PRADA reveal contemporary film by Chinese art star Yang Fudong as their innovative Spring/Summer 2010 menswear campaign

‘First Spring’ is Prada’s latest collaboration with pioneering Chinese artist Yang Fudong. Featuring young men gathered in Shanghai, dressed in Prada menswear, the 9-minute black and white film portrays a timeless, dreamlike realm where anything is possible. Inspired by the promise and opportunities of a new decade, Prada are excited to announce they have agreed with Fudong that the art project will officially become the Spring/Summer 2010 menswear advertising campaign. The film will debut exclusively across digital platforms from early February. Prada are proud to be launching this innovative new campaign concept with Fudong, who is among the most interesting and influential Chinese artists working today. As Hans Ulrich Obrist, the distinguished curator and critic, observed of Fudong’s acclaimed film series Seven Intellectuals “it is a portrayal of modern Chinese intellectuals’ ambiguous and multiple-meaning status; it’s their aspiration for individual freedom in the course of the current society’s development into a capitalist one”. Through empty streets and ornate back rooms, ‘First Spring’ brings together individuals from disparate classes and times in an unexplained, hypnotic narrative. Mysterious characters walk high lines and float into the sky under lace parasols on a dangerous yet beautiful journey. The film’s hyper-real monotone look plays with distinctions between fantasy and reality, whilst Fudong mixes cinematic references to highly modern effect. Inspired by the Chinese adage that “the whole year’s work depends on a good start in spring”, this bold and beautiful film represents an exciting new direction for Prada’s visual communications at the start of this decade.

The Original Idea/Inspiration 1. “Spring” is beautiful, fuzzy, cozy, and promising. As a Chinese saying goes, “The whole year’s work depends on a good start in spring…” 2. Black and white makes one feel distance, while distance makes one feel beauty … English Title: Chinese Title:一年之计, a short film 2010/35MM black and white film, directed by Yang Fudong, Location: Shanghai