Know the difference with Belvedere Vodka and Ellen von Unwerth

Can you describe, in a few words, the collaboration with Belvedere Vodka?

My collaboration with Belvedere was aimed at creating a campaign of fun pictures full of smiles, laughs, and good memories.

The campaign tells us that Belvedere consumers know the difference between a night out and an extraordinary night out. what does Know the Difference means to you?

I could apply that tag to my pictures and how I see a shooting session. I strongly value spontaneity and positivity in my work. This is what makes the difference between a photo shoot and an extraordinary photo shoot. Having the confidence to follow your instincts and passion is what Know the Difference refers to in my mind. Magic always happens when you have the right sparkle. In that case, Belvedere was my inspiration.

The campaign was shot in Argentina – did any inspiration come to you while there?

The whole Argentinian culture was a huge inspiration. I had never been to Argentina before, and here I discovered the joy of life, the ability to make every night a wonderful night, and especially how people here are charming, energetic and fun.

The photographs are vibrant, colorful and each depicts a journey throughout the night – can you give us a bit more detail on the storylines for the images?

It was the story of a group of friends having a party in a beautiful Argentinian mansion. They are all friends, having fun, enjoying a nice party and relaxing! As the night goes on, we can see new relations and maybe some love affairs evolving. They go from place to place from “uptown to downtown” and enjoy every bit of it.

You inspire so many people, but where do you find your inspiration? And who are some of the people that inspire you?

People like Helmut Newton, Brassai, Egon Schiele, but recently also lot of younger actors and musicians constantly inspire me. I also love movies from Fellini, Visconti, Fassbinder, and German expressionist movies of Fritz Lang.

You’ve worked with many supermodels and celebs over the years. Who is a ‘dream celebrity’ you still haven’t worked with, that you would love to photograph?

There are a lot of people that I would love to shoot and never did, but I would have loved to work with Marilyn Monroe! I think we would have made a great combination.

When you want to have a night out with friends, what are some of your favorite bars around the world?

There are so many fun places I like to hang out: from the glamorous but cool ‘Chateau Marmont’ bar in Hollywood to the very exclusive basement area of the ‘King Size’ in Berlin.

What is your favorite cocktail?

I love [a] Bloody Mary!

How do you see the connection between fashion and music?

Fashion and music have a strong connection, because they both reflect an era. You can always associate a type of music with a type of fashion. Music had a great influence on my fashion films, the stories I told wouldn’t be the same without the music in it.

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