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Feb 2, 2018
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Rag & Bone forgoes NYFW presentation in favor of experimental film collaboration

Published
Feb 2, 2018

Rag & Bone re-affirms its move away from traditional runway presentations in the run-up to New York Fashion Week with the launch of “Why Can’t We Get Along”, a collaborative video experiment starring Ansel Elgort and Kate Mara.
 

Kate Mara stars in the film alongside Ansel Elgort - Rag & Bone


The short film, which premiered on February 1 at the Metrograph Theater in New York City, will replace the brand’s NYFW runway as all pieces worn in the video are from the Rag & Bone Spring/Summer 2018 collection.

Aside from Elgort and Mara, the film also features eight members of the American Ballet Theater, three HipLet ballerinas, three members of Bulletrun Parkour and Kandi Reign, of Youtube fame. This is far from the Rag & Bone’s first dance-based collaboration, as the brand previously tapped ballet superstar Mikhail Baryshnikov and LA street dancer Lil Buck in its Fall 2015 campaign.

Rag & Bone has also collaborated more specifically with the American Ballet Theater before, having designed the costumes for two of the troupe’s shows, choreographed by Benjamin Millepied, last October.
 
Millepied returns as co-director of “Why Can’t We Get Along” alongside Aaron Duffy, Bob Partington and celebrated cinematographer Darius Khondji, while Radiohead’s Thom Yorke provides the soundtrack.
 
The brand also has something of a record in rejecting traditional runway shows in favor of alternative modes of presentation, having chosen to exhibit its collection through a portrait series during last September’s New York Fashion Week.
 
In a statement released at the time, Marcus Wainwright, CEO and Creative Director of Rag & Bone, explained, “For a while now I (along with what seems to be a lot of people!) have been questioning the effectiveness of the traditional fashion system, particularly for rag & bone.”
 
It is a sentiment which is currently being echoed worldwide, most recently by Vivienne Westwood who replaced her London Fashion Week Men’s show with a digital presentation this January, and Alexander Wang who has announced that he will be showing his Spring 2019 collection off calendar in June 2018, rather than September.
 
Interestingly enough, a recent Launchmetrics study revealed that, despite the shake-ups occurring around Fashion Weeks across the globe, traditional runway presentations still have an important role to play in the digital era, particularly when they can be coordinated as influencer- and consumer-focused marketing events.
 
Nevertheless, as increasing numbers of designers opt to show off calendar and even the CFDA has announced that it is considering altering the structure of NYFW to accommodate a more flexible approach to the rhythm of the fashion year, change looks to be the only constant in coming seasons.
 
It certainly seems that Rag & Bone won’t be returning to traditional runways anytime soon, with Wainwright describing film as “a new and exciting frontier to be focusing on” in a behind the scenes video released today, reiterating the brand’s commitment to exploring original and innovative collaborations.
 
“Why Can’t We Get Along” will be released on Rag & Bone’s website on February 6, 2018, while the brand’s Spring/Summer 2018 collection is due in stores in February of this year.

In the meantime, a web video with behind-the-scenes footage, b-roll content and exclusive interviews is available to check out below:


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