Spring films arrive from Lanvin, Calvin Klein and David Beckham Bodywear for H&M

It’s been a bit of a week for fashion film releases, with highlights coming in from Lanvin, Calvin Klein and H&M surrounding the spring/summer 2013 campaigns.

 

Lanvin, a firm favourite every season thanks to the genius of creative director Alber Elbaz, has unveiled a spot that seems as though it’s just focusing on the print shoot in action. The models are each seen posing in beautiful surrounds very calmly, before suddenly a Skype call comes in from Elbaz who was unable to get to New York due to Hurricane Sandy.

What follows is highly amusing commentary from him on the “sick perspective” and “beautiful lighting” of the campaign. “It’s very very poetic, very chic,” he says. “There’s something very Californian about [it]… You know I’m still at the office. I feel I’m in a dream, I feel I’m in a cloud.”

 

Calvin Klein meanwhile, followed its Super Bowl underwear spot with the rest of its spring/summer campaign. Actor Alexander Skarsgård and model Suvi Koponen both star in its film, Provocations, which sees the men’s and women’s Calvin Klein Collection, ck Calvin Klein and Calvin Klein Jeans brands all brought together for the first time. There are three variations of it available: 10 minutes, 60 seconds and 30 seconds (above).

Shot on location in California by Fabien Baron of Baron + Baron, it focuses on recurring elements of fire, air and water as the pair are seen in a variety of “sleek, architectural settings to dark and mysterious milieus”.

 

And H&M roped in film director Guy Ritchie to shoot David Beckham in his first video spot for the retailer. The ad sees Beckham chasing after his family car after his bathrobe gets stuck in the door. As he runs / jumps / swims through the Beverly Hills neighbourhood he continues to lose other items of clothing remaining in just the boxers from his Bodywear line.

“David makes the perfect leading man,” said Ritchie. “For me this felt more than a campaign; it was like directing a short film.”

Some thoughts on Web 3.0

I recently attended the IAB’s Annual Leadership Meeting in La Quinta, California, where the key focus of conversation was on the increasingly personal web – also referred to as “Web 3.0” or “Ecosystem 3.0”.

It’s a controversial subject given the privacy concerns that come attached, but the industry is trying to convert such connotations of data to reflect instead feelings of opportunity and ultimately value for both the consumer and the brand involved.

Here are some choice thoughts from the event:

• Web 3.0 is being facilitated by consumers becoming increasingly used to sharing their information, according to Doc Searls, senior editor of Linux Journal, a fellow with the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University, and co-author of The Cluetrain Manifesto.

• Handling privacy worries comes down to showing consumers they can be in charge of their own data, he said, introducing his theory of vendor relationship management (VRM).

• It’s about consumers getting to a point where they’re more willing to enter into something because they know and understand what’s happening to their data when they do.

• Omar Tawakol, CEO of online data exchange company Bluekai said we need to simplify things so people can visually understand what happens to their data.

• According to Rik van der Kooi, corporate vice president of Microsoft’s Advertiser and Publisher Solutions (APS) group, it should no longer be about people versus data, but instead people and their data. “If we continue to see data as privacy rather than property, we will continue to postpone the opportunity that presents itself here,” he explained.

• Tawakol said transparency is what will facilitate a move away from the conversation of privacy as one of fear, towards the notion of sharing as beneficial to the user. It’s in having a complete picture of consumers that we will be able to achieve more trust and stronger bonds, resulting in better value for everyone involved, he said.

It was interesting to also read The  Business of Fashion’s post on Web 3.0 this week.

This next phase of the internet, it says, will create an exciting opportunity for fashion retailers.

“In a world where people constantly share personal information, it’s becoming increasingly possible for retailers to analyse this information to better understand the specific context of the individual — her interests, personal style and other parameters — and deliver content and products that are personalised to her needs and desires. Simply put, “Web 3.0” will enable personalised experiences built on the data created by Web 2.0.”

An interview with Silicon Valley strategy consultant, author and entrepreneur Sramana Mitra follows. In it, she says the fashion industry could become more financially successful by utilising personal data: analysing it and designing and merchandising accordingly.

Read the rest, here: The Long View | Sramana Mitra on Web 3.0 and the Science of Personalised Shopping