Cristóbal Balenciaga’s life story is heading to the small screen…
ViacomCBS International Studios is developing a series on the late Spanish fashion designer, with director James Kent set to helm and producer Frida Torresblanco to executive produce.
Written by Rebecca Pollock and Kas Graham, the project — which is slated to shoot in 2021 — will depict the life of Balenciaga, who helped lead a revolution in fashion, with his precision and perfectionism earning him the admiration of contemporaries, including Christian Dior, Hubert de Givenchy, and Coco Chanel.
In 1917, at the age of 22, he established his first fashion house in San Sebastian, and later opened fashion houses in Madrid and Barcelona, before moving to Paris in 1937, where his work won the admiration of an influential cosmopolitan clientele. In the 1950s, Balenciaga unveiled never-before-seen styles and shapes, which were considered radical designs at the time.
“I have long admired the genius of the greatest Spanish fashion designer in history,” said Torresblanco. “After discovering Balenciaga’s influences this triggered the implacable need to capture the life of a brave artist who intensely and relentlessly lived for his love of an aristocrat, a handsome gentleman whose life was threatened by the dangerous times he lived in. He liberated women who were restricted in their corsets, by creating a timeless, provocative and avant-garde way to live that continues to influence future generations.”
Kent added: “There are few artists who have affected our world’s material reality – its texture, color, shape and form – in the way Balenciaga has. His creations changed the face of fashion, and his story, until now, has only been told through his fashion designs.”
Starring and produced by Leguizamo with Frida Torresblanco also producing, the narrative series will chronicle the fascinating yet volatile life of Emma Coronel — an innocent farm girl turned fierce icon who rises to become Mexico’s most formidable crime wife.