The short movie will be first screened at an intimate event at Casa Cipriani in New York on April 24 at the presence of the actress and the brand’s creative director Gherardo Felloni.
Roger Vivier’s creative director Gherardo Felloni grew up watching David Lynch’s movies, so the designer had a full circle moment when Laura Dern agreed to star in the brand’s new short movie.
Dubbed “Vivier Express Travelling Icons,” the series of whimsical short films aims to spotlight the label’s iconic styles and sees the Academy Award winner and long-time friend of the house as the protagonist of the inaugural episode, set to be released on April 25.
“I’ve always been obsessed by [Dern], part for her talent and part for the movies she has played,” said Felloni. “She’s a David Lynch muse and he’s one of my favorite directors. She’s an icon, part of the Hollywood Olympus and one of those actresses that are beautiful, charming and with such an extraordinary talent. Plus she told me she knew the brand well, which I always find kind of surprising because I consider this as a niche label, not a mainstream one.”
Felloni recalled he first linked with the actress back in 2022 via a mutual friend, and Dern shared that one of her first purchases while in Paris was a pair of the brand’s shoes. The idea of collaborating on a cinematic project popped up at a dinner event in Los Angeles that year.
“We never go to a talent leveraging the power of a check, but rather look for people who love the brand and marry the project,” said Felloni. “And working with her was another dream coming true, because we’ve collaborated with many actresses I adore so far,” he added, pointing to previous tie-ups with the likes of Catherine Deneuve, Isabella Rossellini, Susan Sarandon, Isabelle Huppert and Christina Ricci, among others.
To be sure, the Vivier Express project builds on the company’s strong bond with the world of cinema. The brand entered the pop culture pantheon on the heels of Deneuve’s role in Luis Buñuel’s 1967 movie “Belle de Jour,” in which the actress sported the original version of the Roger Vivier signature buckle pump.
Dern said that movie and “seeing my first Roger Vivier shoes worn by Catherine Deneuve” were her introduction to the brand. “Cinema loves Roger Vivier and the brand has become iconic within it. Gherardo loves film like my favorite filmmakers love film so it’s a seamless collaboration and you feel the influences in his vision,” she added.
Known for his flamboyant vision and theatrical presentation concepts inspired by his passion for music and opera, Felloni has relied on the cinematic medium since his appointment in 2018 to further telegraph the brand’s joie de vivre and eclectic styles. Indeed, the designer praised the way movies convey emotions and personalities better than static campaigns and respond to today’s demand for fast ways to condense messages and immediately engage with the audience.
In the new four-minute-long movie, Dern is seen in a charming old-school train crossing the French countryside while sporting the Viv’ Choc draped handbag and I Love Vivier pointed black pumps. A stranger joins her in the pink-hued cabin, sitting opposite to the actress and starting to sketch on his notepad. The rising tension between the two characters is abruptly interrupted when the train halts and the gentleman departs, leaving a sheet of paper behind to reveal a plot twist ending the episode on an ironic note.
Italian director Nicolangelo Gelormini, and Felloni’s partner Andrea Danese, a screenwriter, worked with Studio Paura on the short movie, returning to the designer’s side after having lent their polished aesthetic and playful narrative style to films for the company since 2018.
“We have tailor made this episode and script on Laura,” said Felloni about the collaborative approach between the different talents involved. “She was happy about working around a team who has been close to the brand for so long, because she herself works in that way, too. So she felt comfortable.”
To mark the collaboration, Felloni and Dern will host an intimate dinner at Casa Cipriani in New York on April 24, when the short movie will be screened for the first time. While the guest list is still under wraps, Dern’s daughter Jaya is set to make an appearance, after having accompanied the actress on the set of the short movie in Los Angeles, too.
Witnessing the mother-and-daughter relationship first-hand was among the fondest memories Felloni has of that day, as he underscored how it spoke volumes of the person behind the actress and embodies the values of the Roger Vivier brand and its trans-generational appeal.
As for Dern – who has most recently starred and produced the Apple TV+ series “Palm Royale” and is filming a movie written and directed by Noah Baumbach – she recalled the “torrential rainstorm” of the Vivier Express’ shooting day.
“It felt like sacrilege to have to wear an old pair of rubber boots while in the company of Gherardo but I had to do anything and everything to protect these shoes,” she said about the I Love Vivier pumps, an iconic design that Felloni turned extra romantic by shaping its crimson insole after a heart motif.
“But to be honest, everything went so smoothly that day,” said Felloni. “Everything we put on [Dern] looked great, while sometimes in other cases fittings can turn into dramas. She was so nice, on time and super professional… And I’ve seen it also with Rossellini and Deneuve, with these big actresses who can be great but at the same time grounded, and who know how to put the entire crew at ease… It’s all about humbleness, intelligence and professionality,” said Felloni. “Sometimes actresses can find working for a fashion brand stressful because they don’t know what to expect from the set… while we put [Dern] on a movie set and just asked her not to be a model but to be herself, an actress.”
Felloni underscored that the choice follows the personal approach the brand’s founder has had with actresses as well as his penchant for linking with “relevant and confident” women. Felloni cited Monsieur Vivier’s work appearing on the feet of everyone from Marlene Dietrich to the late Queen Elizabeth II.
“Vivier was a genius, one who could dress powerful women hailing from different worlds but that at the same time loved life, they loved clothes, elegance and glamour. These are all part of women’s real freedom: to be free to dare to have fun and wear what they want,” he said.
As for his personal relationship with movies, Felloni acknowledged he “was always saved by cinema, as I grew up in the middle of nowhere in the Italian countryside watching films, which took me at the center of the world without being at the center of the world.”
While he said he would love to design costumes for a film, Felloni said he doesn’t have a favorite genre and pointed to different directors as influential in his life, from Federico Fellini to Tim Burton. In particular, he revealed he had worn out the VHS tapes of Burton’s 1988 movie “Beetlejuice” and John Waters’ 1994 film “Serial Mom” growing up, in addition to Lynch’s 1986 movie “Blue Velvet” starring Dern.
“At the end of the day, I realized I like movies that treat profound issues in a fun way, and these are getting fewer and fewer. It can sound banal but to make someone laugh with a movie is far more difficult than making someone cry – that everybody can do it,” said Felloni. “It’s the same with fashion. I like Roger Vivier to be a happy, lighthearted brand because I’m actually not exactly like that. I go buy a jewel or a shoe because I want to reinvent myself.”
