Video: Interview with Gia Coppola

“I love cinema and movies, because it’s everything I love in one medium,” Gia Coppola proudly announces. From photography, fashion and costumes, music, production design and interior decorating, as well as love for working with actors and other specialists in their field, Gia’s passion and love for cinema is not unique. But her talent is.

While widely known for her exceptional films, she is also a fine art and fashion photographer, having worked with labels such as Opening Ceremony, Zac Posen and Gucci. It was her early fashion short films for her friend’s label that eventually led to her feature film directorial debut, Palo Alto (2013), a testament to her eye for great cinema and storytelling that was no doubt influenced by her early exposure to film production.

Gia has admitted to learning and drawing inspiration from the film sets she grew up on while watching her grandfather and aunt direct, however it's in her ability to truly collaborate with actors and those around her that have helped shape the director she is today. Palo Alto was a first in many ways for the young director; her relationship with the film’s writer and star James Franco paved the way for a more relaxed and collaborative approach to filmmaking, allowing Gia to tell the story through her own unique gaze and it was her first chance at proving herself.

Image: Film director Gia Coppola

As an ambassador for Fairmont Hotels & Resorts' Fairmont Loves Filmevent series, a celebration of Fairmont Hotel’s deep connection with cinema, Gia’s talent and directorial flare have established her as an authority on her art. Speaking on her love for film and in particular, the art of choosing locations, Gia notes the importance and transformative nature that a set or location can have for the audience.

For one, hotels are ever-present in filmmaking and play an important and very specific role. As Gia explains, the reason why films take place in hotels is because they set the scene for a “universal, transitional feeling that we all go through”. Hotels can instantly convey a feeling of transition, journey, change or escape in just one shot. Emotions shared by audiences across all languages and cultures: “You don’t need to be expositional about it, you can just have that setting and [the audience] will know what that feeling’s like”.

In promoting Palo Alto, Fairmont San Francisco was the chosen setting, the very location Alfred Hitchcock’s iconic Vertigo was shot. A fitting choice for Coppola, who says the location’s deep connection to cinematic history, “felt like a perfect fit”.

Image: Film Director Gia Coppola

Video: Fairmont Loves Film

Fairmont Hotels & Resorts recently launched their Fairmont Loves Film event series; a series that looks at the vast impact and presence the Fairmont brand has had across cinematic history most notably, how the brand has been the backdrop for films we grew up with and timeless classics. Classics like; The Great Gatsby, Breakfast At Tiffany’s, RED, River of No Return and more recent beloved films like Home Alone 2 have all been shot in one or more of Fairmont’s iconic global hotels. Fairmont has been woven into the fabric of Hollywood filmmaking from the very beginning and has remained a staple today.

The Fairmont portfolio even boasts of being a home away from home for international stars when they attend prestigious award shows and film festivals, such as the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Awards and the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards.

The Fairmont legacy is so deep rooted in silver screen annals that in many cases the location is more famous than the film itself. But what makes these locations so memorable? How have they shaped our love for a film or attachment to a piece of iconic cinema?

Every shot, scene or moment in a film is important and deliberate and it shapes how the story is told and viewed. Locations in particular not only hold literal significance and weight, but they too shape emotions for the audience, however nuanced or overt. They can also hold tremendous cultural significance.

Image: Actor Jamie Dornan on set for Fifty Shades of Grey  ©2015 Universal Pictures

Take Alfred Hitchcock’s North by Northwest as an example. Shot throughout New York, the film, often hailed as ‘the greatest of all time’, is forever synonymous with the beloved city and its iconic skyline. However, perhaps a lesser-known fact is that The Plaza, A Fairmont Managed Hotel, plays an incredibly important role in film history. It’s here that for the first time, a film crew assembled ‘on location’ as opposed to a sound stage or a studio set. This moment was pivotal in filmmaking and the birthplace of a Hitchcock legacy, turning The Plaza into a New York institution, revered by not only travelers and visitors alike, but true fans of iconic cinematic moments. In Home Alone 2, Kevin stays in room 411, one of The Plaza’s Central Park Suites, a suite not too far from the Presidential Suite where the Sex and The City crew morphed the luxurious accommodation into high-end residential apartments.

While the Plaza has long been a staple in many classics, Fairmont Royal York  boasts just as many impressive film accolades. Since its opening in 1929, the hotel’s grand presence in Toronto has been a Hollywood blockbuster favourite and second home for A-listers from Justin Bieber to James Brown and Former U.S. President (and Hollywood actor) Ronald Reagan. The action-thriller RED featuring Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman, Helen Mirren and John Malkovich features iconic shots of the stunning ballroom completely transformed for the film’s final scene.

Image:  Midnight cowboy film set     Courtesy of MGM Media Licensing MIDNIGHT COWBOY © 1969

Transformative film locations can inspire an audience to relive iconic film moments for themselves. For viewers of all ages, films can hold deep, personal relevance and the locations of these particular cinematic moments can forever be ingrained in our psyche.

Entire industries have been born out of the desire for audiences to explore the very fabric of what it means to be a fan by getting close to the tangible aspects of their favourite film or moment and The Plaza is just the tip of the iceberg.