The September Issue
October 7th, 2009 | By
During the Second World War, Winston Churchill’s finance minister said Britain should cut arts funding to support the war effort. Churchill’s response: “Then what are we fighting for?” (source)
The September Issue serves to demonstrate what we are indeed fighting for. It is about the ‘fashion bible’s’ 2007 800+ pages fashion September extravaganza. The film starts with Anna Wintour’s commentary of those who are afraid of fashion, which at times sound like a description of a high school social life (which makes me wonder if we’ve ever left). The fact that fashion is looked at as a frivolous and trivial pursuit for the privileged. True enough, compared to the vital issues of survival, fashion is indeed a trivial pursuit. However, this statement can apply to art in all its forms.
The documentary follows the Vogue team, Wintour and Grace Coddington (Vogue creative director) most, through their 6 months process of getting together the big September Issue. We are given a well edited peek in the business of finding suitable fashion (a lot harder than it would seem), taking great photographs that must be both artistic and acceptable by the mass population, the great stress of deadlines and finding a workable cover (not fun). The film is not short of different accents, which affirms the global impact of the magazine. We don’t really learn anything ‘out there’ and/or unexpected from the publishing industry; but get a sense of the most powerful people in the Vogue chain of command, their passions and their habits.
Wintour and Coddington disagree most of the time due to their difference in passions. Wintour’s passion is quality, and reign in overly extravagance that may not be appealing or understood by the masses. Coddington, a former model turned creative director, has great passion for the art. Her passion for her work runs so deep, she cringes and gets incredibly upset went her hard work is being ‘slashed’ out of the issue. Despite their differences and stubbornness, these two women greatly respect each other and know that Vogue works best with both of them on board.
Often times, names are given to women who understand the process and know what they want. It is completely applicable in this case, but I don’t believe it should be seen as a derogatory term. Women who are at the top of this game must stand their ground. There is so much at stake here with billions of dollars involved, thousand of people’s careers and their livelihood. Being nice can simply be too costly. Of course, kindness can be seen different ways. Watching Wintour praise and nurture designer Thakoon Panichgul gave a sense that his talent made him worthy, which is honestly more refreshing than giving praises for the sake of it.
The September Issue shows that great intelligence is required to push artistic endeavours in the forefront while making them commercially appealing. It’s a very difficult job that very few can accomplish and the ones who do it successfully are worth applauding. I’ll leave you with some Anna Wintour humour. Reporter asks, “Is there a way to wear fur this winter?” Wintour answers, “There’s always a way to wear fur. Personally, I have it on my back.”
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