A docufilm about Bulgari is set to premiere at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, where Bulgari is the official jewelry partner.
The film is directed by Matthieu Menu and produced by Terminal9 Studios, Inside the Dream tells the story of the brand, showing the inner workings of the high jewelry maison founded in Rome in 1884. The film will detail the creative process behind how its jewelry collections are crafted and produced, how gems are selected, and how select pieces end up as part of red carpet looks.
Following its debut at TIFF, Inside the Dream will be available on Prime Video in approximately 100 countries starting September 13.
“We opened the doors for the first time to show the creation of unique jewels throughout the creative process from the sketch to the gem research, and ending with celebrities’ endorsement on the red carpet before arriving at the boutique. It was like telling a magnificent journey,” Bulgari global CEO Jean-Christophe Babin said in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter.
In particular, this journey follows Lucia Silvestri, Bulgari’s Jewelry Creative Director, as she travels around Rome — tracking the movements of one gemstone in particular, from raw material to finished product: the Serpenti Hypnotic Emerald necklace.
“[It] is the main necklace that represents the soul of the High Jewelry Collection,” Babin said. “Lucia remembered a rough emerald she saw years ago from a partner in Jaipur that had belonged to their family for 25 years. They had not find the right design to cut that stone until Lucia showed them the idea of this wonderful necklace. The Emerald is perfect, intense in color, fascinating in its inclusions. A 93-carat emerald that itself has a lot to tell.”
The emerald necklace, which Babin describes as “the essence of Bulgari” as the snake has long been an icon of the brand, is touched by many hands and touches several in turn including Zendaya, she notably wore it at the Venice Film Festival in 2021, Italian digital entrepreneur and fashion icon Chiara Ferragni, BLACKPINK singer Lalisa aka LISA, supermodel Lily Aldridge and Priyanka Chopra Jonas.
“It brings together excellent craftsmanship … an exercise in creativity, design and manufacturing for a creation that is meant to last forever and represent the brand in an imaginary bridge between past and future,” Babin said. The docufilm highlights the many human touches each creation benefits from, and centers the art of film as an inspiration for many of Bulgari’s dazzling centerpieces.
“Cinema Divas of all time have been muses and witnesses of our magnificent creations. The cinema has helped Bulgari [share] the audacity, creativity and excellence for which the brand is so famous for today,” Babin says. “Being a partner of TIFF allows us to continue this beautiful story and, above all, to give opportunities to young talents who need to be highlighted.”
