Brunello Cucinelli Unveils Documentary on His Rags-to-Riches Story at Glamorous, Star-Studded Rome Premiere

Rome put on a star-studded show for one of Italy’s own on Thursday, with the premiere of Brunello Cucinelli documentary Brunello: The Gracious Visionary bringing the glam one would expect from the top designer.

Directed by Oscar-winner Giuseppe Tornatore, the two-hour doc chronicles the life and philosophy of the famed “King of Cashmere” — who grew up in a rural agricultural community in Italy before starting his luxury fashion brand in 1978. The film (in Italian called Brunello: Il Visionario Garbato) features three different actors in reconstructed scenes from Cucinelli’s past, alongside Nicola Piovani’s score.

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Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Jessica Chastain, Chris Pine, Edgar Ramirez, Ava DuVernary and Kyle MacLachlan (all wearing Cucinelli) were among the Hollywood A-listers who came out to support the project, alongside Cucinelli (accompanied by wife Federica Benda and their family) and the young men who play him, actors Francesco Cannevale, Saul Nanni and Francesco Ferroni.

The event took over Cinecittà, the largest film studio in Rome, where Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, Federico Fellini, Luchino Visconti, Sergio Leone and Tornatore have all previously shot. The premiere also served as the opening of the new Teatro 22, one of the two largest film studios in Europe.

For the special night, Cinecittà was bathed in shades of beige, ornately decorated with statues and lit by candlelight, as 1,000 guests — including former Prime Minister of Italy Mario Draghi — enjoyed a dinner before sitting down to watch the film, the crowd featuring a who’s who of Italian cinema. Sayings from philosophers like Hadrian and Marcus Aurelius were also projected through the space, inspired by Cucinelli’s love of philosophy.

At a press conference the following day at the Teatro Nazionale, Cucinelli was joined by Tornatore, the two-time Oscar-winning Piovani and Nanni to speak to reporters from around the world, with the chat translated into four languages. They revealed that the project has been in the works for three years — two years of filming plus a year of editing — as the director admitted he “didn’t know anything” about Cucinelli before the fashion mogul came to him about doing the film.

“When Brunello approached me about doing this, I told him docs about people who haven’t passed away don’t really work. They’re too lenient,” Tornatore — who won an Oscar for Cinema Paradiso, a film that is often considered one of the greatest movies of all time — said. “But he did not want that. It was great, he became like a dead person. He only saw the whole thing when it was done.” He added that when it was finished, he asked Cucinelli if there was anything he wanted to change, “and he said, ‘Absolutely not, it’s fine just as it is.’ I was struck by that.’”

Cucinelli chimed in, “The director gave me a piece of paper and said, ‘Write down all the scenes you don’t like.’ But at the end I had nothing on the paper. I said, ‘Run it like it is,’ — but maybe cut a few minutes!”

The film’s poster sees Cucinelli surrounded by a sea of books, which all come from his own personal collection; he told reporters he owns 60,000 novels that they gathered together for the promotional imagery, as he spoke about his love of poets and philosophers. The quiet luxury designer also revealed the mathematical tricks and strategy he learned while he was playing cards in a local bar growing up — which serves as the movie’s opening and is a constant reference — and credited that for his career success. The bar, Gigino, has not been touched since Cucinelli spent time there, and cards are such a big part of his life that the actors portraying him were told that playing cards was a prerequisite for the role.

Another theme of the film is Cucinelli’s belief in benevolent capitalism, as he’s known for the positive work environment he’s created and has used his success to give back; that includes buying lots of property in the village, Solomeo, that his wife grew up in and building public spaces throughout Italy. During the press conference he noted, “At our company you are fired on the spot if you offend anyone, regardless of your position or title. I do not care. I make the rules and I report only to the eternal ruler,” while explaining that this ethos came from seeing his father mistreated at work.

Cucinelli also said of his entrance into Hollywood, “It’s so amusing, but what I prefer focusing on is the human experience and soul. I feel like we are experiencing a strong malaise in our soul that the movie was trying to address. I would like to have become the pope — but not a producer.” Though of course Cucinelli is no stranger to the entertainment industry, as the brand has become a Hollywood uniform — even featured heavily this year on The Studio — with Angelina Jolie, Kevin Costner, Jennifer Lopez, Ben Affleck, Seth Rogen and Jon Hamm all regular customers.

Brunello: The Gracious Visionary opens in Italian cinemas on Dec. 9, with plans to screen in the U.S. in March.