ANTONIO CONTRERAS COLORS OUTSIDE THE LINES
Words by Timothy Diao
Before the world stopped and went into lockdown altogether in February 2020, Antonio Contreras was walking down the streets of New York City interviewing Anthony Stropoli, founder and producer of L’Hommage, a gala fundraiser for the LGBTQ+ youth of the city. At the time, Antonio was filming L’Hommage The Film, a short mixed-media documentary on the event that brought together the echelons of fashion, icons of ballroom, and the creative youth of the community. Under the historic roof of Judson Memorial Church and in the powerful armors of Haute Couture, everyone was welcome at L’Hommage. The film captures the celebration, community, and love that the event stands for. Anthony is joined on screen by ballroom performers Kya Azeen, Alvarez Delgado, and their mother, Gisele Alicea of the House of Xtravaganza; youth volunteers like Matte Blackk and Kapri Powell; and model and activist Dominique Castelano. Each represented the amalgamation of different sectors of the community that showed up for the younger generation and beneficiaries of the fundraiser. Like L’Hommage, Antonio’s creative pursuits in filmmaking honor the wondrous life and works of those who break the mold. His brand of storytelling looks deep into the world of fashion and art, taking apart the narratives of industry visionaries and stitching them back together with care, intention, and wonder. His love for the medium began when a publication created a short feature on Antonio and his wardrobe, titled Antonio’s Closet. “She heard I had important fashion pieces because I collect fashion for myself. I buy them for me, and I never get rid of them,” Antonio laughs. “She came to do the interview, and I showed her my clothes. And then somebody saw that two-minute mini-documentary and suggested I send it to Miami Fashion Film Festival in 2013. So I sent it to the festival, they invited me to go, and I won the founders award. Which, to me, was like a big deal, you know?”.
The feature sparked his curiosity about filmmaking. From there, he began writing screenplays and producing short films with friends and collaborators, and Antonio’s Closet Productions was born. At first, he produced narrative films inspired by the telenovelas he grew up with. Short features with bold storylines, dramatic flair, and exuberant fashions. As he grew in the medium, so did his storytelling. The production company then began crafting fashion documentaries on the untold perspective of industry muses. His latest film—in collaboration with long-time friend and business partner Gehno Aviance (One A) and iconic supermodel and artist Pat Cleveland—The Girl From 7th Avenue: Pat Cleveland & The Runway Revolution explores the story of Pat Cleveland’s decades-long career on and off the runway in her account. The film is executed in the production house’s signature mixed-media animation. It features over 2000 hand-illustrated fashion images by Antonio, serene and wispy narration and singing by Pat, and creative sound design and direction by Gehno. The film will premiere at the La Jolla International Fashion Film Festival in July 2022. The Girl From 7th Avenue: Pat Cleveland & The Runway Revolution is a prime example of how Antonio puts the spotlight on the muse and molds their narrative to tell a story that’s truthful in all accounts but also curated with creative chronology and artistic vision.
The film opens on a Sci-fi note with Max Vogue (Antonio’s online fashion alter-ego) on a mission to reshape fashion history with Pat Cleveland’s story. Max travels back in time to a Patrick Kelly exhibition at the de Young Museum in San Francisco, where he touches base with Pat Cleveland (designer Patrick Kelly’s friend and champion). She takes him down the time warp, and they land in Versailles, 1973, when Pat and other American models walked, danced, and Vogued the palace down for the American designers at the Battle of Versailles. Her life story (the beginning of a career in New York, her exodus to Paris, and her numerous runway feats) reignited the fashion flame in Max’s timeline and ultimately brought the industry back to life. “I found a happy medium between the two (feature and documentary filmmaking). The Girl From 7th Avenue: Pat Cleveland & The Runway Revolution is a documentary but it also has a little bit of fiction in it,” he explains. “To quote Diana Vreeland: it was faction. You know, fact and fiction. Faction.” Antonio and Gehno’s creative process often begins with the muse. In this case, they encountered many inspirations to craft a film on Pat’s story. From visiting the Patrick Kelly: Runway of Love exhibition at the de Young Museum to Gehno’s affinity for Josephine Baker and the common thread that ties her to Pat to Antonio’s encounters with the fashion icon on his Max Vogue Instagram account. They approached Pat with the idea of telling her life story, particularly her experience at the Battle of Versailles, but through her own lens. “I told Pat that I would love to make a movie about her life story, specifically 1973,” Antonio shares how the conversation with the runway icon began. “I want to tell the story from the women’s point-of-view because I think the women were the ones who won that battle, starting with Anne Klein.” Pat was intrigued and hooked on the idea, and the project slowly began taking off. Antonio and Gehno dove deep into their research and collaborated with Pat on the script. They were in the height of production (the story was approved, and Antonio was painting the frames for the film) when they found new inspiration for the story during a trip to Paris.
Josephine Baker was just inducted into France’s Panthéon in 2021—the only black woman to have the honor. It sparked a conversation about race and how many African Americans find appreciation in Europe. As opposed to their home country. A similar story to Patrick Kelly and Pat Cleveland. During her time as a model in New York, Pat never found herself on the cover of the magazines she modeled for. Despite the fact that photographers and editors fawned over her images. The industry never carved out that space for her and the women who looked like her. Frustrated, she bought a ticket to Paris and vowed never to come back until a black woman was on the cover of Vogue. Finding success in Europe, Pat pushed her friend, designer Patrick Kelly to try his luck in Paris. She bought him a one-way ticket to the City of Lights. And true enough, he flourished there as well. The thought of talented and capable African Americans having to cross the ocean to find success in their work pushed Antonio and Gehno to revise the story they were working on. It’s how they came about with opening the film with Patrick Kelly’s exhibit. “Those energies of exclusion and racism are prevalent in American society and discourse. Especially right now. It’s something that we experience every day. Even if you don’t want to, it comes up. Although the film is animated, the uncomfortable subject is there,” Gehno shares. Confronting these uncomfortable conversations—whether in gender, race, or opportunity—with a creative and colorful lens brings their film and message to life.
ANTONIO CONTRERAS @antonioeldeseo
Writer: TIMOTHY DIAO @timdiao
Copy Editor: Kiedo Villanueva @kei_villanueva
Art Director: NIGEL JOHN DEL MUNDO @nigeldelmundo
Photographer: VINCENT GOTTI @vinniegotti