Green Carpet Challenge and American Express Presents 'The Green Cut'! Xx

Green Cut is a unique initiative from 

The Green Carpet Challenge® co-founders, 

Livia Firth and Lucy Siegle in collaboration with American Express. 

It celebrates the very best of fashion, film and sustainability. 

Bringing together the British Fashion Council (BFC) 

and the British Film Institute (BFI) for the first time, 

Green Cut pairs eight seminal fashion designers with 

eight iconic British films to raise awareness 

of a sustainable approach to fashion design.

The Cocktail party to celebrate the launch of the

 ‘Green Cut’ project was held at the home of London Fashion Week, 

Somerset House WC2.

L-R Stephen Jones (& Model wearing Stephen Jones hat), Model wearing Stella McCartney, Roksanda Ilincic (& Model wearing Roksanda Ilincic), Caroline Rush (CEO, British Fashion Council), Model in Tom Ford, Lisa Gregg (Vice President at American Express), Standing behind: Model in Marios Schwab, Marios Scwab, Sitting: Jonathan Saunders & Model in Jonathan Saunders, Antonio Berardi (& Model in Antonio Berardi), Livia Firth, Alice Temperley (& Model in Temperley).

Guests included Livia Firth, Colin Firth, 

Antonio Berardi, Jonathan Saunders, 

Alice Temperley, Marios Schwab, 

Tania Fares, Stephen Jones and Roksanda Ilincic,

and Harpers Bazaar's Editor-in-Chief Justine Picardie, 

who says,

 "It was a wonderfully inspiring evening, full of beautiful clothes.

 Livia has such a talent for bringing people together and

 The Red Shoes is one of my favourite films so

 I was pleased to be reminded of why I should watch it again."

Each designer has created a bespoke piece that 

offers a contemporary take on a classic film. 

All designers have followed sustainable 

criteria developed by The Green Carpet Challenge, 

Livia Firth's initiative to embed and raise 

the profile of sustainable principles in fashion design. 

The final pieces prove beyond doubt that ethics 

and glamour can co-exist. 

They were unveiled on the eve of London Fashion Week

 (LFW) at Somerset House and formed

part of The Exhibition at LFW.

It is the first time so many high profile designers 

have collaborated on a project of this 

nature creating a unique collection.

*****

Celebrated fashion writer Sarah Mower

 lent her expertise, pairing each designer with an iconic British film.

Green Cut designer and film pairings:

·     Evergreen, Directed by Victor Saville (1934) 
- Re-interpreted by Antonio Berardi

·     Darling, Directed by John Schlesinger (1965) - Re-interpreted by Tom Ford

·     Its Love Again, Directed by Victor Saville (1936) - Re-interpreted by Roksanda Ilincic

·     My Fair Lady, Directed by George Cukor (1964) - Hat creation re-interpreted by Stephen Jones

·     Accident, Directed by Harold Pinter, (1967) - Re-interpreted by Stella McCartney

·     The Red Shoes, Directed by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, (1948) - Re-interpreted by Jonathan Saunders

·     Things to Come, Directed by William Cameron Menzies, (1936) - Re-interpreted by Marios Schwab

·     Velvet Goldmine, Directed by Todd Haynes, (1998) - Re-interpreted by Alice Temperley

*****

Livia Firth is internationally recognised 

for her work championing a sustainable fashion industry, 

she says of the project: 

“I hope everyone will be thrilled by this extraordinary 

exhibition brought to you by The Green Carpet Challenge 

and American Express. 

It brings together fashion and film, 

all underpinned by design that is truly sustainable. 

Our eight designers each inspired by an iconic British film 

demonstrate perfectly that it is possible to use sustainable, 

eco-friendly fabrics and ethical manufacturing 

techniques and achieve stunning results. 

We are extremely grateful to Vogue.com’s Sarah Mower 

for her involvement in pairing each designer with their chosen film. 

I look forward to a continued relationship with the designers 

involved in the project and hope they will continue 

with me to inspire a sustainable future for fashion.”

*****

Lisa Gregg, Vice President, Head of International 

Premium Products and Experiences at American 

Express comments: 

“American Express has a long standing history 

of supporting both the fashion and film industries 

through its affiliations with the likes of London 

and New York Fashion weeks and the Tribeca, 

London and Sundance Film festivals.  

Lisa continues: 

“Green Cut project is a natural extension 

of our ongoing work with Green Carpet Challenge 

and further underscores our shared vision 

to continue to raise awareness of important 

sustainable issues among the influential fashion industry 

and beyond.  We are confident this 

project will continue to generate dialogue about sustainability 

– an important issue which requires our continued focus.”

As custodians of British film and co-collaborators 

on this unique project, Amanda Nevill, 

CEO of the BFI, was responsible for short listing

the eight British films which provided 

the creative stimulus for Green Cut.

Amanda comments: “Saving our planet is not an option – 

we all have a responsibility. 

The BFI champions the film industry 

in the UK and we are committed to 

working across the sector to promote sustainability. 

The UK is leading the way; 

there is even a British Standard specifically for 

sustainability in film – no other country in the world has that. 

We also look after the world’s greatest archive of film 

on behalf of everyone in the UK and future generations 

- this is sustainability in action 

and it is why we are so delighted to work with 

The Green Carpet Challenge and 

our long-term partners American Express to be 

involved with The Green Cut.”

The British Fashion Council officially supports

 this project hosting the collection for the duration 

of London Fashion Week, at its official home Somerset House. 

The project culminates in a showcase of 

the collection exclusively in 

Harrods 22^nd October-5^th November. 

Until next time J Xx