Fashion beyond words.

Fashion beyond words.

Director Sandra Birkner sets
the scene for the designs of
Berlin fashion designer Hien Le.

Fashion meets movie.

From simple „clicks“ to cinematic choreographies: Over the last few years, fashion films have revolutionised the industry with their artistic take on flowing fabrics, yet there is far more to these extravagant short clips (usually one to ten minutes in length) than mere mundane advertising. Shattering aesthetic conventions left, right and centre, they delight in exploring innovative techniques, mirror effects and cool sound design to make fashion cinematography one of this decade's hottest experimental playgrounds between art and commerce for directors and their sartorial subjects. In a field where trad photography used to set the (static) scene, more and more snappers emerge from the shadows to explore the movie functions of their tools of the trade.

Among them: 27-year-old trained photographer and director Sandra Birkner, who began her slow switch to fashion films more or less three years ago. Why the change? According to Sandra, fashion needs movement to breathe, to come into its own like the designs on a catwalk. At the same time, she aims to transcend the mere presentation of apparel; her clips set out to visualise the designer's signature style far beyond the average runway appearance through the film's narrative, sound and overall dramaturgy. Flanking the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2012, Birkner explores the realm of 32-year-old designer Hien Le's beautifully understated sleek designs to capture his creative cosmos on film.

Distinct colors, simple fabrics and high-quality materials - fashion by Hien Le.

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Making of Fashion meets Movie Berlin

Fashion inspired by the Laotian style of the 60's and 70's.

The premise and protagonist: Le's current Spring/Summer 2012 collection, inspired by the 1960s/70s workwear of his Laotian parents and grandparents. „A lot of people kept saying that my style derived from my Asian heritage. For some reason,

I always found this surprising as I, myself, feel more rooted in German or Scandinavian design. At the same time, it made me curious, so I started to do some research and began to incorporate those elements into my own signature style“, Hien Le explains.

Hien Le: new face of
Berlin minimalism.

Feted as the new face of stylish Berlin minimalism at the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, Le is no fan of flashy looks or pompous statements. Instead, his fashion captivates with purist lines and high quality materials. „Hien's take on fashion requires an equally strong, clear-cut framework“, according to Sandra Birkner. Designed to let the collection speak for itself, her filmic version of his visions emphasises subtle accents instead. „I thought it was important to find a location that wouldn't compete for the viewers' attention, but one that would reflect the collection's colour scheme.“

Her final choice, Berlin's International Congress Centre (ICC), is not only a prime example of futuristic late 1970s architecture, but also picks up on Le's geometric compositions, giving his collection exactly the room to move and breathe that it requires: in flowing strides and without any needless extras.

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