We Margiela (2017)

Directed by: mint film office | 99 minutes | documentary

Numerous studies have been conducted on individualism versus collectivism. Man as an individual in his pure form hardly exists, so the consensus seems to be. Everyone does things to take others into account, although you are otherwise completely focused on yourself. But what about people who use their creativity to stay alive, in other words as work? When you make something, do you want the credit for it? Or do you give up this ‘honour’ for the benefit of the team you work with? Documentary ‘We Margiela’, directed by mint film office, examines the collective creative process that made fashion house Margiela world famous in the 1980s and 1990s.

Belgian fashion designer Martin Margiela founded Maison Martin Margiela in 1988 with business partner Jenny Meirens. The creative process is paramount from the start. Making money is not important. To be a big name in fashion, that dream was pursued. Jenny – heard as a voice-over in front of a white screen and who passed away in July 2017 – says that the two complemented each other perfectly and ‘if you’re not willing to lose, you can’t win’. That Meirens and Margiela formed a golden combination is confirmed several times by former employees in the ‘We Margiela’.

The set-up of the documentary shows striking similarities with how Maison Margiela worked. That starts with the credits. Mint film office belongs to a well-known filmmaker, but of course she is not only responsible for ‘We Margiela’. And just like the designs of the fashion house, this documentary also has its frayed edges. A microphone or hand of the camera operator in the picture, a clear cut in an interview, and at the end the remark ‘we have to record some silence’. It is alienating, but also refreshing and the thought behind it is beautiful. ‘We Margiela’ is such an ode to the fashion house that was far ahead of its future and inspired numerous other fashion designers, even today.

For fashion lovers, ‘We Margiela’ is a feast. There are many archive images, in which the unique designs and the special look of the models can be seen. The interviews with the former employees are candid. Neither their name nor their task in the fashion house remains – of course – anonymous, but can sometimes be deduced from the story. Nevertheless, the talking heads do repeat themselves at a certain point and a following fragment that tells how Martin Margiela avoided the press and how talented he was does not add much more. And anyone hoping to catch a glimpse of Martin Margiela himself will be disappointed. But if even Annie Leibovitz doesn’t get him on camera…