Author: studiobypines

When approached by fellow director-friend Lluís Quílez for what-is-now the 2024 Sundance Grand Jury Prize-winning film “The Masterpiece”, director Àlex Lora Cercós was already in production for his 2023 feature film, “Unicorns,” thus halting his active participation.

Instead of passing on the project altogether, Cercós suggested that Quílez work with scriptwriter Alfonso Amador to finish the first draft of “The Masterpiece”, feeling inspired by his friend’s provocative story about prejudice, which Cercós believed had a more socio-political relevance in today’s international landscape. (According to the American Psychological Association, “prejudice” is defined as “a negative attitude toward another person or group formed in advance of any experience with that person or group.”) Ultimately, Quílez gave directorial reins to Cercós, finding the New York Emmy-winning director more apt for “The Masterpiece” given his excellent run in documentaries and short films.

“At the time, I was preparing for my [last feature film] Unicorns, and he [Quílez] shared this experience he had with this scrap dealer guy who was picking up some things. It was interesting because he was talking about his own prejudice, an idea that I wanted to explore further,” Cercós said to Beyond The Pines magazine on a Zoom call from New York City. “This experience does happen in Spain and can be extrapolated into [the political climates of] other countries. During the last few years in Spain and Europe, there have been extreme changes in both sides [of the political parties], where the right side of the political spectrum has been radicalized and feel entitled to protect something that they call theirs when they’re not really the owners.”

Centered in the same vein, “The Masterpiece” follows the affluent couple Leo (Daniel Grao) and the art-dealing Diana (Melina Matthews), who bring a broken TV to a recycling center and subsequently meet the black father-son scrap dealers Salif (Babou Cham) and the younger Yousef (Adam Nourou). To as much as Leo’s visible discomfort, Diana offers the duo “a good deed”, or more work: grabbing junk from the couple’s gated house.

Though the couple’s unease prompts last-minute hidings as soon as Salif and Yousef set foot on their ornate flooring, Diana is the first to let her go of her Cheshire smile as she eyes a very expensive painting in the back of the recycling van. Though not initially theirs, the couple’s tiny ask morphs into a tirade of prejudicial accusations aimed at the scrap dealers, underlining the short’s commentary on class and racism.

“The idea was to make a solid short film that was, more or less, tight on itself,” Lora said. “Although, you know, the final shot can leave some doors open for different interpretations.”

Though Cercós feels the film’s 20-minute runtime pushes the boundaries of a festival-submitted “short film,” it still secured his first “Grand Jury Prize” win at this year’s Sundance. At the heart of its acclaim, “The Masterpiece” rivals the potency of a full-length feature production. The film is a masterclass in tension, starting with Diana’s overcompensating hospitality, the not-so-secret security cameras that guard the couple’s house and Tesla that Yousef practically drools over, and the dubious bargain of a multi-million-dollar painting for a rusty family heirloom, and leaving viewers glued to the screen long after the end credits roll.

Though the film naturally converses in Spanish, it doesn’t take subtitles to understand that “The Masterpiece” is more than just about the ownership of the multi-million-dollar painting. The film’s native translation, “La gran obra”, also roughly translates to “the good deed”, a topic that the Spanish director describes as “a mirror” to wealthy folks like Leo and Diana, where the purity of their generosity towards the scrap dealers is just as dubious as offering a family heirloom that was previously “not for sale.”

The masterful toggle between dialogue and nuance in “The Masterpiece ‘’ leaves viewers a bit more engaged than the couple’s barely-there son Mario, who is looking beyond the floor-to-ceiling glass windows as his parents quarrel with the scrap dealers. “Even within the political spectrum, there are big contradictions concerning common values and ethics within the same group of people, especially in middle-high [economic] class, which is why [the film’s character] Diana is a big talking point,” Cercós points out. “She speaks the three languages of colonialism– English, Spanish, and French– and she also wants to feel like she’s doing something for the scrap dealers, but she’s not actually doing anything for them; she’s doing it for herself, to make herself feel better.”

Instead, what Mario doesn’t hear is what viewers spectate as classist hypocrisy: Diana and Leo pull the “race” card and, as the standoff crescendos, threaten the police and Salif’s place in Spain. With each offer and counter slamming down like chess players with their time clocks, Cercós succeeds in channeling his love for chess into a battle of wits, even imbuing the game’s checkered squares into the film’s cinematography to better highlight Salif and Yousef’s massive disadvantage. “I mean, [the film] is a fight from the beginning, right? I also believe racism is an economic issue, so I needed visual tension from the beginning, like two [chess] pieces on opposite sides [of the board],” Cercós says.

“Chess looks simple: it’s a square board on a table with some pieces there,” he continues. “But when you go beyond [the simplicity] and think about the game moves and strategy, that conceptual fight can turn into something very physical, especially since it’s a fast game– six minutes maximum. So it’s like a short film: you want to be fast. You can only think about the best move possible and pressing the ticking clock.”

During the editing process, though, Cercós swapped the traditional clock “ticks” for omnipresent drums, a motive he describes as “pure intuition” a la Mica Levi’s work for “Under The Skin”, sparking a compelling dissonance that reflects the film’s own arc that begins and ends with the couple’s black Tesla.

As the drums dissipate, Cercós admits that the final shot of “The Masterpiece” leaves room for different interpretations; however, having already cooked preemptive nuances that are served well done by the film’s final minute, Cercós’ cinematographic pan, through Youself’s empty picture frame towards the couple’s speeding Tesla, leaves a subtextually sour resolution, and an even more unpleasant reality check for the world today.

Coachella comes but once a year, and its main event – is fashion. The music festival, dating back to 1999 is the hottest (literally) event for music lovers, influencers, actors & artists to let loose and party in the Palm Springs desert. Icons like Lana Del Ray, Doja Cat and Tyler the Creator graced the first weekend’s lineup, along with rising stars like Sabrina Carpenter and Ice Spice who attended the first Coachella of their budding careers.

When it comes to Coachella fashion, there is a very loose dress code to follow – dress for the desert, and have fun with it. Many people go all out with their style, showcasing their most extravagant outfits of the year, while others keep it lowkey and casual to suit their comfort needs in sunny climate. From the desert to the after parties, Coachella is the social event of the season that is hosted by partners like Guess Jeans, Lemme by Kourtney Kardashian, 818 by Kendall Jenner, NYLON, True Religion, REVOLVE and FWRD – providing photo ops, experiences and parties for celebrities and influencers of all kinds.

Weekend one of the festival was filled with countless fashion moments both on-stage and off – Here are some of our favorites below.

Kendall Jenner

Kendall Jenner hosted FWRD’s event in a simple maroon look.

Teyana Taylor

Teyana Taylor partied in an all-blue sheer look, complete with a cowboy hat.

Justine Skye & Hailey Bieber

Justine Skye attended shows in an all black leather ensemble, while Hailey Bieber donned an over-sized jacket and leopard bandana.

Barry Keoghan

Barry Keoghan wore Burberry to Celsius’s festival event.

A$AP Rocky

A$AP Rocky made a surprise appearance at Tyler, The Creator’s headlining set wearing layered boxers and a bedazzle hairclip-embellished beanie.

Rihanna

Amid new album rumors, Rihanna supported her beau in ultra-high boots and a fur top.

Paris Hilton

Always the life of the party, Paris Hilton wore an all-black look – complete with a cowboy hat.

Megan Fox

Megan Fox debuts electric blue hair at the NYLON event.

Kesha

Kesha hit the Levi’s-presented Neon Carnival in a distressed t-shirt and white cowboy boots.

Taylor Swift & Travis Kelce

The internet’s favorite couple dressed cozily for a date night in the desert.

Katy Perry

Katy Perry bore a cold night at the festival in an over-sized denim and leather look.

For Belgium-born-director Tim Mielants, who’s just adapted Claire Keegan’s Orwell Prize-winning novel “Small Things Like These” for the big screen, grief is just as blinding as the Christmas lights of the film’s bygone Irish town. “I can structure grief because of the personal trauma of losing my brother when I was really young,” tells Beyond The Pines. “And, actually, most of my work goes around grief. And I felt that was kind of the center, the engine of this story.”

The film, which stars Cillian Murphy (Oppenheimer), unpacked Ireland’s controversial history with Magdalene Laundries (i.e., the now-extinct Roman Catholic institutions that ostensibly housed “fallen women”). Set in a small County Wexford town, “Small Things” follows the quiet coal merchant Bill Furlong’s (Murphy) journey through unresolved childhood grief, all the while caring for a wife and five daughters during the holiday season. During an early-morning coal delivery to the local convent, Bill makes a discovery that offers him an obscure opportunity for past closure, but forces him to confront the complicit silence of a town controlled by the Catholic Church.

“[Cillian and I] met each other on [the] set of Peaky Blinders season three. After that, we were kind of following each other's work,” Mielants said. “He saw my features and was really a fan of the kind of rhythm and pacing I have in my movies.”

“During the pandemic, we were shooting nearby; I was shooting in Liverpool during The Responder, and we went for a long pandemic walk outside and shared the desire in doing something together.” Mielants continued. “Then, when I went to Dublin, we went for another long walk, and he actually came up with the book by Claire Keegan.”
  
 At the press conference for the film, which kicked off Berlinale 2024, Murphy, who also co-produced the film, described working with all past familiar colleagues as a “serendipitous moment” while referring to the dark Irish history with Magdalene Laundries as “collective trauma.”
   
“It was a collective trauma, particularly for people of a certain age, and I think that we’re still processing that,” Cillan said about the Golden Berlin Bear-nominated film. “[...] I think the sort of irony of the book is [that] it’s a Christian man trying to do a Christian act in a dysfunctional Christian society.”

The film’s first moments practically envelope viewers in the 20th-century small town’s misty cobblestone roads and rolling hills, using the brain-tickling ASMR of tire-scratching gravel, coal shoveling, and the low hum-drum of business. Without many words, Bill is portrayed as a hardworking man by his ash-stained hands alone, which earns him a luxurious one-minute cleaning tutorial in the narrow half-bathroom of his stone townhouse.

“I think the smartest thing I did is not try to pretend that I know anything about Ireland,” Mielants confessed, “I was just very honest and open [with my film crew] like, ‘Teach me, help me out here.’ They definitely helped me with [Ireland’s] cultural touches.”

“I researched more on the psychological level, the stages of grief, how grief works and where the emotional arcs are. I was kind of extremely going in-depth into that kind of emotional experience, which I experienced myself,” Mielants continued. “I think there’s so many researchers around me who can do a better job.”

Though “Small Things” is no action-packed movie, Bill’s office-scene showdown with the oppressive Sister Mary, portrayed by Emily Watson, epitomizes the film’s brilliant melodramatic pacing, drenched in mind-numbing staring contests, fireplace crackle, and under-the-table money that never sees the light of day– all leaving viewers with bated breath. Even that dims in the face of Bill’s growing childhood turmoil, which sees a bigger character arc than any of Spider-Man’s inescapable trilogy remakes, complete with tear-jerking flashbacks and palatable friction with his wife, played by Eileen Walsh, and other townsfolk.

Actually, Walsh is, perhaps, the standout supporting act of the film and another necessary catalyst for good ol’ Bill’s metamorphosis. Eileen Furlong is a conspicuous woman; every nag and every name-drop reinforces her social status. Bill’s gradual bad attitude would feel like a regular seasonal depression if the inhumane living conditions of their town’s Magdalene Laundry weren’t looming in the background. Instead, Bill and Eileen’s whispered fights tango beautifully between personal autonomy and the perpetual repressive rhetoric that keeps the town from change.

“If you put two old friends next to each other or people who know each other really well, you get so much [emotion that] comes for free if you put these. There’s a kind [of] subtext and chemistry between the two,” Mientlas said of Murphy and Walsh’s performance. “We had a kind of triangle between the three of us: They are very good friends, and I’m good friends with Cillian. So because everyone knows each other so well, we were able to share our personal experiences and emotional connections between people, which played out on a deeper level [on film].”

Even if “Small Things’” is only a glimpse into a dysfunctional and repressed society, Mielants’ subtle soundtrack splinters Bill’s everyday life until his suppressed guilt propels him to act in good conscience, appeasing his past regret even if it’s against the town’s status quo. “The film itself feels so acoustic. From the moment we [first] put acoustic instruments in there, like violins or piano, it felt the same, felt predictable. We [had] been working with music composers and felt like, ‘No, it’s just the music is describing what we already see.’”

Oftentimes ambient, other times a bluesy waltz, Mielants isn’t afraid to throw in sonic spices in places where dialogue cannot reach, serving nostalgia with a side of grief and an aftertaste for actionable change, which Bill perseus in the film’s final minutes. “We added the Flamenco, Arab, Western [musical] influences, which, [when] mixed together, instilled this element of tension. However, we didn’t want [the music] to manipulate the viewer’s experience too much, but we wanted them to feel invited to feel something.”

Long after the Furlong family television cuts out at the film’s end, Mielants wants people to talk about this piece of Irish history, saying he hopes it will “open a can of worms in a good way.” Though viewers are left wanting the family’s reaction to Bill’s unexpected development, it’s not as important as the film’s end notes, denouncing Ireland’s demoralizing Magdalene Laundries, which were ultimately defunct by 1996. “Small Things” is a drama that keeps on giving, as echoed by familiar critics. Powered by tip-top performances from Murphy, Walsh and Watson, Mielants not only crafts a historical political drama that, yes, relives a shameful period in Ireland, but he does so successfully by provoking a larger conversation around the public’s complicity in the Catholic Church’s wrongdoings. “Small Things” is what it looks like when a filmmaker takes a shot at reawakening real cinema and even more important questions.

Photos: Courtesy of Di Petsa

Even before the inception of her fashion label, Dimitra Petsa, the creative mind behind Di Petsa, knew she wanted to marry what she calls “the unsanitized female experience” with her love for performance art. It wasn’t long after the line’s 2018 debut before Petsa’s designs were an all-over hit commodity, not to be missed on the red carpet, in music videos, and fittingly, in celebrity maternity shoots (for seasons now, the designer has featured pregnant models on the runway and in lookbooks). The latter is a manifestation of what lies at the core of it all for Petsa — exploring and celebrating the female form.

Womanhood and the female body have long been at the center of Petsa’s ethos, dating back to the designer’s time studying at Central Saint Martins. “My master’s thesis was all about women and bodily fluids, and how the way we perceive our bodily fluids is very telling of how we perceive our relationship to water at large, and how the female experience is [actually very] sanitized,” Petsa tells Beyond The Pines. These musings would become the origins of the designer’s claims to fame – the “Wetlook dress.” “If you cry in public, you have to hide it. If you sweat in public, you have to hide it. If you breastfeed in public, you have to hide it. I was really interested in that tension of how the female experience is so defined by bodily fluids and, yet, it is something that’s so constricted.”

The emblematic body-conscious garment invites women to “be a part of the performance” in celebrating “wetness,” a sentiment Petsa feels her clients resonate with, even if not wholly understand, though she’s expanded on the concept in her poetry book, titled “Wetness.”
Petsa’s time spent absorbing her grandmother’s dressmaking skills (she ran a tailoring school when Petsa was a child) bonafide the Athen-native’s rhetoric beyond the measuring tape. Rather than playing with dolls, a young Petsa spent time instead with fabric scraps and working alongside her grandmother, a practice that equipped her with an early first-hand experience in working with private clients. “It wasn’t just that a woman comes, and you make [her] a beautiful dress,” Petsa says. “That person is almost like your confidant, your friend. And at the same time, it’s [a] very intimate [experience], because you talk about someone’s body and are very [physically] close to them.”

In retrospect, Petsa says her grandmother’s clients highlighted the necessity for pattern-making from scratch as a means to designing for all body types. It’s an invaluable resource the designer says didn’t shape up to the teachings at Central Saint Martins, nor the too-small arbitrary sizes of premade patterns. What felt like a “natural” business pedagogy for the young brand was, to the designer’s disbelief, enough for a high ranking on Vogue Business’s size inclusivity report. “Why in the world am I number three [on the list]?” she says. “And why isn’t it one of the big brands?”

“I think many designers are taught to have this singular archetype of the woman, and you’re ready for a collection,” Petsa went on. “The base design is always the same … I design almost all of my pieces so that they have this leeway — if you gain a bit of weight or lose a bit of weight, they will still fit.”

Enter Di Petsa’s muses, aptly named “Venuses,” draped most often in anything from corset-like breastfeeding bras, showcased with one side dipping lower to expose a breast, to vagina-pocketed jeans. Inspired partly by the ‘Madonna-whore complex’ (the Sigmund Freud-coined explanation behind some individual’s inabilities to become sexually aroused by a partner they respect and are committed to), Petsa’s newest collection, titled “The Body As Prayer” and slated for Fall 2024 balances both extreme and intentional cutouts with a crowning “Mother Wetlook,” and the Virgin Mary-adjacent maternity mesh dress, famously worn by a pregnant Gigi Hadid.

Di Petsa isn’t, however, a one-trick pony. Its world continues to evolve each season, offering, beyond an immaculately done slinky gown, delicate floor-length trenches, leather trousers, and sleek turtlenecks, to name a few. The designer expects the Wetlook dress to remain a part of the brand, but ultimately feels there’s more to explore. “We are a more multidisciplinary brand,” Petsa says. Take for example, the bridal designs the brand shows alongside its ready-to-wear. “Actually, my first dress ever sold was bridal. So, for me, bridalwear [was a part of the brand] from the very beginning.” For the curious, the designer also confirms there’s more of it to come. “Bridal and maternity wear are a big part of my business, for sure,” she says. “It’s so interesting to talk with brides who say, ‘I want the wet-look. I want to be naked, but my mother-in-law will kill herself.”

With her second poetry book currently in the works, it’s hard not to declare Petsa can seem to do it all. If present momentum is any indicator, the designer’s brand seems to have a long life of evolving through art ahead, coaxing, with each design, a generation of women out of hiding.

When the international friendly between football behemoths Gareth Southgate’s England and Brazil went on sale in November 2023, nobody expected Wembley Stadium’s almost 90,000-person capacity to be sold out in a mere eight hours. More so, no one ever expected Brazil, who recently succumbed to a four-game losing streak after battling a year of non-stop injuries, to be salvaged by 17-year-old forward Endrick Felipe Moreira, causing England’s first loss since December 2022 in the World Cup 2022 quarter-final against France.

The rambunctious Brazilians were operating at a visible loss, functioning under a new head coach, Dorival Junior, who admitted the team’s much-needed identity shift at a press conference ahead of today’s match, which started with five newcomers. However, the match’s first ten minutes told an opposite story, with England immediately rushing to defend Paquetá’s many shots (and misses) on goal.

What’s normally an easy England win vanished the moment captain Harry Kane’s injury took him out of the first of two friendlies in the last international break of the season. With the recent injury crisis claiming Jordan Henderson and Cole Palmer, and “a third of 40 players” unavailable for the summer tournament, it left English midfielder Jude Bellingham unable to properly coordinate the nation’s “B” team, let alone pack enough creative spark to outrun Paquetá’s bull-dozing and rather careless yellow-carded shoves.

For as much as the action-packed first half brought England a cornucopia of penalty and corner kicks, none got debutant keeper Bento Krepski— well, that is if Watkins and Gordon actually aimed at the net. On the other hand, Brazil’s first-half accuracy was just as apt as Paqueta hitting the post and Real Madrid’s Vinicius Jr. line-tethering ball (which was saved by England’s Kyle Walker)– deadly on-target and kicked not with force, but real purpose.

All of which hit a head late in the mostly lackluster second half, or at the 80-minute mark, to be precise, when 17-year-old Brazilian forward Endrick crushed Vinicius’ rebound from England keeper Jordan Pickford well into the opposing team’s net. In a strange turn of events, Wembley erupted in cheers and, to make the moment all that precious, Endrick enjoyed a tear war cry, celebrating he scored his first international goal.

What was the game’s last ten minutes, and four additional minutes for penalty time if it matters, was England unsuccessfully blowing smoke and quarter-field kicks. The match was over in the 80th minute, but Pereira tried to give Endrick his second international goal in the game’s final seconds in what has to be the cleanest breakaway of 2024 (so far). Though Endrick missed a second time, Wembley stadium is quite the venue to make your first international goal– a goal that both earned Brazil’s first win in London since 1995 and solidified the 17-year-old as the youngest senior international goalscorer at Wembley.

In 2024, horror movies aren’t just about being scary anymore, though that’s still a big part of it. What makes Robert Eggers’s remake of the 1922 silent film Nosferatu so appealing is that early iterations of horror, though iconic in their own right, heavily relied on “wow” factors to overcompensate for poor scriptwriting and then-modern advances, which inadvertently relieved their own “cringe” via parody movies where Marlon Wayans and Anna Feris shout the palatably offensive “ya-mean.”
Now, time has bonafide a once narrow-minded genre with more than one-dimensional tropes and jump scares. Ti West’s “X” trilogy exemplifies how traditional horrors can have well-rounded characters (i.e., the anti-hero Maxine) and compelling storytelling while being psychotically technicolor. There can also be corpse-loving romance and murderous thrills in Zelda Williams’ “coming of rage” film, Lisa Frankenstin. Even this generation’s “scream queen,” Jenna Ortega, is trying their hand at giggles in the highly-anticipated horror-comedy sequel, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.
Ahead, make your calendar for these upcoming horror films perfect for screaming, laughing, and everything in between.

Immaculate

Release date: March 22, 2024

In 2014, Sydney Sweeney (Euphoria, Madame Web) first auditioned for this religiously devious never-to-be project. Now, the “Anyone But You” star sold the film to NEON as lead actor and producer, co-starring alongside Simona Tabasco (The White Lotus) and Álvaro Morte (The Wheel of Time, Money Heist), after acquiring and rewriting the script. Set in the Italian countryside, a devout Cecilia (Sweeney) starts a new role at a notorious convent with unbeknownst antiChrist dabblings perfect for an almost Easter release.

Late Night with The Devil

Release date: March 22, 2024

Paranormal Activity producers try another “based on true events” production. This time, the film revolves around a lucrative last-ditch effort from a 1970s TV host, played by David Dastmalchain (The Dark Knight, Dune), to keep his broadcast on air. What better way to ensure viewership and ratings than a live conversation with the Devil, especially when things go wrong?

Cuckoo

Release date: May 3, 2024

Known for her killer red-carpet fashion, the 30-second teaser shows a bandaged Hunter Schafer (Euphoria, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes) as a swiss blade-wielding teen on an extraterrestrial hunt around her family’s new resort home. The Berlinale 2024 Best Feature Film nominee also stars Dan Stevens (Beauty and the Beast, The Boy and the Heron) and Jessica Henwick (Game of Thrones, Glass Onion).

The Strangers: Chapter 1

Release date: May 17, 2024

Survive a night of terror as a young couple, played by Madelaine Petsch (Riverdale) and Gabriel Basso (Super 8), is hunted by three masked assailants in a secluded Airbnb in Oregon. The original 2008 stranger-danger flick starred Liv Tyler (Armageddon, Harlots) and Scott Speedman (Grey’s Anatomy, Underworld).

A Quiet Place: Day One

Release date: June 28, 2024

Now under the helm of director Michael Sarnoski (Pig), the “Quiet Place” series prequel onboards Academy Award-winner Lupita Nyong’o (12 Years a Slave, Black Panther) and Joseph Quinn (Stranger Things), who cheat death and learn to be stealthy New Yorkers as the city becomes overrun with noise-sensitive killing creatures. Although John Krasinski directed, wrote and starred in the first two films, “Day One” still sees his writing credit.

MaXXXine

Release date: July 5, 2024

Mia Goth will always be a star! Following the bloody massacre of Ti West’s “Pearl” (2022), the disturbing trilogy reaches an epic conclusion as Maxine, mGoth (Suspira, Infinity Pool), continues her quest for stardom in 1980s Los Angeles alongside actress Lily Collins (Emily in Paris, Mirror Mirror) and Grammy-nominated singer Halsey.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

Release date: September 6, 2024

Much like how a spook-ified Michael Keaton (Batman, Morbius) once tormented Wiona Ryder (Little Women, Stranger Things) and her sleazy family, Jenny Ortega (Wednesday, Scream IV) will reintroduce the cheeky haunting alongside familiar faces and beloved ghosts to a new generation in the long-awaited follow-up to the 1988 horror-comedy classic.

Smile 2

Release date: October 18, 2024

Although much isn’t known of its plot, moviegoers can expect more creepy smiles and blood-curling delusions as director Parker Finn returns to direct the sequel to his unexpected Paramount hit Smile (2022), this time bringing along Naomi Scott (Aladdin, Charlie’s Angels) to co-star alongside Kyle Gallner (Scream).

Nosferatu

Release date: December 25, 2024

Director Robert Eggers (The Lighthouse, The Witch) casts a Hollywood spectacle for his dark retelling of “Nosferatu,” which stars Bill Skarsgård (It, Barbarian), Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Nocturnal Animals, Avengers: Age of Ultron), Willem Dafoe (Spider-Man, The Florida Project), Nicholas Hoult (X-Men: Days of Future Past, Mad Max: Fury Road), Lily-Rose Depp (The Idol, Voyagers) and more. Hopefully, the film properly pays homage to its iconic German silent horror released in 1922, complete with gothic black-and-white cinematography, gangling limbs and fingernail-like claws, and a vampire’s incurable and predatory infatuation with a human woman.

The 96th Academy Awards 2024 was held in the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood on Sunday March 10th and honored movies released in 2023 – bringing together the best in the industry to celebrate accolades in the film industry. Over various categories and nominations, Oppenheimer (Directed by Christopher Nolan) received several awards including Best Picture, Best Cinematography, Best Original Score and Best Editing – Nolan himself taking home the award for Best Director. For their stellar performances in Oppenheimer, Cillian Murphy took home the award for Best Actor in a Leading Role, and Robert Downey Jr. won the award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for their portrayals of rivals J. Robert Oppenheimer and Lewis Strauss in the film which also starred Emily Blunt and Florence Pugh. Emma Stone received the award for Best Actress for her portrayal of Bell Baxter in Poor Things, the film also received awards for Best Costume Design and Best Makeup & Hairstyling, as well as Best Production Design. Billie Eilish and her brother Finneas O’Connell were awarded Best Original Song for their hit song “What Was I Made For?” which was featured in Greta Gerwig’s Barbie.

On a night which honors the best of the best in the film industry, celebrities arrive on the red carpet in extravagant and elegant looks, often made custom from luxury designers. Ahead, here are some of our favorites

Cynthia Erivo wearing custom Louis Vuitton

America Ferrera wearing custom Versace

Carey Mulligan wearing custom Balenciaga

Ryan Gosling weaning custom Gucci

Ariana Grande wearing Giambattista Valli custom couture

Emily Blunt wearing Schiaparelli Couture

Emma Stone wearing Louis Vuitton

Florence Pugh wearing Del Core SS24

Laverne Cox wearing Mugler

Zendaya wearing Giorgio Armani, styled by Law Roach

Michelle Yeoh wearing Balenciaga

Margot Robbie wearing runway Versace

Jennifer Lawrence wearing Dior

Greta Lee wearing Loewe

Anja Taylor-Joy wearing custom Dior

Nearly three years after the first installment of the film saga based on Frank Herbert’s beloved sci-fi novels, “Dune: Part Two” finally sees Zendaya for more than seven minutes of screentime. From the amount of “wormriding” taking over both social media and movie theaters, Denis Villeneuve’s cinematic remake of “Dune: Part One” (2021) made moviegoers dust off their boots as they witness young Hollywood elites Timothée Chalamet (Wonka, Lady Bird), Zendaya (Euphoria, Spider-Man: Homecoming), Austin Butler (Elvis, Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood) and Florence Pugh (Midsommar, Don’t Worry Darling) battle for the desert-ridden planet Arrakis and its vital psychotropic substance, called “Spice,” on the must-see sequel.

Villeneuve did his homework. The Canadian filmmaker saw David Lynch’s 1984 rendition of the space opera and understood the book’s complex history with adaptations via Lynch clashing with producers over the film’s creative control and final cut, which was just over two hours long. Before that, director Alejandro Jodorowsky even failed to secure funds for an apt 14-hour film adaptation in the 1970s. Thankfully, Villeneuve had the budget due to his solid reputation in sci-fi cinema, highlighted by the Academy Award-winning film “Arrival” (2016), thus deciding that Herbert’s fiery fanbase needed a space odyssey done right.

Though “Part One” lacked the Marvel combat sequences oversaturating today’s cinema, Villeneuve ultimately made the right decision of segmenting Herbert’s dense multi-galactic empire into installments, and dedicating the premiere event to the protagonist’s backstory, the premonitory aristocrat-turned-leader Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet), ducal heir of House Atreides.

Following the Emperor-ordered exodus of House Atreides from their watery world of Caladan to oversee Spice production in the windswept world of Arrakis (known as “Dune”), Villeneuve masterfully waters the dry planet with political tension in “Part One.” The family’s warm welcome was all but a facade as Paul and his mother, Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson), narrowly escape death after the hellish House Harkonnen launched a somewhat successful coup for control over Spice production, which killed Paul’s father, Duke Leto Atreides (Oscar Isacc). The pair’s desert escape led them to a Northern group of Fremen, Arrakis’s Indigenous people who somehow live within the seemingly inhospitable sandy terrain, which included the group’s leader Stilgard (Javier Bardem) and a mysterious woman named Chani (Zendaya).

For as much as “Part Two” doubles down on the much-anticipated barbaric and bloody violence between the Indigenous Fremen and House Harkonnen over the exploitative Spice production, Villeneuve perfectly cushions the adrenaline with the budding relationship between Paul and Fremen woman Chani with Paul embracing the Fremen way and becoming a Fedaykin warrior. Though it’s hard to find a pivotal scene where Chalamet and Zendaya aren’t ogling each other, the real-life best friends have undeniable on-screen chemistry.

And it’s not solely their gorgeousness gracing the big screen; it’s the ghastly white, “bad boy” militarian Harkonnen heir Feyd-Rautha (Austin Butler) and the barely-there Emperor’s daughter Princess Irulan (Florence Pugh) — who will have better development in future installments — all anchored by Villeneuve’s jaw-dropping cinematography, special effects, Rick Owens-esque costuming… everything. Where “Part One” is a boy-to-man slow-burner set in a dystopic future, “Part Two” is a full-on assault aimed at the destruction of House Harkonnen, poised with betrayal that’s just as impressive as Timothée Chalamet wielding a Kindjal sword.

Beyond the desire to murder House Harkonnen, Paul finds himself neck-deep in political and religious tension as the “Spice” continues to intensify his distorted visions of a holy war, which interferes with his mission of unifying the Northern and Southern Fremen to reclaim Arrakis. Though bumpy with unavoidable information (i.e., Princess Irulan’s diary entries documenting the whereabouts of Paul, Reverend Mother Gaius Helen Mohiam’s shady scheme for Irulan, and prophecies of foreign religions that describe Paul as “Maud’Dib”), Villeneuve leaves most of it in the beginning, promising a “smooth sailing” experience complete with orgasmic vistas of far-future realities, hearty dialogue from Zendaya, Fremen-Harkonnen showdowns, and one too many grandfather sandworms.

Villeneuve dares in “Part Two,” giving all parties ample voice, which creates a peculiar dynamic that rarely fits into sci-fi films: the “bad guys” don’t feel outrightly bad. Even with Lady Jessica undergoing the grueling ritual of becoming the new Reverend Mother of The Fremen, her prophetic “anti-hero” transformation is a small-scale betrayal in Arrakis’s sandy dunes. Despite his natural affiliation with the evil House Harkonnen, Austin Butler’s pouty lip and Elvis rasp hardly qualify as a “villain,” no matter how many blades hang from his hip. Even Baron Vladimir Harkonnen (Stellan Skarsgård) bathing in fresh, warm, innocent blood feels like everyday life in the desensitized Harkonnen empire. Instead, Villeneuve presents the “evil” as an omnipresent force, played out through Feyd-Rautha’s breathtaking black-and-white coronation as Arrakis’s new ruler, the “Spice Agony” both Lady Jessica and Paul experience when they consumed the mind-altering entheogen, and even the Fremen elders who initially question the loyalty of the Atreides.

Perhaps the omnipresent evil lives inside the sequel’s thunderous score, led by Hans Zimmer. While the grandstand production quenches even the driest parts of Dune in starry-eyed wonder, it simultaneously paints the House Harkonnen in the blackest blacks and Emperor Shaddam (Christopher Walken) in the deepest misfortune. Zimmer’s contribution isn’t singular and very much supersedes sound alone; if anything, Zimmer veers “Part Two” beyond intergalactic politics, climatic fights, and star-crossed love and towards a regularly-eclipsed world brimming with betrayals that amount to a death-defying holy war. If Villeneuve didn’t make “Part Two” a masterpiece already, Zimmer certainly takes it there.

Since sequels almost always underperform in any film series, “Part Two“ would traditionally be a tough sell following the critical acclaim of “Part One.” However, Herbert‘s iconic series is an iron-clad guide to success, which Villeneuve proudly decrypted in “Part One” and took even further in “Part Two.” And that’s a rare feat in and of itself.

Following presentations in Milan, the Fall/Winter ready-to-wear season was brought to a close in Paris,m. Home to many iconic architectural landmarks, historical ateliers of innovative design and of course the birthplace of chic Parisian style – the city attracted tourists and celebrities alike for the nine day event of runway events, after parties and showroom events.

Paris hosts seasonal textile trade showrooms and is the starting point for many luxury labels in their design cycle for couture and ready-to-wear collections. Paris represents an integral ecosystem for the world of luxury fashion, so it comes as no surprise that it is renowned as an international fashion capital – producing stunning designs and runway shows.

Celebrities of all industries attend the Paris fashion week events, and filled the seats of carefully curated and styled shows which attract public attention and drive traffic for sales of upcoming collections. This season in Paris we saw lots of muted colors, intricate detailing, luxury textures and innovative tailoring. From Chanel to Mugler, Paris fashion week brought with it amazing celebrity style moments which will not soon be forgotten.

Here are some of our favorite celebrity style moments, straight from the streets of Paris.

Jennie of BlackPink attending the Chanel Fall/Winter 2024 show wearing a black mini dress with pearl details, thigh-high boots, a leather fingerless glove and mixed silver and gold Chanel logo jewelry.

Zoey Deutch outside of the Chanel Fall/Winter 2024 show wearing a short, buttoned-up Chanel coat, cinched at the waist with a sweet bow and detailed with a pink signature camellia rosette, paired with simple black slingback block heels.

Maddie Ziegler outside of the Miu Miu Fall/Winter 2024 show styled in a matching jacket and miniskirt, layered over a polo t-shirt and paired with pointed toe heels and scrunched socks.

Sydney Sweeney entering the Miu Miu Fall/Winter 2024 show wearing a matching tank top and oversized blazer with jeweled briefs styled with sheer tights, peep-toe heels and oval sunglasses.

Lisa Rinna attending the Courreges Fall/Winter 2024 show wearing a long tailored blazer with a plunging neckline and elongated sleeves, layered over flared black trousers and pointed boots, paired with a brown textured handbag.

Emily Ratajkowski outside of the Courreges Fall/Winter 2024 show wearing an all-black look with a cropped asymmetrical faux-leather top with a glove detail, paired with a black skirt with a front pocket, styled with square toe boots.

Willow Smith at the Acne Studios Fall/Winter 2024 show wearing a cropped turtleneck knit sweater with bustier detailing, mid-wash denim jeans and square- toe moto boots

Shawn Mendes headed to the Loewe Fall/Winter 2024 show wearing a green bomber jacket layered over a beige hoodie, paired with green corduroy trousers and black boots.

Pharrell Williams outside the Loewe Fall/Winter 2025 show wearing a cream cowboy hat, brown Louis Vuitton logo monogram bomber jacket, flared denim jeans and light brown boots, accessorized with a pearl detailed belt.

Emma Chamberlain attended the Vivienne Westwood Fall/Winter 2024 show wearing a black jacket with exaggerated shoulders and brown button details, paired with a pencil skirt and fur boots.

Coco Rocha at the Vivienne Westwood Fall/Winter 2024 show wearing an off-shoulder v-neck patterned dress and knee high laced stiletto boots.

Amelia Gray Hamlin at the Balenciaga Fall/Winter 2024 show wearing an oversized blazer with large square shoulders and black wide trousers, and accessorized black handbag.

Julia Fox outside of the Mugler Fall/Winter 2024 show wearing a nude sequined bodysuit with long plastic detailing with futuristic silver face makeup.

Laverne Cox entering the Mugler Fall/Winter 2024 show wearing a shiny black bodysuit with exaggerated hip detailing, sheer black tights and pointed black heels.

Photo credit: Mat Abad, Beyond The Pines

Held in the Cirque D’Hiver in Paris France, The Casablanca Fall/Winter 2024 runway was set against the backdrop of dancers moving in perfect unison to a rhythmic soundtrack — spectacle of music, performance art and fashion. The Cirque D’Hiver is known in Paris as a prominent and historical venue for circuses and musical performances, making it a picturesque landscape for the runway show. Casablanca’s aesthetic typically follows an apres-sport aesthetic which finds the harmony between luxury and leisurewear, seeking to create timeless pieces which inspired by European design and North African landscapes which create refined, youthful and relaxed pieces.

The collection, titled ‘Venus As A Boy’ references Bjork’s song of the same name, heavily drawing from Grecian mythology, Venus (or Aphrodite in Rome) is known as the goddess of love, a theme which presented itself in recurring geometric patterns, and romantic silhouettes throughout the show. By drawing from these references which are connected yet separated by time, the collection seeked to reimagine the entwined symbolism that reoccurs in pop culture, media and design. As an invitation to the show, industry insiders received a small bowl decorated with ancient Grecian patterns and wave ornaments in a modern Casablanca color palette of red, yellow, green and blue. Pottery being one of the most ancient forms of art, the invite thoughtfully referenced the ancient aesthetics presently inspiring the brand. In the end, all the moving parts came together to highlight parallels between the ancient worlds of Greece and Rome with more modern aesthetics, traversing these ideologies with the apres-sport wear the Parisian house is most known for.

Alex Consani opened the show in an all-white turtleneck gown complete with elongated sleeves and a belted detail, styled with gold jewelry, setting the tone for a theme of metallics which continued throughout the collection. What followed was a collection full of exquisitely tailored draping that included belted and corseted detailing, sheer paneling, cutouts and embroidered details (which could be seen on both sportswear and tailored garments), often mixing casual sportswear with more formal pieces. There was an added emphasis on winter sports and performance garments such as tight hoods, tracksuits, tennis dresses, catsuits, varsity jackets, quarter zip sweaters, puffer coats and furs of varying lengths — many of such pieces using detailed patchwork and embossed patterns that in turn added a certain dimension and interest to monochromatic essentials.

Roman and Greek references presented themselves again in strappy sandals created in collaboration with the brand Ancient Greek Sandals, which were layered under knee high transparent stockings for a modern twist. Historical motifs such as columns and geometric patterns of ancient descent were often featured on garments as borders or graphic prints. Pottery was accessorized in the collection as well, one model clutching a large vase decorated similarly to the show’s invitation as they took on the runway.

The unisex collection explored various color trends, notably a reoccuring blue gradient which appeared in bags, coats and other garments. Additionally, quintessential Casablanca palettes included multi color combinations of red, yellow, blue and green which also appeared on the pottery used in the show. Elsewhere, metallics were explored through silver bags and metallic finished denims, which later evolved into sparkling sequined details on sheer transparent textiles.

The Fall/Winter offerings were styled dynamically, pairing sparking garments with apres-ski garments and laying sporty pieces like embroidered biker shorts under tailored shorts. Some highlights from the collection included a sequined ‘naked dress’ in the same silhouette to the opening look, mini knit brief shorts paired with a cropped fur coat, a long coat with a draped shawl detail and a dress with a mirrored underbust panel which resembled scales of armor.

Drawing from architecture and art, the collection repurposed motifs such as mosaics, patterns and symbols and brought them into a contemporary lens, creating a distinct connection between present and past. All in all, and through sophisticated design techniques of tailoring and draping, designs and silhouettes, Casablanca recontextualized ancient themes to fit the needs of current consumers in new textiles such as jersey and stretch fabrics for performance and leisure, conceptualizing a narrative story of craftsmanship, evolution and sophistication of the past.

Ahead, Beyond The Pines went backstage for an inside look at the show.