Telegraph
Costume designer Juergen Doering was responsible for the wardrobe, and worked with director Olivier Assayas and the cast to piece together his own impression of how it should look. “First I read the script and I asked Olivier to tell me in three adjectives what he thinks about each character,” explains Doering. “Then I looked at the cast - so I led with the character first and the person second. Then I went to the actors and, without telling them what the director had said, I asked ‘How did you get this part and how do you see it?’ Because Olivier likes for people to feel the character and feel the clothes.”
There’s a noticeable difference between Maureen’s day-to-day clothing and the more elevated style of her boss. “We were thinking that Maureen’s American, she’s in Paris, she’s wearing jeans, she’s a little bit rugged - sneakers, vintage, sweaters,” says Doering. “I looked at some vintage Fruit of the Loom sweaters at a shop in Paris, and was looking for things that you could believe a girl like this had picked at the flea market. The flying jacket in brown leather, very manly, for when she’s always on the bike - a young person will try things.”
As the film progresses - spoiler alert - Maureen sneakily borrows and wears some of her client’s designer pieces, including a Vionnet organza gown with a harness, something that was specifically requested by Assayas. “I was looking in all the couture collections for a harness dress,” says Doering. “The director said ‘Maybe it’s a harness over a dress, or maybe it’s part of the dress.’ In the end I saw it at Vionnet and Olivier liked it immediately. We chose black because there is something ambiguous about her personality: she says she hates the job she is doing and the girl she is picking the things for, but when she comes to desire men, she wants to be that woman she hates.”
Maureen also borrows a silver sequinned Chanel dress. As Stewart has fronted several Chanel campaigns, it was no surprise to see the fashion house popping up in her movie - though Doering says there was no contractual obligation involved. “We know the team at Chanel well, but if we didn’t find what we wanted, we had no pressure,” he says. “I asked the girls there, ‘Do you have something with sequins?’ and they said ‘Oh we have this old dress that no one has worn before.’ And I saw it and I thought ‘Oh, this is it.’” It may be the only time you’ll see Stewart in a Chanel dress that doesn’t fit like a glove: “Of course we didn’t fit it onto Kristen, because it is not supposed to be her own dress. She feels uncomfortable in the dress, it’s not hers - but she likes it because it’s not correct for her to wear it.”
Though the contrast between Maureen’s casual wardrobe and this highly polished eveningwear is visually dramatic, it somehow feels like a natural fit for Stewart. The actress is known for her grungy personal style of T-shirts and Converse, but she’s also a muse for Karl Lagerfeld and a fixture on the front row. Working with her was easy, explains Doering: “Kristen knows her stuff. She loved Chanel before she was famous. For her it was easy to jump from the jeans to the dress, no trouble.”
He clearly felt that they had a meeting of minds. “Often actresses they have no taste!” he laughs. “So it’s good to actually have a conversation with someone who knows.”
Hello Magazine
What were the main things you had to consider wardrobe-wise with the film?
"The story has many levels. You have a mourning part, because Kristen's character recently lost her twin brother and she's looking to connect to his soul after the death – that's one part of the film when there are no clothes. And then there is the part where she works as a stylist for a female celebrity, who is a bit like a Kardashian, but she’s not very nice, and she hates her. At this point she wears a casual, vintage-y wardrobe, but not standout clothes. It's very personal, a little boyish; like Kristen can be - a jean, leather bomber jackets, and nice wool sweaters – it's a French style in a way. And the other element is that she is cruising a guy, and when she has to meet him she wears a crazy, shiny, embroidered Chanel dress."
How did you get into costume design?
"At the start of my career I was in fashion design andI worked for Karl Lagerfeld, but it was not the famous icon Karl of today, it was the beginning of his time at Chanel. Then I worked in Yves Saint Laurent, which was where I really refined the culture of fashion. I was not making a dress for the sake of it; I was interested in the culture of making a dress. When Mr St Laurent died fashion changed a lot, with modernisation and over-marketing luxury; I didn’t like it. A guy with the pencil from marketing school was telling designers what to produce. So I thought, no, I need something more free and creative, so I moved to cinema. A girlfriend of mine was doing costume design and she said to me, 'Why don’t you come and assist me on a film and see if you like it?' loved it!"
Kristen is an ambassador for Chanel…
"Yes she is, and we worked with Chanel for Clouds of Sils Maria, the film before Personal Shopper. Chanel always invited Kristen to their fashion shows and dressed her for them, and everybody said, 'Oh that girl is interesting', which she was. And then she made the advertisement for their glasses and makeup. The real Chanel headquarters in Paris appears in the film."
Is Kristen as comfortable in a polo top as she is in a Chanel gown?
"Yes, because the real chic is to be yourself, and not to try to be the dress. The dress has to come to you, not the contrary; and Kristen understands that exactly. When she put the Chanel clothes on for the movie, she didn't change anything about herself or the way she moved - if she is wearing a sweater or very cheap T-shirts she acts the same. She's pretty and young and moves well so everything follows her. She's fabulous."
Is it difficult to make things look authentic in a film?
"My job is to make clothes look credible, true, but I must not forget that it needs to be cinematographic, because cinema is not real life - it has to be with a special line - if it's realistic, it has to be a little bit above reality. For example, for the main dress I could have chosen a shiny or silver dress, but the Chanel dress has something really chic – although it's not something you would enjoy to wear to a party because you can’t sit in it, it's heavy and you can't move because it's really 'plumpy' but nobody watching the film knows so it gives to the image something more powerful.”
Are there any celebrities you think are really stylish now?
"That's a difficult question for me because I like people to get dressed the way they really are, and not the way someone [a stylist] dresses them - and today a lot of these stars have no personal look. A really chic person for me is, what's her name…oh…. the British girl with the very blonde hair, like this [he clips his temple with his hand]. She's a blonde, very skinny and from Scotland…I will have to call my sister. [He calls his sister and speaks to her in French]. It's Tilda Swinton! I love her because she has something personal, she follows nothing and is strong and free – raffinée."
Gay Star News
The man responsible for the amazing looks in the film is gay costume designer Jurgen Doering.
‘I’ve worked with Kristen two times,’ says Jurgen, referring to Personal Shopper director Olivier Assayas’s last movie; the amazing Clouds of Sils Maria (a drama with a strong LGBTI subtext, also starring Juliet Binoche). ‘Kristen is very inspiring and easygoing with the clothes, and easy to work with,’ he tells us.
Here, he talks about gay people in the movie industry, Kristen’s dual sense of style, and the one item of clothing that belongs in every wardrobe…
In the film, Maureen dresses casually, but is also fascinated by high fashion – that’s so like Kristen!
You’re right. In real life Kristen is comfortable with all clothes. She’s natural in a couture piece, and also jeans.
How involved was Kristen in choosing the clothes?
She gave me direction on the phone before coming to Paris. She tried things on with a friend of hers and said ‘That’s cool’ and ‘that’s not cool.’
Did she get to keep any of the clothes?
Yes, some pieces. Not all of them. She’s not that kind of actress! During the film she said [puts on sweet voice] ‘Oh, don’t forget to give me that sweater…’
What is she like to work with? Is she nice?
Oh yes. Friendly, nice, normal. I’ve worked with some that weren’t like that. I wont give names. Actors and actresses – it’s a strange job. It [makes] you crazy a little bit! You have to be very strong in your head.
Have you seen the film yourself?
Many times. What’s my understanding of it? Well, it’s normal to feel confused. She’s confused. She loves her twin brother and she’s very insecure during the film, that’s why she’s looking for the ghost, the spirit.
What is your top style secret?
Follow what you feel. Do what you want to do, be free.
What one piece of clothing should everyone have in their closet?
A white t-shirt, in proportion to your body, is very important.
Is your industry very LGBTI-friendly?
Cinema isn’t very gay. It’s very macho.
Oh really?
Yes. That was my first surprise when I moved from fashion to cinema. Fashion, we are in ‘our’ world. When one is hetero you think ‘Oh, what’s happening with them?’ But in cinema, the hairdresser and make up people are gay, but all the other ones are not telling. There’s never cruising on set – nobody comes to you and says ‘Hey, what are you doing tonight?’
Are you proud then to see Kristen talking about her sexuality in interviews?
Yes. She does it in a very natural way, in a way I understand. Take it or leave it, no apologies it’s the way I am. It’s very close to a lot of my nieces and young people [I know]. They say ‘I’m with a boy for the moment, and next week I might be with a girl.’ They don’t think about gay or not gay, it’s what they feel.
That’s reflected in fashion too, and in Kristen’s style perhaps – the gender-fluidity…
Yes, of course. I love that. One day she can be very feminine and play the girl and the day after she’s in that boyish way again. It’s all her.
Did you have any crazy nights out with her in Paris?
No, she’s not so ‘crazy’, she’s not the kind of person who wrecks a room at The Ritz! She just enjoys herself, has drinks with all the crew, listens to loud music in the car when we had to move… She’s just…cute! I would love to work with her again.
Have you seen Kristen’s new haircut by the way?
No. What’s that? How’s she looking?
She’s shaved it all off!
No – completely?
Yes, and she’s bleached the little bit of hair she’s got!
No! Does it look strange?
No, she looks lovely!
I’m going to look at this later. I’m curious!
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