design through their personal experiences which allowed the audience to gain an insight into how trends within popular culture can arise. Rogien (Girls, Orange is the new black) emphasized how it’s important to have a collaborative approach with the actors in order to create a pleasant scene. This openness of combining feedback from the actors can be imperative to ‘making the film’. Mamet had a unique perspective as an actress; through inhabiting her characters she knows how they want to dress and what they feel comfortable in, her knowledge of her character directly influenced the costume departments viewpoints. Mizrahi, as both a costume and fashion designer, has had an inextricable relationship with this industry through both ready-to-wear and film, he shared his viewpoints on influential fashion throughout the ages and also raised the question of whether there will be another show that is tremendously influential on fashion? This lead Foley to further explore this, the panel discussed how certain shows such as sex and the city and gossip girl were influential to their times and culture. But is there a shelf life for situational dressing we see in most of these TV shows?
Television is a resource for designers conveying emotion and nostalgic notions through their collections, this panel definitely extruded the key components of this entity and provided a knowledgeable array of opinions and personal experiences to further connect the audience with film and fashion.
