The World Fashion Shorts Festival brought together the worlds of fashion and cinema in a unique concept
By Aimee Duroy
Given the intrinsic link between cinema and fashion, it is challenging to draw a clear line between the two. Is this a necessary step? The organizers of the World Fashion Shorts festival of short films about fashion, which takes place within the framework of Moscow Fashion Week, believe that it is important to merge these two art forms in order to showcase the identity of cultures.
One of the objectives of the World Fashion Shorts Festival in Moscow is to examine fashion through the lens of cinema, taking into account the rich tapestry of cultural diversity. The genre of fashion short films is experiencing rapid growth and evolution on a global scale. The World Fashion Shorts selection features videos from a diverse range of countries, including South Africa, North and South America, Central and Southeast Asia, Europe, Russia, and Belarus. Together, they provide a comprehensive representation of the rich tapestry of cultures and challenge conventional ideas about fashion. How do we perceive ourselves and our surroundings? How can we best express our feelings and individuality? Ultimately, these are questions about identity and how to foster mutual understanding and acceptance. Fashion and cinema are merely a medium, a language, one of the many avenues through which the world and its people can be discussed.
The inaugural World Fashion Shorts Festival competition saw an international jury select forty films, which formed the basis for new video streams for an impressive multimedia installation. Additionally, over 27 films were submitted by partner festivals, including the Cinettica Fashion & Art Film Festival (Mexico-USA), the Buenos Aires-Miami International Fashion Film Festival (Argentina-USA), the Manila International Fashion Film Festival (Philippines), and the Brazil Immersive Fashion Week (Brazil).
The short, colorful fashion films from different countries and continents were showcased in the World Fashion Shorts Festival’s distinctive show format. Presented on eight screens simultaneously around the perimeter of the hall, the videos were accompanied by a synchronized audio experience. Each video stream explored a unique theme, encompassing fashion in the context of urban and natural environments, national traditions and myths, emotions, dreams, and the human relationship with the body.
The objective of the multimedia installation was to reach the widest possible audience. Additionally, World Fashion Shorts served as a festival laboratory, facilitating interactions between directors and designers and fostering connections between diverse artistic communities. Dfaniks, director, promoter, and founder of the Cinettica Fashion & Art Festival, led a dynamic master class titled “How to Shoot a Short Fashion Film in the City.” The class demonstrated the principles of creating a fashion video in an urban setting using both a camera and a mobile phone. Bench Bello, a multimedia artist and photographer who founded the Manila International Fashion Film Festival, discussed the essential elements of fashion filmmaking in his master class.
“Fashion films offer a nuanced perspective on fashion, interpreting it not just as a series of trends or commercial products, but as a distinct form of personal and collective expression. They can utilize innovative visual effects and artistic expression to challenge stereotypes, highlight cultural diversity, and spark conversations about social change,” Dfaniks said.
Moscow Fashion Week, which included World Fashion Shorts in its program, showcased a diverse range of traditions, trends, and cultural codes, reflecting the event’s commitment to showcasing the best of global fashion. Notable fashion event participants included the Chinese brand KenSun, which demonstrated how national identity is integrated with innovation, and the Russian brand Alena Musaeva, which showcased ethnicity in a contemporary interpretation. The Indian brand Nitin Bal Chahuan presented a sophisticated yet harmonious color palette, while the Moscow brand Loom by Rodina opened the show with a segment from the opera Prince Igor. Tshegofatso By Design, a brand that celebrates the beauty and culture of South Africa, and Ianis Chamalidy, a collection inspired by the grunge aesthetic of St. Petersburg designer. HakaMa from Moscow, which celebrates oriental minimalism and complex deconstruction, and the Brazilian brand Maison Revolta, which dedicated its collection to Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space.
Moscow Fashion Week saw over 80 designers, including representatives from Costa Rica, Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates, and Russia, demonstrate how trends can reflect the authenticity of the country and the designer. Furthermore, the event highlighted the cinematic aspect of fashion, reinforcing the parallels between fashion and cinema in terms of aesthetic and semantic values.
