Visual Arts Editorial: Blade Runner by Dazed Magazine

BLADE RUNNER 1982

POLLUTION OF THE FUTURE: 2019 BY: ALEXANDRA JOAN GONZALEZ BALDWIN BA Fashion Marketing & Communication Group B, Level 6, 2018-2019 6FAMK003C Visual Arts CWK2 Teacher/s :Chiara Legittimo, Gina Ripoll, Anna Mary Rowe Word count: 1108

UK £5.50 US $12.99 Vol VI Autumn/Winter 2019 Blade Runner Photography Aleksandra Pavlova

Shirt Yves Saint Laurent, Jacket All Saints

Declare Independence

Photography ALEKSANDRA PAVLOVA Styling ALEXANDRA JOAN GONZALEZ BALDWIN

Hair, styling, casting, text, director, editor Alexandra Gonzalez Baldwin Make-up & photography Aleksandra Pavlova Models Laura Harada, Brais Garcia Location IED Barcelona MediaLab

BLADE RUNNER 1982 1

Dress Maje, Bracelet Cartier

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Shirt Helmut Lang, Pants Katharine Hamnet, Tie Salvatore Ferragamo

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Womens Coat Gucci, Mens Coat Burberry, Hat Nick Fouquet

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This current editorial is based on the student’s chosen essay topic in CWK1 which focuses on the Earth’s environment , in terms of pollution and climate change, in the current world of 2019- the time period Blade Runner 1982 was set in. In the film Blade Runner, the setting of the film is very unique; there is almost never any sun and the environment is smokey, wet, humid, and dark. There is also much pollution and trash on the streets. Overall, the environment seems uncared for. The student’s essay compares the predicted environment of the world in 2019, as seen in Blade Runner, to the current reality of the Earth in 2018. The topics of plastic pollution, garbage, waste and the destructive effects on living beings were discussed and are portrayed in this editorial.

In this editorial, the student incorporated her essay’s topic of the Earth’s environment by focusing on the setting of the photos. In order to present a setting based on the student’s essay, the environment needed to be polluted, messy, and trashed. The student first had the idea of shooting at El Forum in Barcelona, Spain as the architecture mirrors the futuristic look of Blade Runner and she wanted to create a trashed setting within that area. However, as the student wanted to shoot at night, since Blade Runner’s cinematography was always dark, there would not have been good lighting for the shots as the location does not provide plugs for the lighting.

Therefore, the student shot these photos at the IED Medialab Studio, which in the end was better as the chosen magazine, Dazed, shoots most of their photos in studios. Prior to shooting in the studio, the student aimed at attaining neon lights and a smoke machine to add more elements of the film into her polluted vision. The neon lights would reflect the futuristic 80’s feel while the smoke would support the polluted look of the shots. However, the student was unable to rent either of those props as they were very costly.

Therefore, the student’s tight budget pushed her to think creatively. In the end, the student purchased 100 neon glow sticks, a fluorescent red heart, and multiple newspapers as props for the setting. A fellow student, Valentina, was also kind enough to lend the student her vape, in order to permeate

smoke, as cigarettes are not allowed in a studio. However, the vape did not work so the student tried to create smoke through lavender incense; unfortunately the smoke did not show up in the shots. With the newspapers, the student bundled them up to make them look used and trashed and filled the floor of the shooting area with them. She also added all of the glow sticks to the “trash” to add a neon glow, however they did not show up strongly in the shots. In two of the editorial photos, the florescent red heart was used to perceive the love story between Deckard and Rachael in the film.

In terms of the styling, the student’s aim was to replicate the iconic 1940’s inspired style shown in the film. The student thought it was imperative to implement the film characters’ costumes, hair, and makeup into the editorial as it is a huge factor in being able to recognize the film. Also all Blade Runner inspired editorials, that the student looked into, used similar styling to that of the film. The student decided to use Rachael and Deckard as her two models as they are the main characters who also have a love relationship. As the student and her two models, Laura Harada as Rachael and Brais Garcia as Deckard, had no clothes that mirrored the Adrian/ Neo-noir style of the 40’s, the student had to go shopping. Humana, a spanish second hand thrift store was overpriced and non-refundable so the student went to fast fashion stores as she would be able to return the costumes within 30 days. After shopping at six stores, the student attained mostly all the garments she would need for her shoot. Two students from her class, Sara and Carla, were also nice enough to lend her some additional outer pieces.

The student would like to give special thanks to Aleksandra Pavlova, a fellow student and friend, who volunteered to be the photographer and makeup artist for the editorial. This helped the student out tremendously as she was able to focus on creating the environment, dressing the models and directing them with her vision.

The student had the studio for three hours, and surprisingly took one hour for the makeup, hair, and setting to be finished. Therefore, the student and

her crew worked quickly to get the photos. Throughout the shoot, the student for instance created the trashed environment, tried her best to do Rachael’s famous 1940’s hair, directed the models poses and outfits, and sprayed the characters faces and bodies with water to give them a sweaty/humid look.

The students favorite part was editing the pictures. She edited them on Adobe LightRoom. As the student was limited by her budget and the studio’s permission of what they were allowed to use in an inside space, the student aimed to portray what she could not use into her editing. In all of the photos, she edited the background colors to be either blue or orange, as those were the primary film colors used. In photos on pages 3, 5, 6 and the cover page, the student added a smoke overlay due to the vape and incense not working, as previously mentioned.

She also added smoke to the picture on page 2, as the cigarette could not be lit in the studio. In the photo on page 1, the student aimed to portray the earth’s heated, fiery, and chaotic environment, by editing the eye shot to resemble a fiery Earth, as shown in the opening scene of Blade Runner. A rain overlay was also added to photos on pages 3, 5, 7, and 8 as exessive water was not allowed in the studio. Lastly, she added red to Rachael’s eye’s, portraying the fact that she is a Replicant.

This editorial consists of 8 photosand is shown on 8 spreads, as that is the usual spread count of Dazed magazine. The font, clothing credits, this current writing portion, and photo placement are mirrored from Dazed magazines of Fall/Winter 2017 and Winter 2018. The back of the magazine is a previous advertisement used by the magazine, as they always show an Ad on the back. The student thought the advert is suitable for this editorial as it has a futuristic/space look.

Shirt Helmut Lang, Tie Salvatore Ferragamo, Coat Burberry, Hat Nick Fouquet 5

Dress Maje, Coat Liska

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Dress Tuki Duek

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