The Influence of Film and Fashion and the Impact on Cultural Essay

The Influence of Film and Fashion and the Impact on Cultural Traditions of Behavior - Essay Example The paper "The influence of film on fashion" explores film influenced on the fashion. The film industry has also used this as a tool to create messages with the intent of changing and challenging cultural trends. In looking at the way in which fashion and behavior has been influenced by film, it is clear that the film industry has had a monumental impact on the way in which the event of going to the movies has a broader influence than merely the entertainment value that is offered. The existence of fashion in film is a form of communication that lends to the overall intent of each scene. According to Munich, the fashion in film gives further meaning to the communication that is intended by the look that has been created to enhance the overall design and look. Fashion and costuming becomes a part of the set design, the color of the walls being in balance with the color of the dress, the forms and structures of each element of the scene, including the clothing that the actors wear, a c arefully constructed ‘painting’ that gives to each scene the depth that will provide the messages that the meaning intends to convey. The look is a part of the overall communication, tying the fashion to cultural meanings and emphasizing new ways of viewing when done well. The meanings behind fashion have often been in creating a sense of social class, but through film these meanings become conveyed to all classes. According to what Munich has written, â€Å"Film offers fashion to the masses and is an avenue to its democratization†. ... A bottle of Coca Cola is a classic example of how the consumer culture is equalized through transactions. A bottle Coca Cola is worth the same amount of money to someone who is poor as it is to someone who is wealthy. No one pays more or less for a better or worse bottle of the product (Pendergrast 15). In this same vein of thought, Munich has suggested that fashion has been equalized through the same process as fashion becomes accessible for cloning to those in lower class levels as well as higher class levels (5). The visual opportunity to see styles and concepts allows for fashion to infiltrate sectors of the society that would not have had this opportunity in other time periods where accessibility was as easily attained. In designing clothing for the public, a designer must not only have a sense of how the evolution of the history of fashion has transpired, but must have a sense of what is important within the culture so that the clothing continues that communication. Film influe nces the direction that cultural thought processes are developed, and how the dress of a film has been developed in order to understand those thought processes further can be transferred as a part of the communication and message. An example of this type of influence can be seen through the film Annie Hall directed by Woody Allen. In the film, the lead character Annie Hall, played by Dianne Keaton, wears a specific wardrobe that has a masculinized representation. The wardrobe includes menswear in the form of hats, ties, and menswear style fabrics. The look was casual, oversized, and detailed with feminine pieces to give a sophisticated, cross gender look. After the release of the film, the look as it was created by