True Colors Fashion: The Future is Now! brings together some of the world’s leading tech companies and fashion brands with a diverse cast of models to present innovative fashion creations.
The event comprises a series of videos that reveal the power of technology and the collaborative process. Meet an ALS creator who collaborates with artists and technologists to create artworks and develop content with eye movement input, see hearing aids worn as fashion, children with prosthetic legs running, be introduced to an ingeniously designed trench coat, and listen to honest dialogues between cast members – all these and even more transformative moments that challenge the limits of fashion. This series beautifully captures human creativity at its best, and the world of possibilities that technology can create.
“Since the invention of computers, we have been able to solve problems with software, and it has become easier for people to connect with one another. In keeping with this idea, The Future is Now! sets the stage for diverse people to express themselves with fashion that’s empowered with technology,” says Yoichi Ochiai, general director of The Future is Now!.
Among the models are Masatane Muto, a DJ, who since being diagnosed with ALS, plays music with his eyes; Pippi, who developed hearing loss at the age of 16 has featured in campaigns for Shu Uemura and walked the runways of Japan Fashion Week; Hirotada Ototake, celebrated sports journalist and bestselling author of the memoir “No One’s Perfect” which details his life having been born without limbs; and Fumiya Hamanoue, a visually impaired climber who represents the Japan Paralympic Team.
“I believe that not only can technology supplement bodily functions that are lost, it can in fact expand the limits of the body. Beyond complementation, technology can help us do more,” says Muto.
Collaborating technology and fashion brands include Xiborg Inc. and SONY Computer Science Laboratory, teams that specialize in creating prosthetics enhanced with robotics; ONTENNA, a device that converts sound information into light and vibration; Tommy Hilfiger Adaptive, the first major fashion label to launch a full-fledged adaptive fashion line that is released twice a year; and KANSAI YAMAMOTO, the legendary fashion house that has dressed luminaries like David Bowie and Elton John.
“I want to build a world in which not having the use of legs will not be an obstacle to running. I want to make running with a prosthetic leg a normal thing, not just for athletes or aspiring athletes, but for everyone,” says Ken Endo, founder of Xiborg Inc. and researcher at Sony Computer Science Laboratories.
The Future is Now! is directed by Yoichi Ochiai, a renowned media artist and scientist. It is the third part of the True Colors Fashion series produced by Kao Kanamori (DRIFTERS INTERNATIONAL) this year. The three-parter was created on the premise that fashion should be for everyone.
The first two parts were launched in March this year. The first – a documentary entitled Clothes in Conversation – is available for viewing to watch on YouTube. It is in Japanese, with options that include English or Japanese subtitles and English (only for the photo shoot segment) or Japanese Audio Description. The second was a photo exhibition in Shibuya, Tokyo, presented as part of the annual Shibuya Fashion Week.
“Our events are a reminder that the world is a diverse place, and that diversity makes the world a more dynamic and beautiful place in which to live. Our hope is that these events, presented through the lens of fashion – a well-loved form of expression – can help people to overcome their prejudices,” says Kanamori.
The Future is Now! premieres online on YouTube at youtube.com/c/truecolorsfestival on 7 June 2021.
True Colors Fashion: The Future is Now! is supported by Arts Council Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolitan Foundation for History and Culture and Aputure, and is co-presented by DRIFTERS INTERNATIONAL.
