The meteoric rise, fall and rise again of the prodigiously talented fashion designer Zac Posen is documented with sympathy and a little suspense in a many-storied documentary, packed full of his splendid creations.
An enjoyable doc overflowing with stunning pieces of clothing, both on models and on its star.
Screened as part of NZIFF 2017
House of Z 2017
Presented in Association With
“As good looking and stylish as its subject, House of Z is a portrait of the artist as a young man. Famously well connected, Zac Posen rode a rocket ship to fame and success at the age of 21. But his is a cautionary tale of what happens to those whose PR machines are steps ahead of reality. As quickly as the handsome Zac made a name for himself, he found himself on the receiving end of damaging gossip, bad reviews and dropping sales. Told with the help of a star-studded cast, including Puff Daddy, Naomi Campbell and Claire Danes, this all-access story charts the rise and fall – and rise again – of a fashion world wunderkind.”— Aisha Jamal, Hot Docs
“‘Fashion has a dark side. Not all runways and lipstick and fishtail gowns,’ Posen says about his chosen milieu, and while House of Z is aesthetically quite straightforward, it receives a jolt of unique energy from Posen’s own front-and-center participation in this portrait... He comes across as a young man humbled by failure and appreciative of the opportunities he still has, not to mention now capable of viewing his past through a more mature, objective lens...
In Posen’s continued dedication to making dresses in his atelier – and by personally draping gowns over female bodies, as the foundation of his process –House of Z captures the way in which direct hands-on engagement is vital to an artist’s continued relevance, and vitality.”— Nick Schager, Variety