While directing Marie Antoinette, Sofia Coppola stood amongst white powdered wigs, embellished corsets, and plenty of pink robes à la française wearing a black zip-up skeleton hoodie. When she wasn’t wearing that she was often in a white men’s button-up shirt by Charvet with dark wash denim. And while the aesthetic of the film and its elaborate costume would go on to be eye confection for the coquettes of Tumblr and TikTok, the real style star was Coppola herself, or at least that’s what A24’s new book How Director’s Dress would argue.
The coffee table book, out this week, features 200 photos and explores what getting dressed for work looks like when you’re directing a film. It’s split into five chapters that focus on different kinds of clothing: Workwear, Climate Control, Buttoned Up, Red Carpet, and Louche.
In the introduction, film director Joanna Hogg writes, “There’s an invisibility to the role of the director. You’re trying to enter into a world you’ve created and be an observer within it. You want to bring out the best from other people—not be the focus of attention yourself…I don’t want to wear something that shouts, “She’s the director! She’s in charge!” No jodhpurs, no extravagant hats as some directors prefer. I want something very simple and work-a-day in order to move around quietly.” On the cover of the book she can be seen sitting with her arms crossed in her director’s chair, wearing a relaxed navy Yohji Yamamoto suit.
This essence or the ability to dress while being an inhabitant of a world you’ve created while also trying to camouflage into the background of it is a far tougher feat than just looking good, as most actors are known to do. And yet there are barely any corners of the internet or literary space that document it in the same way the red carpet has been immortalized, until now. Alongside Hogg’s introduction there’s also chapters by fashion journalists Rachel Tashjian and Lynn Yaeger, an afterword by fashion designer Yohji Yamamoto. Hagop Kourounian of @directorsfits, Charlie Porter of What Artists Wear, and Jon Dieringer of @screenslate consulted on the project as well.
How Directors Dress is filled with the kind of things you’d never know unless you were on set. Federico Fellini needed a fresh shave before appearing on set everyday. James Cameron is partial to a motocross jersey. Wong Kar-Wai wore the same kind of “true color” lensed glasses as pilots who need to see well in direct sunlight. Ang Lee wore a baseball cap from Dairy Queen while filming Brokeback Mountain.
At a time where the entire fashion community seems obsessed with the idea of authenticity and personality, this book has clearly come at the right time as a sort of new age fashion bible. In the afterword, Yamamoto writes, “Each director has their own reason to wear something. While they’re making a film, they are in their natural setting: their styling is natural. When people wear something natural, it can’t look ugly.”
Tara Gonzalez is the Senior Fashion Editor at Harper’s Bazaar. Previously, she was the style writer at InStyle, founding commerce editor at Glamour, and fashion editor at Coveteur.
