Beyond stills and film: How fashion brands are adapting to a new media landscape
Bianca Redgrave, MD of Studio Private, explores how fashion and luxury brands are seeking campaigns that live across fragmented platforms, delivering an experiential wow factor beyond traditional channels.
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Global brands are under increasing pressure to create more content, faster, and across multiple platforms. But why now, more than ever?
Whilst traditional film and photography remain essential, audiences are calling for something more than a standard ad – interactive, immersive, multi-sensory experiences that go way beyond traditional storytelling.
This shift is particularly pronounced in fashion and luxury, where cultural impact matters as much as visibility.
UK research shows that campaigns using both print and digital media deliver a 61 per cent increase in large business effects compared to digital-only approaches, while investment in immersive technology is forecast to double by 2030 as brands race to stay competitive.
Today, in order for these campaigns to be successful, they must foster real connection, cultural relevance, and moments people want to inhabit, not just view. This shift is particularly pronounced in fashion and luxury, where cultural impact matters as much as visibility.
Above: Dior Cruise directed by Agnes Lloyd-Platt, used CGI and VFX by Louisiane Trotobas, to build immersive worlds.
Brands are no longer competing purely on aesthetics; they are competing on innovation and the ability to create worlds audiences can step into and remember.
Fashion and photography have enjoyed an enduring and happy marriage, and long may it last; however, the ways we experience art and culture are changing.
Fashion campaigns are never just about showing the “product”. From Yves Saint Laurent’s nude 1971 Pour Homme ad that shocked audiences by putting the designer himself at the centre, or Calvin Klein’s 1980s underwear campaigns that redefined masculinity and sexuality, iconic fashion campaigns by legendary photographers have had a strong impact, not only in selling clothes but in capturing and shaping the cultural currents of their time.
Audiences are demanding even more - interactivity, immediacy, and spectacle.
Later, moving image added narrative and more layers of emotional depth. And, in today’s fragmented media environment, audiences are demanding even more - interactivity, immediacy, and spectacle. Campaigns that draw them into worlds, not just images.
Above: In a 1971 edition of Vogue Paris, Yves Saint Laurent caused a stir when he appeared nude in an ad for his own perfume Pour Homme. Photograph by Jeanloup Sieff.
Take Adidas’ global launch of the Adizero Adios Pro Evo 2 during the London Marathon earlier this year. With creative direction by Stephan Whelan, this wasn’t just a campaign; it was an experience.
Holborn’s Kingsway Tunnel was transformed into a neon-lit “Fast Track” where guests could race against a digital athlete avatar. The project was brought to life through environmental and sound design, creating a product launch with a dynamic ecosystem that felt less like marketing and more like stepping inside the future of sport and culture.
Campaigns are no longer single outputs; they are layered experiences.
Success now lies in multidisciplinary cohesive ecosystems – a creative-led model that unifies production and post-production - where offline edit, CGI, AI, VFX, grade, music and stills post sit under one roof. This structure not only streamlines production but also nurtures creative continuity, enabling campaigns to move fluidly from a still image to a full motion piece to an immersive activation without losing their cultural or aesthetic thread.
Campaigns are no longer single outputs; they are layered experiences built to resonate across multiple touchpoints, from billboards to social feeds to immersive activations.
Above and main image: The ambitious Future Runway initiative for Nike imagined the fashion catwalk of tomorrow.
We are increasingly seeing fashion campaigns moving towards multi-sensory experiences. Merging fashion, technology, and performance, Nike’s global campaign, Future Runway, from director Daniel Sannwald went beyond stills and moving image to created an immersive world that engaged audiences across multiple platforms.
Similarly, Dior Cruise directed by Agnes Lloyd-Platt, used CGI and VFX not simply for polish, but to extend creative concepts into immersive worlds that function as experiences rather than assets.
Brands increasingly need production teams that combine technical expertise with cultural fluency.
From my own experience, with over 20 years working as a photographer’s agent in fashion and luxury image-making, I have observed post-production in fashion evolving from a discreet, behind-the-scenes craft to a highly creative force shaping visual culture.
Today, CGI, AI, VFX, and real-time rendering aren’t just enhancements; they’re central to crafting immersive, multi-platform experiences. Brands increasingly need production teams that combine technical expertise with cultural fluency, enabling campaigns to evolve across digital and physical touchpoints.
The role of production studios is shifting from supplier to cultural collaborator. As brands move their creative work in-house, agility and experience become crucial. Luxury brands demand partners capable of adopting emerging technologies while maintaining the creative heritage audiences expect.
