“It Was Almost Like Working On An Actual Movie”: Cinephile Alessandro Michele On Recreating Stanley Kubrick Classics For His Exquisite Gucci Campaign

When Alessandro Michele was appointed Gucci’s creative director in 2015, a seismic shift could be felt throughout the industry. Spring forward to now, and the long-haired fashion maverick continues to challenge the status quo with his cutting-edge designs, awash with historical and pop culture references. The brand’s autumn/winter 2022 collection – aptly titled Exquisite – featured a surprising collaboration with Adidas, while its campaign and accompanying film is an ode to legendary auteur Stanley Kubrick’s body of work.

“The strange marriage between the codes of Adidas and Gucci was a chemical experiment, in the most ambiguous way,” the designer remarks gleefully over Zoom from his atelier in Rome. “So, I approached the campaign similarly. I had the intention of placing the collection in Kubrick’s iconic scenes, where my clothes exist organically in his world, but feel completely alien at the same time – it’s my tribute to cinema and to one of its brightest maestros.”

“Getting to collaborate with all of the incredible people, and especially on the costumes with Canonero, who’s even more obsessive than me, was a pleasure, because she has a history of working with Kubrick, which is incredible. For a project like this to come alive, you need to work with the very best,” notes Michele of some of his highlights from working on the project. “But the outdoor shots inspired by Barry Lyndon, where we placed the white Victorian-inspired dress with the Adidas stripes naturally mixed into a group of people dressed in clothes from that era – that was one of my favourite moments.”