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Dolce & Gabbana's Italiana short film

Dolce & Gabbana is appealing to its consumers’ love for vintage fashion in a silent short film that presents the Italian fashion label’s new eyewear collection.

The spring/summer 2012 Matt Silk Collection is shown in a 90-second Italian comedy depicting two women arguing over which sunglasses to wear while driving a classic convertable. The label styled the video after an idealistic era that it might hope to translate into this eyewear line to strengthen its brand image.

“This may be one of the best videos I have seen from a luxury brand,” said Chris Ramey, president of Affluent Insights ^[2], Miami. “It took me to a place where most of us have been.

“It blended being young and not being young, and playing with the product and trying on the product in a playful manner,” he said. “All of these things create a warm emotion about the brand.

“The video elevates the Dolce & Gabbana brand above a traditional millennial-targeted stategy and takes on a more sophisitcated tune.”

Mr. Ramey is not affiliated with Dolce & Gabbana, but agreed to comment as an industry expert.

Dolce & Gabbana ^[3] did not respond before press deadline.

The Dolce life
Dolce & Gabbana’s new short film is called Italiana. It showcases the label’s Matt Silk sunglasses collection.

The video was directed by Italian videographer Luca Finotti and stars model Bianca Balti and actress Anna Orso.

The film flashes between multiple panels at different locations on the screen.

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Video still 

Two women are shown in a vintage convertible. The young driver is wearing pink sunglasses from the Matt Silk Collection with a head scarf and red lipstick, while an older female passenger wears a red pair of sunglasses.

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Video still 

As the young woman is driving, her scarf blows away and the passenger, who appears to be her mother, scolds her for letting the scarf go.

Soon, the women decide to switch sunglasses. This goes back and forth until the mother figure decides to take her daughter’s sunglasses away completely.

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Video still 

Bickering ensues while the daughter is driving on a mountainside highway.

By the end of the film, both women have their sunglasses back and are no longer fighting.

The video fades as the driver places her head on the passenger’s shoulder.

It seems that Dolce & Gabbana is hoping to attract luxury consumers to its Matt Silk Collection by aligning it with a carefree, idealistic era.

In addition, the brand could be appealing to mature consumers who can relate to the time period being replicated.

“Dolce & Gabbana seems to be trying to create a throw-back vintage video with a modern twist, but is not all fashion doing that?” said Josh Harcus, director of business development and digital strategist at SayItSocial ^[7], Wilmington, NC.

“There is a theme of out-with-the-old and in-with-the-new with the back-and-forth between the two women with their sunglasses,” he said.

“I think the lovers of ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s’ will like it a lot.”

Fancy film
Dolce & Gabbana is sharing its Italiana film via its Facebook ^[8] and Twitter ^[9], YouTube ^[10], Tumblr ^[11] and Google+ ^[12] accounts.

For instance, the brand posted the video on its Facebook Timeline yesterday with the line, “Think classic car, vintage music, Italian scenery and a stunning Bianca Balti … now click play and enjoy the video!”

By keeping it short, luxury brands could strengthen a brand-associated lifestyle by drawing in consumers who have a browsing mentality on social media with videos.

Video is a powerful tool for marketers in the sense that they can instill an idea in a consumer’s mind quickly with a type of media that is easily absorbed.

Other luxury brands are leveraging collections with short videos shared via social media.

For example, French apparel label Christian Dior is introducing products from its fall/winter 2012 collection with a new video called “Secret Garden – Versailles” that highlights the brand lifestyle and image (see story ^[13]).

In fact, compelling social videos that creatively showcase women’s collections can directly raise sales when shared via established social media channels (see story ^[14]).

Luxury marketers can improve their videos by making them shoppable.

For instance, retailer Barneys New York took the lead in the ecommerce sector by releasing a shoppable called “Transform the Everyday Black Dress” that featured fashion blogger Geri Hirsch shopping in Barneys’ Beverly Hills store.

The video contains direct links to the ecommerce site where consumers can buy the items featured (see story ^[15]).

“Video is not neccessarily transactional, but it helps create an image which manifests into revenue,” Affluent Insights’ Mr. Ramey said.

“The video shows an emotional connection between the two characters that is very sweet and provided memories for the viewer,” he said.

“We have all done something similar to the interaction between the two with trying on the different sunglasses, so we can relate to it.”

Final Take
Tricia Carr, editorial assistant on Luxury Daily, New York