Fashion's video pivot: from irrelevant streams to experimental marathons

The article examines how fashion weeks in Milan, London, and Paris have transitioned to video presentations due to the pandemic, categorizing them into three groups: irrelevant, streaming-without-audience, and experimental. The first group includes videos lacking substance, such as those on CNMI's site with bucolic or poorly produced interiors. The second group features shows without live audiences but close to traditional formats, like Prada's 35-minute presentation in an ochre cube with a spider-like camera rig, Versace's 14'55" show among fake Atlantean ruins with a mechanical octopus, and Moschino's 7'40" puppet show by Jeremy Scott inspired by the Théâtre de la Mode, with marionettes built by Jim Henson's Creature Shop. The third group comprises experimental works: Marni's Marnifesto by Francesco Risso, a 1-hour-17-minute live stream from ten cities; JW Anderson's 4'12" spot with Emma Corrin shopping; Christopher Kane's 11'50" interview featuring glitter paintings turned into digital prints; and Gareth Pugh's 1-hour-plus The Reconstruction, combining news clips, studio footage, and Nick Knight's short films, with proceeds benefiting Refuge. The article questions the sustainability of hundreds of seasonal collections.