Carine Roitfeld In "The Client"

Carine Roitfeld In "The Client"
By Jessica Eritou

In spirit of Carine Roitfeld's documentary Mademoiselle C, IWTBAR explores the documentary short “The Client,” filmed two years ago by the same director and producer of the full length film, Fabien Constant. The filming took place during Paris Couture Week in 2011 covering over twenty fashion shows for W Magazine.

What makes this short significant is that fans of Roitfeld can watch as she selects, fits, and models the couture gowns she usually styles for herself, only this time for W, in the editorial "The One and Only" for their October issue in 2011.

Constant follows Roitfeld as she ventures all week to various fashion shows, in her car, meeting fans who want to put her signed photos up on eBay. In classic Roitfeld fashion, she dryly admits it's a good idea since you can see how much you are worth.

The short includes coverage from Giorgio Armani Privé, where, at an early 10 a.m. show there is already champagne flowing for the guests. “I'm here to be fitted in the clothes,” she explains to Giorgio himself after the show.

We see Roitfeld meeting Riccardo Tisci for Givenchy Couture as the location was set up in a quaint showroom as if it were for Louis XVI.

The best part of the short captures Roitfeld explaining how she is wearing all these different pieces but still wants the clothing to be about her with shirts and skirts since they are her staples. You can see her genius reaction to what she is wearing and in what she feels most comfortable. Constant filmed Roitfeld outside speaking to him where she says, “To be Carine, it's mostly a skirt.” And it's true.

At her stop at Alaïa, the designer himself said to her, “Listen, when you look after clients, that's how you learn. Because if you don't see how a design is worn or what women want, or how they want to wear it, you're just designing in a void. And that isn't good.” Frankly, this is some of the best advice for anyone in the design world.

The W issue featuring Roitfeld, shot by Paolo Roversi, captured her feminine yet strong aesthetic. We are able to see Roitfeld's personality through the clothes immensely. A favorite would be the black-and-white image of her in the military gusset pocketed day suit by Chanel which leads off this article.

Despite her privilege and connection in the fashion world, Carine Roitfeld comes across as humble throughout the short. For those who may not have been able to catch Constant's full documentary in theatres, this will give you a sneak peek while we wait for the home release of Mademoiselle C in 2014.

View "The Client"

connect with iwtbar  bloglovin  |  facebook  |  pinterest  |  tumblr  |  twitter

Carine Roitfeld photographs © 2011 Condé Nast. All Rights Reserved.

Marie-Amélie Sauvé: Cutting Edge Allure

Marie-Amélie Sauvé: Cutting Edge Allure
By Bernie Rothschild

Marie-Amélie Sauvé is a regular fixture in the front row of all the hottest fashion shows in town. A star stylist in her own right, she also starred as a model in the advertising campaign that Carine Roitfeld styled for Barneys New York for Fall 2011.

Marie-Amélie is known in the fashion industry for her professional and personal relationship with Nicolas Ghesquière. The pair have worked together since day one, when Marie-Amélie served as the house's all around muse/stylist/fit model, trying the clothes before they hit the runway and influencing the look of the Balenciaga runway with her personal style. When every designer was being nostalgic and looking to the past for inspiration, the duo pushed the immaculate design house forward by creating its trademark futuristic glamour and experimental, cutting edge, almost impossible shapes without disrespecting the original designs of its founder, Monsieur Cristóbal Balenciaga. They redefined the meaning of "High Street" couture by influencing the style of the street with the glory of haute couture. Marie-Amélie has also helped to style fashion shows such as The Row, Proenza Schouler, Narciso Rodriguez, Roberto Cavalli, and Chloé.

As for her magazine career, Marie-Amélie started at Vogue Paris as an intern at the age of 18 then climbed her way to the top of fashion ladder. In the mid/late 1990s, she worked at the trendy French teen magazine 20 Ans. Then in 2001, under the creative editorship of Carine Roitfeld, Marie-Amélie returned to Vogue Paris as a special fashion consultant/editor-at-large, together with former colleague Emmanuelle Alt. As the legend goes, the trio created memorable shots for the magazine and brought excitement, sensuality, and fantasy, breathing new life into the ailing fashion publication. From mid 2008 to 2011, Marie-Amélie worked as a contributing editor at Vogue US, collaborating with the likes of Inez and Vinoodh, Mario Testino, Patrick Demarchelier, Craig McDean, and David Sims, and with Steven Meisel at Vogue Italia. We should also mention that Marie-Amélie was part of the redesign of Interview Magazine by Fabien Baron. Her editorial style is noticeably no nonsense, futuristic, intellectual, and direct with a touch of the sensual eroticism for which the French are known.

Marie-Amélie's departure from Vogue Paris two years ago was highly controversial and the rumors suggested that her firing was the reason the entire Vogue Paris team was banned from everything Balenciaga (until now). Note that when Carine left Vogue Paris, she and Nicolas put their alleged differences behind them. In the past spring 2012 fashion shows it is noticeably obvious that Marie-Amélie and Carine are attending events together and seated together again just like their old days at Vogue Paris. It was also reported that Marie-Amélie would be involved in the new magazine that La Roitfeld will launch this fall — how exciting is that? For the meantime, Marie-Amélie is newly hired at W Magazine as a senior fashion editor, bringing her edge to the trendiest clothes of the season for one of the most fashion forward magazines on the newsstand! Stay tuned for much more styling greatness from this visionary French woman.

Marie-Amélie Sauvé photographs © 2012 Condé Nast and courtesy of purple.fr, barneys.com, style.com, and Fashion Spot.

Carine Roitfeld: The Client

Thursday night at the French Embassy in New York, Stefano Tonchi and Carine Roitfeld hosted a party to present "The Client," a short film that focuses on Roitfeld in the role of a buyer at Paris Couture Week. Produced by Loïc Prigent and Fabien Constant, the film runs nearly thirteen minutes as the camera follows Carine to various shows and ateliers including that of Azzedine Alaïa. Carine then models the couture looks she has selected for a W editorial titled "The One and Only" shot by Paolo Roversi. Visit the photo gallery to see more of the party.

Carine Roitfeld photographs © 2011 BFAnyc.com. All Rights Reserved.