Short Synopsis:
‘STRUT’ is an original screenplay based on the true story of an event that changed the face of beauty forever.
In the Spring of 1973, scorned and dismissed after a public disagreement,
Francoise De La Renta, the revered and feared Editor of Vogue and wife to up and coming designer Oscar, was forced to flee her native Paris to New York, swearing to return and take revenge on the French glitterati who had publicly humiliated her.
A chance meeting in New York with a gutsy and persistent young black model trying to break into the restricted white world of international fashion gave Francoise the controversial idea to dare to collectively use multi-ethnic models on a couture catwalk for the first time. Using the opportunity of an invitation to present new American fashions at a small charity event in Versailles that November and with only a few short months to prepare, she enlisted underrated American designers and unpredictable fledgling models to challenge the often bigoted and xenophobic views of the Paris fashion set on their home turf.
The French however discovered Francoise’s plans well in advance. They closed ranks and
lavished unlimited funds on their famous designers and proven catwalk models in preparation, seeking to once again humiliate Francoise and her unlikely inexperienced troupe. With ever growing international publicity the upcoming show attracted enormous publicity and a guest list to match. It became billed as The Battle of Versailles.
In Paris the night before the show, at a party thrown in the honour of the arriving American
challengers, black models were unashamedly used as staff to serve and unnerve the wide-eyed and untested American team. The French had even convinced Josephine Baker to open the show for them, but Francoise, not to be outdone, had organised a very special guest of her own to sing for their introduction; Liza Minnelli.
Then anxious and afraid but fiercely determined, Francoise’s girls made an extraordinary last
minute choice that was to change the face of fashion and beauty forever. They decided they were not there to compete or be compared but to be themselves, loud and proud. Sassy, sexy and soulful, their energy stormed the Palace and rocked the fashion elite.
They couldn’t change the world for good, however they demonstrated in that moment, beauty had no colour.
Get in touch with Vanessa on 07921079199 for more details on the movie Strut.
Vanessa Horca
Executive Producer
Cordell DeBardeLaben (Exec & Co-Producer) began his career in the entertainment industry as an associate producer on an international fund raising concert that was staged in Lagos Nigeria called the “Children of Africa Project”, a 3 day musical extravaganza created to raise money for African focused projects which included Nina Simone, Fela Kuti, Third World, and Kool & The Gang. Cordell’s media knowledge and experience led to his recruitment by Ross Perot as Media Coordinator for his 1992 U.S. Presidential Campaign in Buffalo New York, also an United Nations detachment assigned to an early fact finding mission to Rwanda in 1994 immediately after the Rwandan Genocide. Following this, he went on to become Associate Producer of the highly successful & long running television series “Bobby Jones Gospel Explosion”, which is nationally syndicated in the U.S. on the cable station BET (Black Entertainment Television).
Nick Bain (Screenwriter) is a writer for stage and screen with ten years in the industry. His recent credits include the Hollywood film, “The Man Who Knew Infinity” starring Jeremy Irons and Dev Patel. (Pressman Films) (Associate Producer and script development) Internationally Released in 2015. He has worked on film projects in Bollywood, Nollywood, Libya and in Europe and the US and is currently under commission for a screen adaptation of “What She Wants” by international bestselling author Cathy Kelly. Nick is represented by Zero Gravity Management.