With the advent of cinema, a number of important stylistes (fashion designers) and grand couturiers français,(top French fashion designers) interested themselves in this phenomenally successful medium, thus imparting their griffe (label/signature; lit. claw) to the visual and emotional content of films. Here are two significant French designers who made a mark in cinema:
Born in Saumur (Loire Valley) in 1883, Coco Chanel (born Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel) was involved with various art media throughout her iconic creative career. She designed des chapeaux (hats) and des costumes (costumes) for des pièces de théâtre (plays), des ballets (ballets) and des longs-métrages (feature films) with prominent film artists like Jean Cocteau, Jean Renoir and Luchino Visconti. Her influence on Paris fashion attracted the world of Hollywood, and Metro Goldwyn Mayer even signed a contract with Chanel in the hope of increasing the production value of their films. Chanel developed long artistic relationships with French stars such as Jeanne Moreau, Romy Schneider and Delphine Seyrig.
Chanel’s highly refined créations (designs) can be seen in classics such as Jean Renoir’s La Règle du jeu (The Rules of the Game) and Marcel Carné’s Le Quai des brumes (Port of Shadows), Louis Malle’s Les Amants (The Lovers).
Called “l’enfant terrible de la mode” (lit. terrible child of fashion) by the media because of his unconventionality and provocative designs, Jean-Paul Gaultier (born in 1952) created les costumes (the wardrobe) of several films, including French director Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s La Cité des enfants perdus (The City of Lost Children), and Luc Besson’s The Fifth Element; also, Pedro Almodóvar’s Kika, Peter Greenaway’s The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover.