10 Fashion Designer Documentaries to Stream Right Now

Issey Miyake MOVES (2002)

If you can get past the unfortunate narration in this documentary—its translation from filmmaker Setsuko Miura’s native Japanese has resulted in a cold, robotic English voiceover—it is well worth it to take in rare footage of the visionary Issey Miyake at work in the early 90s. The 53-minute film offers a fascinating up-close look at some of the production techniques Miyake pioneered and made his signature, such as the intricate use of pleating, twisting, and knotting to transform materials, utilizing heat technology in place of traditional cutting and sewing, and crafting seamless, single-cut garments with scientific precision. Along the way, Miyake shares eloquent musings on design that elucidate his legacy as a uniquely forward-thinking artist, and that ought to resonate with any creative. For instance: “Design is born out of research; out of a positive approach. The ideas must contain life, and be energized with living,” he says. “Unless design can awaken a sense of beauty, of joy, or of wonder, you cannot establish a relationship with your public.” 

Marc Jacobs & Louis Vuitton (2007)

This documentary, which follows Marc Jacobs in preparing a runway collection made during his tenure as artistic director of Louis Vuitton, has an informal, lo-fi approach befitting of the New York designer’s own cheeky persona. We see that Jacobs’ rebelliousness serves him well while producing his own label in the States, but the corporate French suits at LVMH bristle at his irreverence, often to comical effect. Any mid-aughts aficionados will instantly recognize the creative figures in Jacobs’ orbit at the time—Pharrell Williams, Sofia Coppola, Takashi Murakami—and enjoy the nostalgic experience of revisiting some of the playful designs that defined the era, such as the rainbow LV monogram pattern and Murakami cherry graphics that breathed new life into the esteemed Parisian fashion house. 

Where to Stream It: Tubi

Dior and I (2014)

Frédéric Tcheng’s Dior and I comes with the drama of a Hollywood blockbuster built in. The documentary follows beloved Belgian designer Raf Simons, freshly appointed as creative director of Christian Dior, as he hustles to complete his first haute couture collection in only eight weeks’ time. As if the practical stakes weren’t high enough, Simons also faces the pressure of living up to the legacy of Dior, one of the most revered maisons in history, while having come from a radically different design background himself. Collectively, these stakes propel the film forward at an enticing clip, and help make it a refreshing departure from traditional biographical documentary fare. It’s an enlightening watch for classicists and modernists alike, as it intercuts archival footage and salient voiceover excerpts from Christian Dior’s memoirs to create parallels to Simons as he conquers his own creative challenges with determination and ingenuity. 

Where to Stream It: Amazon Prime and Hulu

Dries (2017)

Reiner Holzemer paints an elegantly engrossing picture of Dries Van Noten that perfectly suits the Belgian designer’s sophisticated and romantic vision of fashion. Quiet, intimate glimpses into Van Noten’s home life (which includes plentiful footage of his adorable Airedale Terrier, Harry) contextualizes his artistic sensibilities; he traverses his sprawling garden, picking flowers and then thoughtfully arranging them in the same intuitive way that he paces his studio, selecting and arranging patterns, colors, and materials for his designs—which feel as fresh and alive as any beauty found in nature. Holzemer’s study of Van Noten relies less on biographical exposition than other documentaries do, allowing more space for the designer’s creative philosophies and conceptual inclinations to unfold organically as he works and reflects in real time. 

Where to Stream It: Amazon Prime and Kanopy

Joe’s Film: Azzedine Alaïa (2017)

Stylist Joe McKenna turns out a 25-minute black-and-white snapshot compiling reflections from Azzedine Alaïa’s most distinguished devotees, including Nicolas Ghesquière, Grace Coddington, and Naomi Campbell—whose 30-plus year bond with the Tunisian designer was so filial she refers to him only as “Papa.” The film assumes that the viewer is already aware of Alaïa’s background, skipping biographical exposition to focus squarely on celebrating the designer’s overall contributions to the fashion world; for example, fashion journalist Suzy Menkes credits Alaïa with being first to champion the women who would personify the “supermodel” phenomenon of the ‘90s, including Campbell as well as Linda Evangelista and Iman. McKenna’s film is a short but extremely sweet visual love letter to an artist that epitomized glamour all the way up to his passing, which came just months after the film’s release in 2017. 

Where to Stream It: Vimeo

McQueen (2018)

Ian Bonhôte’s documentary on the life and career of Alexander McQueen is an inevitably challenging viewing experience in light of the English designer’s tragic death by suicide in 2010, and given that any attempt to unpack the complexity, including the inner turmoil, of one of the most brilliant minds in fashion is a herculean task. Nevertheless, the film offers a worthwhile look back on some of the most imaginative avant-garde fashion collections ever produced— including his designs for Givenchy during the late ‘90s—and a fleeting glimpse into the mind that made them. It is an incomparable thrill to take in the theater of McQueen’s creations, whether you’re seeing them for the first time or for the hundredth, and it is an essential challenge to examine the psychological underpinnings that made McQueen’s work as haunting as they were awe-inspiring. Bonhôte does his best to honor the trauma, abuse, and tumult that McQueen, a fierce yet highly sensitive artist, stitched into his work, and—at the risk of falling into stereotypical documentary tropes at times—he asks us to do the same while celebrating his inimitable work. 

Where to Stream It: Hulu and Kanopy

Westwood: Punk, Icon, Activist (2018)

Anyone who’s a fan of the curmudgeonly Scottish designer should be pleased by this informative look into Vivienne Westwood’s history as fashion’s enfant terrible. In her own words, Westwood revisits her origins in the ‘70s punk scene dressing the Sex Pistols, her rocky marriage and creative partnership with Malcolm McLaren, the challenges of being misunderstood and striving for legitimacy in the industry as an independent designer, and her more current struggles to maintain creative integrity as the company continues to expand as a global brand long since past its humble beginnings. 

Where to Stream It: Amazon Prime

Very Ralph (2019)

Seasoned documentarian Susan Lacy’s portrait of Ralph Lauren is equally a biography as it is a study of American myth-making. Lacy turns to the designer’s family, colleagues, and Lauren himself to retell the beats of how he came from humble beginnings in The Bronx and eventually grew into the most popular American fashion designer of all time and a bona fide cultural icon. Along the way, that story gives way to examination of the quintessentially American motifs that inspired Lauren’s work and edified the American fantasy his brand came to represent— old Hollywood, cowboys, Native Americans, baseball—and also exalts Lauren’s business acumen that made him a household name. The film is a studious, highly romantic look at one of the most enduring forces the fashion world has ever seen. 

Where to Stream It: HBO and HBOMax

Martin Margiela: In His Own Words (2019)

Reiner Holzemer, the filmmaker who brought us the aforementioned Dries Van Noten documentary, begins his enthralling portrait of Belgian designer Martin Margiela with a quote from the enigmatic artist: “Anonymity is very important to me. It balances me that I am like everybody else. I always wanted to have my name linked to the product I created, not to the face I have.” As he speaks, the camera follows Margiela’s hands as they unearth artifacts from his meticulously kept personal archives—sketches, scraps, toys—each one prompting a vivid memory that further illuminates his path to having become one of fashion’s all-time greatest artists. It is well known that throughout the iconoclastic designer’s 20-year run at the helm of his eponymous maison (which he left in 2008) and up to now, he has never publicly shown his face and has declined to be interviewed. As such, the unprecedented access Margiela grants Holzemer to his world, and—as the film’s title suggests—to the rarity of even hearing him speak, is an absolute must-watch for any fashion lover. Those still itching for more after viewing may also enjoy Alison Chernick’s 2015 short documentary film, The Artist Is Absent. 

Where to Stream It: Oscilloscope

Celebration (2020)

Eschewing interviews, narration, and archival footage, Olivier Meyrou’s Celebration takes a decidedly stark observational approach to capturing Yves Saint Laurent in the twilight of his career as the last great Parisian couturier. The footage—shot between 1998-2001 during the making of Yves’ final collections—was suppressed for many years by Saint Laurent’s partner Pierre Bergé, who was unflattered by its representation of him, and only recently became available for public viewing. In contrast to the film’s title, Celebration is a rather ghostly affair; its portrayal of Saint Laurent, gaunt and vacant in his early sixties, is strikingly unvarnished and occasionally challenging to watch. The film is unlike other fashion documentaries in almost every way imaginable—it forgoes biographical context and chronology of past work in favor of presenting a uniquely vulnerable image of a designer whose own legacy loomed over him. 

Where to Stream It: Amazon Prime and YouTube