The role of fashion inside "We are who we are"

What better way to reach young people and describe them in their entirety than through a TV series? From Beverly Hills 90210 which helped boost Dr Martens sales in the 90s to Sex And The City which launched the Manolo Blahnik craze, this time Luca Guadagnino has thought of it with his new format “We Are Who We Are” to explore and launch new fashion diktats.

The discussed TV series is structured like a Bildungsroman, where a group of teenagers express themselves in an authentic, carefree and unfiltered way. They have the task of writing their future by gradually discovering their true identity, a research that is constructive and exciting but at the same time complex and difficult.
Here the characters rediscover themselves and become protagonists of an unconscious maturity, driven by the anarchy of their inner complexity and their need to express uniqueness by shouting to the whole world "we are what we are". In the show, non-conformism is understood not as a provocation but as a lifestyle choice.

The story and social issues

The protagonists of the series are, in fact, two American teenagers who, together with their families, live in an American military base in Italy.
On the one hand there is Fraser (Jack Dylan Grazer), a shy and introverted 14 year old who moves from New York to Veneto with his mother Sarah (Chloë Sevigny) and his partner Maggie (Alice Braga), both serving in the US army . On the other, Caitlin (Jordan Kristine Seamón), an apparently bold and self-confident teenager who has lived with her family on the base for years.

This real generational manifesto takes on the responsibility of telling the evolution of a society and its customs through the private and uncertain sensibilities of a group of adolescents full of internal contradictions but ready to fight for their own ideals, including gender fluidity.

The role of fashion

How to express these topics in a powerful and free way, if not through fashion? That's why the stylist, Giulia Piersanti, decided to show through the protagonists the typical closet of Gen Z, which is free, fluid and characterized by a carousel of genderless, sporty-couture garments, without size and ageless typical of Fashion Knowledgeable Generation.

Fraser is an introverted boy who uses fashion as a means of personal expression. His “grunge-chic” aesthetic is characterized by a mix of styles ranging from Raf Simons (his favorite designer) to Supreme, and indeed this mix of styles best represents his fluid and multifaceted personality. In his closet you cannot miss oversized t-shirts from brands like Comme des Garçons, Celine, Nike, Vetements, Kapital, skater pants by Life Sux, Dickies, adidas x Yohji Yamamoto (the spotted ones of the opening scene are iconic) , sweatshirts by Carhartt, Human Made, sneakers by Converse or Vans x Saint Laurent and accessories by brands such as Noah and Takashi Murakami.

Caitlin, on the other hand, is a character whose personal evolution passes through her style. Unlike the other characters, who have consistency from start to finish, she is constantly evolving. The protagonist uses fashion to disguise herself, to be something different from what she has always been. Like Fraser, she prefers brands like Carhartt sweatshirts and t-shirts, Coogi sweaters, adidas tracksuit, Kappa, Dickies pants and Vans, Birkenstock or Frye shoes.

The series shows us how post-millennials are the most fashion-knowledgeable generation in history thanks to the daily consultation of online shops and Instagram; a dynamic generation able to mix street-style pieces with the more minimal, classic and conceptual ones. Between the love for oversized sizes and multicolor patterns, the outfits are individual and all have their own background through which the protagonists communicate their freedom.
Here is a series of looks proposed by Giulia Piersanti and collected by the IG account @wawwaoutfits; let us know which is your favorite!

BERNHARD WILLHELM

CARHARTT WIP

COMME DES GARCONS

HUMAN MADE

CELINE

ADIDAS x YOHJI YAMAMOTO

ARIES

YOHJI YAMAMOTO

COMME DES GARCONS

TAKASHI MURAKAMI

COMME DES GARCONS

RAF SIMONS

KAPITAL BY A$AP ROCKY

RAF SIMONS

CARHARTT WIP

DICKIES

ADIDAS

ADIDAS

COOGI

“We Are Who We Are” is a Sky Original and HBO production, broadcast from 9 October on Sky Atlantic every Friday at 9.15 pm and streamed on NOW TV.