First there were a few medium-length films, such as Lux Æterna by Gaspar Noé (2020), then Strange Way of Life (2023), Pedro Almodovar’s queer western, and Film annonce du film qui n’existera jamais, “Drôles de Guerres” (“Trailer for a Film That Will Never Exist, ‘Phony Wars'”), a short film by Jean-Luc Godard made in 2023. That was before Saint Laurent Productions stepped into the spotlight. Launched in April 2023, the Kering Group’s film production company – the first to emerge from the luxury goods industry – has co-produced three feature films this year that were selected for official competition at the Cannes Film Festival: Jacques Audiard’s new film Emilia Perez, a musical thriller mixing narcotics traffickers and gender transition freely adapted from the novel Ecoute (Stock, 2018, “Listen”) and presented on May 17; David Cronenberg’s partly autobiographical project The Shrouds (May 20); and Paolo Sorrentino’s Parthenope, a love letter to Naples (May 21).
While fashion and film have long rubbed shoulders, this cooperation is taking on a new dimension in a luxury ecosystem in the throes of experimentation. In September 2023, François Pinault, founder and CEO of the Kering Group, took control of Creative Artists Agency – valued in the deal at $7 billion (€6.44 billion) – through Artemis, his family holding company. The powerful American agency for stars, a key hub of Hollywood production, manages the careers of Tom Hanks, Margot Robbie and Brad Pitt, as well as Salma Hayek, wife of Pinault.
On February 22, LVMH (Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton) took a step forward with the launch of 22 Montaigne Entertainment, a production company for film, broadcast and audio formats, as well as programs dedicated to the group’s brands, such as Inside the Dream, a behind-the-scenes look at the Bulgari jewelry house, streamed on Amazon Prime Video. The initiative is managed by Antoine Arnault, one of Bernard Arnault’s sons, and Anish Melwani, head of LVMH’s US operations. “We are excited to formalize our approach to the promotion of our brands across entertainment formats,” Melwani confirmed in a statement. For the rest, the company, contacted by Le Monde, declined to comment and is keeping a tight lid on the extent of its ambitions.
‘Beyond simple marketing’
In its tightly corseted communication, Kering claims that these films illustrate “the Saint Laurent brand’s piloting into the future.” Heading up Saint Laurent Productions, the brand’s Belgian artistic director Anthony Vaccarello also designed the costumes for the three feature films presented at Cannes. “Making a film can be more impactful than a seasonal collection,” he explained in an interview with Variety in 2023. Beneath these projects lie pragmatic reasons. “The big luxury brands have seen the effectiveness of their traditional advertising decline,” said Gregory Gray, film historian and co-investor in art and entertainment projects. After investing in contemporary art, the brands are now turning to cinema to reach a wider audience. “What counts for these brands is above all a collaboration with a prestigious director. Their objective goes beyond simple marketing; they aim to be associated with the desires and dreams of the public,” Gray added.
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