Styling The Elite New Wave For Vogue Italia With Alessandro Buzzi

Fashion • Jan 26
To complete the Elite Model Look World Final 2015, the Top 15 finalists - the Elite New Wave - were shot by Vogue Italia. They wore capsule collections by up-and-coming fashion designers produced for Chinese fashion brands in a project masterminded by the Vogue Talents initiative, and were shot by a new generation of photographers. Stylist Alessandro Buzzi talked to us about the creative process behind the shoot. 

See more images of the shoot here.

Photo © Monia Merlo

What was it like to style the shoot with the Elite New Wave?

It was very interesting to work with models who were so young, they didn’t really know what to do, but we managed to find the right direction. Sometimes, it’s hard to pair girls who don’t really fit together, but we managed to make a connection between the girls we were working with and the collection we were shooting. Even the photographers we were working with were quite new, so that was the tricky part, but also the interesting part as well, making it all work. When we saw the results, everyone was very happy! Model: Chiara; stylist: Serena Castrignano; collection: Youjia Jin x SC Fashion; beauty: Beppe D'Elia for Beautick

Photo © Guen Fiore

You worked with Leia and Mathilde who were wearing Youjia Jin x SC Fashion. How did you match the clothes with the model?

In the end, it was a perfect match. The collection was very straight, very minimal, quite pure. When I first saw the collection, I was a bit worried that I wouldn’t be able to find the right girls. We couldn’t pick a particular outfit, we had to shoot the whole collection, so what I tried to the girls, I tried to match the same outfits together, so they were very long and linear. I tried to find a balance with the pictures, to dress them as similarly as possible in every picture. I wanted to express this idea of twins, because of the girls, and because the collection was simple for both of them. In the end, we got exactly what I was looking for. Models: Leia, Mathilde; stylist: Alessandro Buzzi; collection: Youjia Jin x SC Fashion; beauty: Beppe D'Elia for Beautick

Photo © Scandebergs

What did you think of the Top 15?

It’s funny because the first day I met them, I did my own ranking, and the Top 5 for the boys and the girls were all in there. I was very happy! I agreed with all of the choices that were made. This year, they were very good models, I’m sure that they are going to do very well. I had my favourites - Lea from Slovakia, and of course, Anouk, she is beautiful, she can do any kind of job. I really loved Kristian and Mattia - I’m sure they are going to do very well. Also the Italian girl, Matilde. With models from Elite Model Look, I have found that even if they have no experience, they are very serious about their work. They still joke around, but they are also they know what’s going on and they want to do things in the proper way. Models: Charlotte, Anouk; stylist: Elisa Zaccanti; collection: Minimal To x Peacebird; beauty: Beppe D'Elia for Beautick

Photo © Guen Fiore

How do you help a model when they are new to a photo shoot like this?

The thing is not to go too much with your head, don’t try to change their attitude, because it becomes fake. Just play with their own expression, just do something natural to them. I like to tell them to stay natural, and just to work together, to look at each other, to smile and not to stress too much. With the clothes too, the situation we had with the light, we wanted to give the impression of natural light. In my head, I had this story that they were two girls living in a convent like nuns, something very pure and natural. They were perfect. At first, they were very nervous and quite serious, but actually, this worked in the pictures. I couldn’t have been more happy. My advice to the girls was stay natural and just to do what they feel. Not to over-model, but just to stay natural. Models: Leia, Mathilde; stylist: Alessandro Buzzi; collection: Youjia Jin x SC Fashion; beauty: Beppe D'Elia for Beautick

Photo © Tania Innocenti

Do you often work with new models?

All the time, actually. Our casting director is very smart and she always knows what’s going on, she always works with new faces and it’s great when you spot a model who you really love and they aren’t well known and then two months later they are doing the Prada campaign! With Vogue Talents, we work with new designers, new photographers and new models every day, new talent in every aspect of the fashion industry. Models: Tristan, Kristian, Simon, Mattia, Benjamin; stylist Mirta Trastulli; collection: Eliran Nargassi x Canudilo H Holidays; beauty: Beppe D'Elia for Beautick

Photo © Anna Di Prospero

As a stylist, what do you look for in a model? Does it depend from shoot to shoot?

It always depends on the story, and sometimes you have an idea in your mind already, but other times, you see a girl, and you pin the story on her. You always want something fresh, a new look or even something in their attitude. I am not just looking for beauty but something in their personality. On set, you will see from the beginning if the model has a connection with the team, then it’s easy. I always try to see what the model is like, and then I play with what I think they could give. You know straight away if you made the right choice... or not! Even in the first few minutes. Models: Matilde, Maria; stylist Valentina Serra; collection: Abcense x Le Saunda with La Perla; beauty: Beppe D'Elia for Beautick

Photo © Dayana Montesano

What are you working on next?

I am always working on new things, especially with Sara Maino from Vogue Talents, and we are working on a few new spreads. We have been travelling a lot in the last few weeks, and now we are putting together a few new emerging names for a couple of events in the next few months. Right now, we are working on that, which is of course extra confidential. I have done Vogue Talents for a few years now, and Sara has built up this amazing thing almost single-handedly, what is now a huge machine for scouting. We are a very small team, but we are trying to do so many new spreads, new events every season, to show what there is not only in Italy but all around the world. Models: Qiman, Lea; stylist: Gaia Fraschini; collections Cynthia & Xiao x Yi; beauty: Beppe D'Elia for Beautick

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