See Chanel’s Stunning New Short Film Ahead Of The 2024/25 Métiers D’art Show
Before Chanel’s Métiers d’art show transforms the mirror-still waters of Hangzhou’s West Lake into its latest runway this coming December, we get to see the legendary site through another iconic lens. German filmmaker Wim Wenders (renowned for 1984’s Paris, Texas) has created a short film to accompany the house's collection, weaving together Gabrielle Chanel’s fascination with Chinese art, the poetic beauty of Hangzhou, and the artisanal expertise at the heart of the Métiers d’art tradition.
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The film stars Tilda Swinton, Xin Zhilei, and Leah Dou, and takes its inspiration from a surprising connection between Gabrielle Chanel and this year’s show location. While Gabrielle Chanel never visited China, she was captivated by its artistry, particularly the Coromandel lacquer screens she avidly collected. Among her most cherished pieces was one depicting Hangzhou’s iconic West Lake – a serene scene of willow-draped bridges, pagodas, and still waters that was placed in her private office in her Rue Cambon apartment.
‘I spent some time in Mademoiselle Chanel’s office and studied her Coromandel screen,’ says Wenders. ‘Somehow, it was like a very early movie screen or a giant comic strip, with lots of little stories. Wherever you looked, there was another scene of daily life.’ For Wenders, this screen became the jumping-off point for a film that explores how images – whether lacquered into a 17th-century panel. or captured through modern technology – can shape creativity, memory, and imagination.
The annual Métiers d’art show has long been a showcase of fashion’s finest artisanship – a celebration of the craft, skill, and heritage behind couture’s most intricate details, bringing together several hundred craftspeople. After talking to the streets of Manchester last season to celebrate the Mancunian metropolis’ rich textile history, this year’s destination is renowned for its centuries-old silk industry and artistic legacy.
It has also been the inspiration for generations of poets, scholars, and painters since the 9th century. And for Wenders today, this makes it an even more hallowed setting. ‘The greatest inspirations for all my films have been places,’ he says. ‘Most of them started with a desire to find the story that would belong to a particular place I found and loved.’ In this case, the story is as much about the enduring beauty of Hangzhou as it is about Chanel’s deep appreciation for artisanal craft.
While the Métiers d’art collection will debut next week, the film above serves as a prelude to what’s to come.|
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