Please join us for a 50th Anniversary celebration, a Director's Cut Screening of Versailles '73: American Runway Revolution + Q&A with Director, Deborah Draper and Special Guests, Versailles '73 Supermodels Alva Chinn and Charlene Dash!
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On the evening of November 28th, 1973, the global elite gathered in the majestic Théâtre Gabriel at the Palace of Versailles where the grand The Battle of Versailles (Grand Divertissement à Versailles) unfolded. Under the visionary leadership of American fashion publicist, Eleanor Lambert, and Versailles curator Gerald Van der Kemp, ten titans of fashion, five American ready-to-wear designers including Bill Blass, Stephen Burrows, Oscar de la Renta, Halston, and Anne Klein, and five French couturiers comprising of Marc Bohan for Christian Dior, Pierre Cardin, Hubert de Givenchy, Yves Saint Laurent, and Emanuel Ungaro, faced off in a clash of glamour and style. Aimed at raising funds for the restoration of the historic Palace of Versailles, this fashion spectacle marked the ascension of American fashion talent to a global stage and provided the world with an inside look into the nation's racial mosaic amidst political shifts. Spend an evening alongside award-winning filmmaker Deborah Riley Draper as we debut the Director's Cut of her film, Versailles '73: American Runway Revolution, and delve into this pivotal moment in fashion history. Let the magic of The Battle of Versailles unfold before your eyes, and let us embark on a journey through time and style.
Presented by MA Fashion Studies Program in the School of Art & Design History & Theory along with The School of Fashion at Parsons in partnership with Coffee Bluff Pictures.
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Deborah Riley Draper is an ad agency veteran, award-winning filmmaker, and
storyteller. Her documentary Onboard world premiered at the 2023 Tribeca Festival. Deborah is currently in post-production on her 4-episode A&E docu-series JAMES BROWN: SAY IT LOUD, produced by Academy Award winner Ahmir Thompson & Mick Jagger.
In 2021, Deborah wrote and directed two projects about seminal moments in American history. Her docu-series, The Legacy of Black Wall Street on OWN/Discovery+, told the story of the pioneering community of Greenwood, airing 100 years to the day of the
brutal massacre. This project earned Deborah an NAACP Image Award nomination for Outstanding Breakthrough Creative -Television, her 3rd nomination. Deborah's Twenty Pearls, the first original documentary to be acquired by Comcast's Black Experience Channel, features Vice-President Kamala Harris and chronicles the rarely recognized history of America's first black sorority.
Deborah began her directing career in 2012 with the now fashion film classic Versailles
'73: American Runway Revolution, which enjoyed a broadcast premiere on Logo TV.
Her sophomore follow-up film Olympic Pride, American Prejudice earned her critical acclaim and recognition from both President Obama and HRH Prince Albert of Monaco. Her 2019 short film dramedy Illegal Rose starring TV icon Jasmine Guy takes on Immigration and became a darling on the festival circuit.
Deborah's recent commercial directing includes the award-winning Ad Council Covid-19 Education campaign, Tuskegee Legacy Stories, which garnered both Addys and Anthem Awards. As an archival producer, Deborah created a unique visual identity for the 2022 documentary Look At Me: XXXTENTACION on Hulu . She is an FSU alum, a WGA West member, and a Film Fatales Advisory Board member.
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Deborah Riley Draper is an ad agency veteran, award-winning filmmaker, and
storyteller. Her documentary Onboard world premiered at the 2023 Tribeca Festival.
Deborah is currently in post-production on her 4-episode A&E docu-series JAMES
BROWN: SAY IT LOUD, produced by Academy Award winner Ahmir Thompson and Mick Jagger.
In 2021, Deborah wrote and directed two projects about seminal moments in American
history. Her docu-series, The Legacy of Black Wall Street on OWN/Discovery+, told the
story of the pioneering community of Greenwood, airing 100 years to the day of the
brutal massacre. This project earned Deborah an NAACP Image Award nomination for
Outstanding Breakthrough Creative -Television, her 3rd nomination. Deborah's Twenty
Pearls, the first original documentary to be acquired by Comcast's Black Experience
Channel, features Vice-President Kamala Harris and chronicles the rarely recognized
history of America's first black sorority.
Deborah began her directing career in 2012 with the now fashion film classic Versailles
'73: American Runway Revolution, which enjoyed a broadcast premiere on Logo TV.
Her sophomore follow-up film Olympic Pride, American Prejudice earned her critical
acclaim and recognition from both President Obama and HRH Prince Albert of Monaco.
Her 2019 short film dramedy Illegal Rose starring TV icon Jasmine Guy takes on
Immigration and became a darling on the festival circuit.
Deborah's recent commercial directing includes the award-winning Ad Council Covid-19
Education campaign, Tuskegee Legacy Stories, which garnered both Addys and Anthem
Awards. As an archival producer, Deborah created a unique visual identity for the 2022
documentary Look At Me: XXXTENTACION on Hulu . She is an FSU alum, a WGA
West member, and a Film Fatales Advisory Board member.
