Sofia Coppola's female gaze The aesthetic codes of a filmmaker turned icon

If it only takes on look to know which director is behind a film, it means that the director in question has created something significant, new and personal, a world of its own in which details and actions differ from film to film, and yet remain magically recognisable. Sofia Coppola's 'female gaze' - as she called it - lingers over pyramids of pastel macarons, rows of satin shoes, a landscape of make-up and perfume that takes a perverse turn in The Bling Ring, telling the story of teenage girls like no other. «It was a kind of worry - she said - teenage films did not respect the audience, their quality was bad. And to shoot teenagers, they always chose 30-year-olds.» In celebration of the birthday of one of contemporary cinema's most eclectic figures, and in anticipation of the release of her new Priscilla Presley biopic, we look back at three films that, in terms of aesthetics and costumes, have set the standard for generations of filmmakers to come. 

The Virgin Suicides (1999)

At the 2007 Oscars, Milena Canonero's costumes for Marie Antoinette won an Oscar because, although not historically faithful to the wardrobe of Louis' XVI queen consort, the sheer splendour and luxury the film costumes exuded made them a representative portrait of Versailles and of the French monarchy at the end of its time. Canonero and six assistants designed the dresses, hats, gowns and costumes for the stage, there were also ten hired workers and the wardrobe department had several drivers for transport, while the wardrobe department worked 24-hour shifts to keep up with production demands. Shoes were supplied by Manolo Blahnik and Pompei, hundreds of wigs and hairstyles were made by Rocchetti & Rocchetti, and there was no shortage of jewellery, with the French house of Fred Leighton exclusively supplying almost $4 million worth of gems. According to the London Times Magazine, Sofia Coppola presented Milena Canonero with a box of crayons at the beginning of pre-production: «she told me: these are the colours I love, so I used them as a palette - said the costume designer - I simplified the very heavy 18th century look. I wanted it to be believable but more stylised». Even today, more than 15 years after its theatrical release, the film proves to be an intimate portrait of the Queen's tragic events, now filling Pinterest boards with a film that perfectly embodies the weight of fashion in decreeing the success of a film's eternal imagery.