This season, a.v. vattev made his first appearance on the London Fashion Week schedule. Opting out of a traditional show format in favour of something more intimate, Antonio Vattev invited his guests into the 180 Studios cinema to immerse them in his universe through a short film. Titled Encore, the film and collection developed the core design principles of Vattev’s namesake brand, taking notes from the musical icons of the 1970s or the leading men of French New Wave cinema.

Imbuing the collection with a rebellious spirit, traditional suiting and shirting are distorted through the twist of a collar or a cropped hemline, with the intention of making everyday silhouettes feel somewhat unfamiliar – taking preppiness and toughening it up. Trousers are made more voluminous in form, paired with leather vests and skinny scarves, while the signature Viper Cardigan returns in two new iterations. Below, Vattev walks us through five cinematic references behind Encore, spotlighting the men on screen who remain at the centre of his mood board.

“At the core of the collection is the spirit of the French New Wave, with Jean-Paul Belmondo in À bout de souffle as one of the central visual references. Belmondo’s character represents a new kind of masculinity – romantic, instinctive, rebellious and effortlessly nonchalant. Rather than appearing perfectly constructed, he moves through the world with a sense of freedom, attitude and spontaneity. This became the starting point for creating a new character within the a.v. vattev universe.”

“The character also draws from the romantic elegance and mysterious sensuality of Alain Delon, particularly his cinematic presence in Plein Soleil and Le Samouraï.”

“The result is a free-spirited male character who exists somewhere between cinema and music, romantic but rebellious, elegant but undone, sophisticated but instinctive. He is not intended to reproduce any of these figures literally, but rather to capture the attitude they collectively represent: freedom, desire, danger, romance and an uncompromising sense of individuality.”