Vic Carmen Sonne, the star of The Girl With the Needle, gives us the low-down on the stunning Louis Vuitton gown she wore to the film’s premiere at the Cannes Film Festival
Yesterday evening, Danish actor Vic Carmen Sonne ascended the famous Cannes steps. The occasion? The premiere of The Girl With the Needle, an in-competition film in which she is the star. Helmed by Swedish director Magnus von Horn, the film – and Carmen Sonne’s performance in it – is already garnering rave reviews (Variety called it “extraordinary and upsetting”). Such an awesome occasion calls for a fittingly awesome look, and Carmen Sonne did not disappoint. Opting for an embellished white off-the-shoulder gown by Louis Vuitton, Carmen Sonne looked every bit an elegant movie star.
Photo: Getty
Photo: Getty
“The look was absolutely perfect because it was Louis Vuitton, which is iconic, obviously” Carmon Sonne says. It was a bit of full-circle moment for the actor, whose first “materialistic thing” that she coveted growing up was a Louis Vuitton keychain (“I couldn’t afford it,” she adds). The desire was sparked by seeing the Black Eyed Peas music video for ‘Glamorous’ in which Fergie is perched atop a stack of LV luggage. To Carmen Sonne, working with creative director Nicolas Ghesquière – a lover of cinema himself – and his team on this look was a total fantasy.
As my best friend said yesterday, the inspiration was a wet dream. And it’s absolutely true. I love to swim.
Vic Carmen Sonne
Ahead of creating the look, Ghesquière and his team delved into Carmen Sonne’s films to get a better sense of the actor and what she’s about. They even encouraged her to send images and phrases she found inspiring. Ultimately, the words that the dress captured were “sexy, movie star glamour” – an ethereal gown of white lace and pearls. “As my best friend said yesterday, the inspiration was a wet dream,” Carmen Sonne says, laughing. “And it’s absolutely true. I love to swim.” To complete the moment, her hair, done by stylist Paul Jones, was done in a “wet wax mermaid look” and her glimmery makeup, done by Sabrina Bedrani, was kept soft and dewy. “It’s as if I just jumped up from the water and happened to jump up to the carpet as The Little Mermaid,” she says. It’s a very Danish reference if there ever was one.
Photo: Cannes
Completing the dress was the extraordinary jewellery, most notably a turquoise opal choker and a tourmaline ring – stones that mirror the transitional nature of Carmen Sonne’s character in the film. As she ascended the legendary staircase, the criss-cross details in the back of the gown came into full view of the gathered crowd.
This glamorous moment lies in stark contrast to the film itself. The Girl With the Needle follows a young woman named Karoline (Carmen Sonne) living in 1919 Copenhagen who finds herself unemployed, pregnant and running out of options. As Carmen Sonne describes it on Instagram, the story is about “a girl who doesn’t give up very easily” – a sentiment that could seamlessly be applied to the actor, who now finds herself in the dream-scenario of starring in a film at the world’s most prestigious festival.
Carmen Sonne can sometimes brush off the red carpet experience, feeling a bit insecure posing for the photographers or that she simply “doesn’t care”. But this time around was something different. “It is beyond my wildest dreams,” she says, noting how proud she was to present this film in particular. “I was like, ‘Grow up. What is this insecurity? You’re allowed to be here’.”