Brunello Cucinelli: Soon to be a major motion picture
Add "docudrama star" to the list of Brunello Cucinelli 's professions, alongside designer, brand builder, philanthropist and savant.
Cucinelli will make his film debut in December in Rome when he unspools a film on his life and career by Giuseppe Tornatore, an Oscar winner with "Cinema Paradiso" for best foreign film in 1988.
'I thought if I was going to make a film, I had better work with the best. And, well, Giuseppe is magic. Too many people get films made about them when they are dead. Better when you are alive, as I am,' enthused Brunello on Wednesday in his elegant stand at Pitti.
The Umbria-born entrepreneur revealed that shooting for the autobiographical film had already begun in 2023 in his hinterland – the towns of Magione, Solomeo and Castel Rigone, clustered around the regional capital Perugia. The evolution of Cucinelli's story, from his modest beginnings to his consecration as the 'king of cashmere,' will be presented on the big screen.
'Cinema Paradiso is a little like the story of my life,' said Cucinelli, who grew up in a working family before going on to build Italy's latest global sartorial brand. "Cinema Paradiso" narrates the story of a successful film director who returns to his small hometown in Sicily for the funeral of his mentor. Its ending is one of the most beautiful in the history of film.
Cucinelli also divulged that he had called on the skills of composer Nicola Piovani, another Italian Oscar winner for "Life Is Beautiful" in 1997, for the soundtrack.
The news emerged as Brunello unveiled a subtle yet very substantial switch in his aesthetic – baggy pants. New trousers cut with double pleats, and a lower, looser waist.
'More like this,' explained Brunello as he opened his jacket to reveal the trousers' lower waistline, and how he had displaced buttons an inch lower on the jacket of his six-button chalk stripe linen suit. Believe it or not, Cucinelli even showed worn and ever-so-ripped jeans, practically an insurrection in his bible of style.
His informal evening breaks new ground with matinee idol jackets with satin-free shawl lapels. While the color palette also has plenty of kick–orange, apricot, royal blue, and coral red. Overall, think fluid yet sartorial.
But the biggest news will come in early December when Brunello unveils his docudrama. Tornatore's most recent film was a biopic on Italy's most famous composer for cinema, Ennio Morricone. Next, Giuseppe and Brunello will head to Rome for the cinematic debut in the capital's legendary film studio – Cinecittà – in the first week of December.
Roll over, David Beckham and Michael Jordan; there is a new docudrama designer sheriff in town.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fashion Network
2 hours ago
- Fashion Network
Post Archive Faction hits home run in Pitti
Add Post Archive Faction (PAF) to the list of brands smartly endorsed by Pitti, the giant menswear salon in Florence, where this new South Korean marque made its Italian debut on Thursday afternoon. Not quite a-star-is-born moment, but certainly the biggest hit of all the shows this week in Pitti. Post Archive Faction is all about techy urban wear, all-weather clubbing gear that's very dark, rather moody and definitely very cool, which all felt very now. 'The brand's name comes from the fact that our generation is very lucky in that we can access all these beautiful archives from art, fashion or cinema, or any movement anywhere, thanks to the Internet. So, we can drift around those archives, exploring and making our own new one,' explained co-founder Dongjoon Lim, in a preview. Where what stood out was the remarkable hand of many fabrics: stiff dandy pajama suits in putty-hued toweling material; chiffon mesh crepe blazers that felt like light scouring pads; or desert dry linen shirts. The tailoring was deconstructed yet somehow punchy – everything anchored by some great footwear: sprayed over Chelsea boots, brogue/clog assemblages; and saddle-stitch lace-ups. PAF had shown before in Paris, with some well-admired hyper avant-garde Yeti-style concept clothes, though without making a giant impact. But by scaling up for this show, the brand suddenly took on another dimension. PAF's arrival in Pitti comes in the wake of Kolon, a very large Korean conglomerate, buying a significant stake in the house. Looks like Kolon got the timing of that investment right. Notably, as a recent collab' with happening sneaker brand On underlined – some 90% of the collection sold out on the first day. On a day in Florence where temperatures hit 37 degrees celsius, Lim insisted: 'I don't really like hot weather! Though it's very hard to find cool lightweight clothing for spring. But what I was want is very classic, but practical.' Presented inside the looming former train station, Stazione Leopoldo, the cast marched out to the dramatic sounds of "Buka" by pianist Hania Rani. Full marks for some simple but highly effective staging, courtesy of veteran show producer Thierry Dreyfus. Using the full length the station, each figure silhouetted before a light-filled back wall. On the runway multiple trickles of sand – like from an hourglass – fell to create small islands to circumnavigate. Asked how he wanted his audience to react, Lim responded: 'I'd like to think that they will be drifting both physically and in their imagination.' Which they very probably were.
Euronews
3 hours ago
- Euronews
The World's 50 Best Restaurants 2025: Who takes the top spot?
The World's 50 Best Restaurants has announced this year's recipients of 'The World's Best Restaurant' - one of the world's most prestigious food awards. The awards ceremony took place last night in Turin, Italy, where the crowd gathered to celebrate the top restaurants and chefs for 2025. A panel of more than 1,000 experts, split into 27 regions around the world, came together to decide on the final ranking. So, what is the World's Best Restaurant this year? The accolade went to Maido in Lima, Peru – which was placed at number 5 in the 2024 awards and now unseats last year's winner, Disfrutar in Barcelona, Spain, to the top spot. Maido's Lima-born chef Mitsuharu Tsumura cooks a fusion of Latin American and Japanese flavours, and said: 'We talk a lot about sustainability of the environment, but we rarely talk about human sustainability. I think this industry can be an example of how we can bring people together with the power of food.' Every year, the panel awards special prizes to chefs, front-of-house staff, and activists who are leading the charge in hospitality in 2025. This year's special awards went to the Best Female Chef, Pichaya 'Pam' Soontornyanakij of Potong, Bangkok and Mindy Woods in Byron Bay, winner of the Champions of Change 2025 award. The World's Best Pastry Chef award went to Parisian chef Maxime Frederic, while the Estrella Damm Chefs' Choice Award went to Alberta Adrià, head chef of Enigma in Barcelona. The highest-ranking restaurants on each continent were given a special mention. Maido, as the best restaurant in the world, takes care of South America. Incidentally, Peru was well represented in the Top 50 list, as three other Lima-based establishments joined Maido: Kjolle (9); Mérito (26); Mayta (39). Tresind Studio in Dubai (ranked number 27 in this year's awards) was named the best restaurant in the Middle East. The best restaurant in Asia is Gaggan in Bangkok, at number 6, while the best restaurant in North America is Quintonil in Mexico City (number 3). The best restaurant in Europe is Asador Etxebarri in Spain (number 2 this year and last year). Spain also has DiverXO in Madrid in the global Top 5, retaining its number 4 spot. Elsewhere in the Top 20, Denmark's Alchemist (Copenhagen) ranks number 5 and climbs three spots compared to last year; France's Paris-based Table by Bruno Verjus drops to number 8 from its number 3 ranking in 2024, and Plénitude (also in Paris) has the 14th spot this year, up four compared to last year; and the UK's Ikoyi, which was ranked 42nd in 2024, jumps up to number 15. Italy is the European country with the most restaurants in 2025's Top 20 list, with Lido 84 in Lake Garda, Reale in Castel di Sangro and Atelier Moessmer Norbert Niederkofler in Brunico all ranking 16th, 18th and 20th respectively. Here is the full Top 50 restaurant list (European entries in bold): 1. Maido, Lima, Peru 2. Asador Etxebarri, Atxondo, Spain 3. Quintonil, Mexico City, Mexico 4. DiverXO, Madrid, Spain 5. Alchemist, Copenhagen, Denmark 6. Gaggan, Bangkok, Thailand 7. Sezanne, Tokyo, Japan 8. Table by Bruno Verjus, Paris, France 9. Kjolle, Lima, Peru 10. Don Julio, Buenos Aires, Argentina 11. Wing, Hong Kong 12. Atomix, New York, USA 13. Potong, Bangkok, Thailand 14. Plénitude, Paris, France 15. Ikoyi, London, UK 16. Lido 84, Lake Garda Italy 17. Sorn, Bangkok, Thailand 18. Reale, Castel di Sangro, Italy 19. The Chairman, Hong Kong 20. Atelier Moessmer Norbert Niederkofler, Brunico, Italy 21. Narisawa, Tokyo, Japan 22. Serene, Bangkok, Thailand 23. Boragó, Santiago, Chile 24. Elkano, Getaria, Spain 25. Odette, Singapore 26. Mérito, Lima, Peru 27. Tresind Studio, Dubai, UAE 28. Lasai, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 29. Mingles, Seoul, South Korea 30. Le Du, Bangkok, Thailand 31. Le Calandre, Rubano, Italy 32. Piazza Duomo, Alba, Italy 33. Steirereck, Vienna, Austria 34. Enigma, Barcelona, Spain 35. Nusara, Bangkok, Thailand 36. Florilège, Tokyo, Japan 37. Orfali Bros, Dubai, UAE 38. Frantzen, Stockholm, Sweden 39. Mayta, Lima, Peru 40. Septime, Paris, France 41. Kadeau, Copenhagen, Denmark 42. Belcanto, Lisbon, Portugal 43. Uliassi, Senigallia, Italy 44. La Cime, Osaka, Japan 45. Arpege, Paris, France 46. Rosetta, Mexico City, Mexico 47. Vyn, Skillinge, Sweden 48. Celele, Cartagena, Colombia 49. Kol, London, UK 50. Restaurant Jan, Munich, Germany When we left the 28 (pick your time span) Later franchise in 2007, the protocol-breaching actions of two misguided siblings led to the carpetbombing of London's no-longer-safe zone. Kids... What can you do? 28 Weeks Later, Juan Carlos Fresnadillo's surprisingly effective follow up to director Danny Boyle and screenwriter Alex Garland's 2002 zombie genre revitalizing horror experience, ended with a devilish final stinger that had audiences saying 'Et, merde' at the sight of the Rage Virus-infected emerging from a Paris Métro. 18 years later (in the real world) and 28 years later (in the Rage-infested world), Boyle and Garland are back, and they're not keen to simply rest on their laurels. We quickly learn that the terrifying pandemic has been beaten back from mainland Europe (the French presumably shrugged off the infestation and dusted off the guillotines) and that Rage is contained to Blighty. They really can't catch a break... And in many ways, that's the point. While the infected are still out and about, there exists a safe space – an island within an island. Its name is Lindisfarne, aka: Holy Island, and it's in this isolationist community, only connected to the UK mainland via a causeway crossable at low tide, where we meet 12-year-old Spike (newcomer Alfie Williams). His scavenger father Jamie (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) is keen to make a man out of him and so decides to embark on a coming-of-age ritual of sorts: take him inland for the first time in search of his first kill. As Spike's bedbound and mysteriously sick mother Isla (Jodie Comer) foretells in a fit of expletives, it's a really dumb idea... 28 Years Later doesn't look or feel like 28 Days Later. Or 28 Weeks Later, for that matter. So those wanting more of the same may end up disappointed. Ditching the lo-fi, punk rawness of the first brush with sprinting nightmare fuel and the equally lean-and-mean feel of the second, 28 Years Later is crisper and more expensive-looking. While that may frustrate some audiences, what's clear is that Boyle and Garland didn't come back to simply cash in and play it safe. It couldn't be any other way. 28 Days Later breathed new life into a horror mainstay by having the sprinting Rage-infected replacing traditional reanimated corpses. More than two decades later, zombies have invaded the screens and become ubiquitous – to the point of exhaustion. From the big screen offerings of the Rec franchise, Shaun of the Dead, Zombieland and Planet Terror (to mention only the high points) to the zeitgeist-capturing small screen hits The Walking Dead and The Last Of Us, civilisation-threatening outbreaks featuring ravenous walkers, crawlers and biters have become mainstream. The only way was forward. And a lot has happened since 2007's 28 Weeks Later – namely Brexit and a worldwide pandemic. Both of these resonate in 28 Years Later, especially the self-inflicted isolationist wound. The nationalist and seclusionist subtext becomes text: Saint George's Cross flying above the community; the banner reading 'Fail we may but go we must'; the sea patrol keeping the infection contained to the UK; the 'us' and 'them'-ness of looking backwards to a past of the England that once was... It all makes for a simple but effective Brexit analogy. It's not particularly subtle; but then again, no allegory-infused zombie movie ever was. And neither was Brexit. The obviousness of certain thematical strands is countered by some far more surprising choices, like the teasing-and-ditching of The Wicker Man motifs and the Summerisle setting in favour of exploring the evolution of the infected. Of course, the introduction of various kinds of berserkers ('slow-lows' or the terrifying 'Alphas' with Predator penchants for spine-yanking) will lead to inescapable comparisons with The Last Of Us. But the script does enough to explore the potential of its ideas without toppling into déjà vu – particularly when one initially grating yet radical element is introduced... Then there are unpredictably profound moments in the second half of the film, culminating in the Memento Mori / Memento Amori dichotomy, which is brilliantly delivered by the show's last act MVP Dr. Kelson, played to perfection by Ralph Fiennes. His scenes with Spike have an emotional resonance that elevates the material and make it hard to fathom how Alfie Williams is so accomplished for a first-time actor. We'll hopefully be seeing both Boy Meets World and the iodine-covered Colonel Kurtz again soon, as 28 Years Later was filmed back-to-back with the first sequel in a planned new trilogy, titled 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, which is slated to hit theaters in January 2026. Let's pray Young Fathers return too, as their terrific soundtrack is not worth ignoring. From the Teletubbies opening to a heroically bizarre finale which scoffers will likely liken to The Village, via a three-act structure that makes a young hero's odyssey evolve from a father-son adventure to a mother-son rescue mission to a young father figure spreading his wings, 28 Years Later's strange verve is exhilarating. While there are some pacing issues, as well as surplus to requirement CGI moments involving swarms of birds and deer, Boyle and Garland have truly outdone themselves. Without skimping on the edge-of-your-seat tension and gruesome viscera that made the first two instalments so pant-browningly effective, their belated sequel is a radical revival that eschews the obvious at every turn. It may not satisfy everyone, but give us daring over safe any day / week / year of the Rage pandemic. 28 Years Later is out in cinemas now.
Fashion Network
17 hours ago
- Fashion Network
Post Archive Faction hits home run in Pitti
Add Post Archive Faction (PAF) to the list of brands smartly endorsed by Pitti, the giant menswear salon in Florence, where this new South Korean marque made its Italian debut on Thursday afternoon. Not quite a-star-is-born moment, but certainly the biggest hit of all the shows this week in Pitti. Post Archive Faction is all about techy urban wear, all-weather clubbing gear that's very dark, rather moody and definitely very cool, which all felt very now. 'The brand's name comes from the fact that our generation is very lucky in that we can access all these beautiful archives from art, fashion or cinema, or any movement anywhere, thanks to the Internet. So, we can drift around those archives, exploring and making our own new one,' explained co-founder Dongjoon Lim, in a preview. Where what stood out was the remarkable hand of many fabrics: stiff dandy pajama suits in putty-hued toweling material; chiffon mesh crepe blazers that felt like light scouring pads; or desert dry linen shirts. The tailoring was deconstructed yet somehow punchy – everything anchored by some great footwear: sprayed over Chelsea boots, brogue/clog assemblages; and saddle-stitch lace-ups. PAF had shown before in Paris, with some well-admired hyper avant-garde Yeti-style concept clothes, though without making a giant impact. But by scaling up for this show, the brand suddenly took on another dimension. PAF's arrival in Pitti comes in the wake of Kolon, a very large Korean conglomerate, buying a significant stake in the house. Looks like Kolon got the timing of that investment right. Notably, as a recent collab' with happening sneaker brand On underlined – some 90% of the collection sold out on the first day. On a day in Florence where temperatures hit 37 degrees celsius, Lim insisted: 'I don't really like hot weather! Though it's very hard to find cool lightweight clothing for spring. But what I was want is very classic, but practical.' Presented inside the looming former train station, Stazione Leopoldo, the cast marched out to the dramatic sounds of "Buka" by pianist Hania Rani. Full marks for some simple but highly effective staging, courtesy of veteran show producer Thierry Dreyfus. Using the full length the station, each figure silhouetted before a light-filled back wall. On the runway multiple trickles of sand – like from an hourglass – fell to create small islands to circumnavigate. Asked how he wanted his audience to react, Lim responded: 'I'd like to think that they will be drifting both physically and in their imagination.' Which they very probably were.
