French Style

source: Madame Figaro

author:Valérie Guédon

translation: doxa-louise

At Cannes, ‘The look of French actresses is less cartoonish than that

of Americans’

In contrast to American stars well accustomed to the Red Carpet exercise,

our actresses hold out, on the steps of the Cannes Festival, for a count-down style,

spontaneous and more ironical.

To illustrate, the last episode of the series Dix pour cent is both funny and eloquent.

Close-up on a fitting room and the voice of Juliette Binoche (playing herself):

‘I can’t make sense of this dress’, she says while wiggling around. ‘There is nothing to

understand. One doesn’t choose the garment, the garment chooses you’, answers back 

her stylist. ‘Not sure this dress chose me, jokes the star opening the drapery to

the cabin. I think this is the first time it has seen breasts. It is in shock.’ Then

Binoche is shown in an entirely nude sheath dress with integrated sequins  and boa 

feathers: I feel this is perhaps too sophisticated for me. By the way, this year, I would 

appreciate not having endless hours of commentary on my attire.’ The scene ends, this 

is the thing: while Red Carpet season is ending nicely on the steps of the Festival, a good 

number of our actresses are showing a certain distance (not to mention irony)

with respect to the power of the Red Carpet, necessary rite and fashion pageant

(or not) for the stars of cinema shown the world over.

‘We wanted to tone down this extravagance, and Juliette quite enjoyed poking fun

at this tired-out ‘Cannes Princess’. I am struck myself by this decorum which becomes

more carnival-like every year, explains Fanny Herrero, the lady behind the

successful series. The rules, the requirements that are imposed on actresses are

becoming crazy. Long hours of fittings, make-up and hair but also weight loss,

complicated dresses and high-heeled shoes the height of stilts...’

Red Carpet culture and tyrants’s rule

This culture (not to say tyranny) is a by-product of Hollywood. Already, during 

the Golden Age of Hollywood studios, the power of costumer designers, who 

were not then yet known as stylists recognized as stylists for their work in front 

and away from the camera, was limitless - one but remembers the names Edith Head, 

Adrian but also Hubert de Givenchy. Today, the stakes in terms of image and money 

of these appearances are sky-high, discussed with great care and a good deal of cynicism 

by networks or dedicated programs. ‘It is a virtuous circle. On the one hand a great dress 

and a good picture up the value of an actress. On the other, decision-makers for

luxe enterprises, beauty companies and media bank on the aura of actresses they find 

chic and «cool», explains Kate Young, stylist for Nathaly Portman, michelle Williams 

and Dakota Johnson. For each of these, my role is to build as a function of their 

personalities a coherent image to be projected in their public appearances.’ Without 

belittling them or turning  them into human billboards. Thanks to her strong eye and strict recommendations (‘never wear small prints because they do not show up well on the screen’; 

‘always appear as classy as one’s dress on a picture’), this ex-assistant to Anna Wintour 

has given an avant-garde look to her protégées, constantly cited as some of the best-dressed 

women of Hollywood ( listing almost as important as that of Oscar winner).

In the United States, everything is a product of prior deals

So what of our homegrown stars? ‘The look of French actresses is less cartoonish,

less mannerist than that of Americans’ remarked Saif Mahdhi, director of the Next 

agency and purveyor of image for Adèle Exarchopoulos and Leïla Bekhti but also for

the Sweedish actress Noomi Rapace seen in the latest Alien. Here the collaboration is 

more organic. The two universes, that of the actress and that of the Couture establishment, 

must meet. An actress should not appear costumed. While Chanel and St-Laurent will 

not do business with a celebrity they do not resonate with, even someone highly 

bankable. Karl Lagerfeld or Anthony Vaccarello have a very precise image in this 

respect and prefer dressing people who inspire them.’ This view is given confirmation 

by Laure Orset, Parisian fashion editor with client Elodie Bouchez for important occasions, 

such as member of the jury this year on Camera d’Or. ‘In the US,

everything is liable to deal-making worth millions of dollars, from hair ornament to 

pointed-toe shoe. In Paris, it is up to designers to approve or not dressing this or that one.’

One should note that, in the City of Lights, there is greater movement between fashion 

and cinema. Proof of this very French approach, celebrities who embody the values of a 

brand and find themselves front row at the showings, without ever taking part in the

publicity campaigns. ‘The other side of the medal is that work is done in a more 

spontaneous fashion, on a project basis, adds the stylist. Until recently, our actresses 

with a more artistic and less entertainment culture, rarely spoke of this aspect of their 

craft, with many without so much as an Instagram account.’

The American experience of Marion Cotillard

Nonetheless, here as well, mindsets are changing. Under the important influence of 

Marion Cotillard who has shown how this is done thanks to her American experience 

(in particular in the campaign for the 2008 Oscars) without jeopardizing one’s career 

choices. ‘She showed she could play the game without loosing her integrity. Wearing 

Dior and playing someone unemployed for the Dardenne brothers, cites admiringly 

Mrs Orset. And then, in a very tense economic climate where budgets for films are put 

together with some difficulty, producers and directors have come to admit it was a good 

way to go in everyone’s interest.’

Giving the lead to someone under contract with a luxury establishment ensures there 

will be magazine coverage and sometimes unhoped for media coverage for films.

‘Before Léa Seydoux and Marion Cotillard, there was Deneuve and Adjani, recalls Olivier 

Nicklaus, creator of the documentary Red Carpet, who remembers this now unavoidable 

moment. They always wore and thus created publicity for fashion houses. While Catherine 

Deneuve was married to photographer David Bailey, she became conscious of the Warholian 

aspect her work: if fashion and cinema are very different worlds, they are both part of society’s spectacle business, a way of acting upon the collective unconscious. Andy Warhol was the 

first to show there was a form of art in this view of celebrity, in the fact of becoming an 

icon -  a popular one.’

Demonstrating French style

This Fortnight 2017 is a perfect illustration of a national uniqueness: French actresses 

will bend to the mores and customs of Cannes willingly enough...but in their own way. 

Like a few days ago as Adèle Haenel, a stock value from auteur cinema in official 

competition for 120 Battements par minute (Robin Campillo), went up the stairs in a 

magnificent sheath dress by Atlein, the label for the young French creator AntoninTron.

When Jeanne Balibar gave simon Porte Jacquemus his first Cannes rush. Or other stars 

take back with a healthy dose of cool the hooped and sequined dresses of Christian Dior 

couture, Elie Saab and Armani Privé. With discreet make-up and loose hair a must: ‘They 

often ask me for less sophisticated upward hairdos, as if they had done these themselves, 

they want the marking of the hairdresser to disappear, attests Stéphane Lancien, hair 

stylist for l’Oréal Paris for which Leïla Bekhti is the muse. They appreciate a few 

accidents (reigned-in), a few strands running wild to balance out these great dresses 

and large jewels.’ A demonstration of French style which many envy. 

‘Americans adore the unique look of  French women, concludes Kate Young. 

This mix of fashion and beauty is part and parcel of life in your country, which we do 

not have and which inspires us very much.’