Style Wizz

There is no greater proof of the importance of a great stylist: sometimes it can make the difference between life and death…

I’ve been obsessed with The Hunger Games for a while (for those of you out there still not touched by the Games bug wondering what am I talking about, it is a trilogy written by Suzanne Collins – first of the three has been made into an accurate film, currently showing in cinemas around the world) and it felt only natural that at some point I would take some time to talk about Cinna, the stylist from the Hunger Games.

Brilliantly brough to life by Lenny Kravitz, Cinna is the stylist of the tribune from District 12, Katniss (the main character), who is sent into the Hunger Games arena to fight to the death against other 23 teenagers (one of which is Peeta, the boy from her own district who is also in love with her), until only one would be crowned victor. Cinna’s outfits were made to play up Katniss’ image as “the girl on fire”: Katniss’s first outfit was a simple black unitard, and a black cape that was lit with realistic-looking fake flames to make her look powerful and symbolise her district’s mining heritage.

Her second dress was covered with jewels creating fire designs, so she is remembered as the ‘girl who was on fire’ from her first appearance. When she twirled, she looked like she was engulfed in pure flames. “I am not pretty. I am not beautiful. I am as radiant as the sun.” Katniss’s third dress (nicknamed her “innocent dress”), falls to her knees and is a soft candle light yellow and she is wearing it after she and Peeta win the Hunger Games for their broadcasted appearance as victors. The purpose of this dress was to calm the spirits of the Capitol against her, as she was seen as a rebel for defying the rules of the Hunger Games.

His fourth dress is a fitted black jumpsuit, with a crown and it “comes to life as fire” turning different colors like a burning coal, which she is wearing at the 75th Hunger Games parade, meant to reinforce her ‘girl on fire’ image. Katniss’s fifth dress is a long white gown, completed with pearls. Cinna secretly altered the dress so that when she twirled and lifted her arms, she would become a mockingjay, the symbol of the rebellion against the Capitol.

Her being remembered by the crowds ensures sponsors flock the help her out during the games, hence keeping her alive,  and also rallies the rebels together. There must be no underestimation of how important the job of the stylist was to solidify the message which she sends across. And the fact that a stylist is an important character in a book that sold million of copies around the world and that the stylist is no longer the shadow of a celebrity but has even entered the realm of literature can only mean one thing: its the stylist’s turn to be ‘on fire’!