Audrey Nuna on KPop Demon Hunters

perspectives

A Little Birdie With Audrey Nuna

written + interview HANNAH ROSE PRENDERGAST

In hindsight, Courage the Cowardly Dog is such a funny cartoon for my dad to be watching. I think it’s just a fascination with humanness. There was a period when I felt disconnected from that, and it showed. My second album is an exploration of trying to remember who I am.

Audrey wears a coat by COMME DES GARÇONS and shoes by COMME DES GARÇONS x JOHN FLUEVOG

Growing up in suburban New Jersey, I felt ostracized for the way that I looked. Seeing everybody hop on Korean culture was redemptive for my inner child, like, ha. Kimbap is smelly, but it’s fire.

There are a lot of people who don’t believe in you, and being able to give them a wink feels good. I was proud of myself and everyone in KPop Demon Hunters who’s had to navigate an industry that didn’t really know where to place them. The film taught me how music can be a form of service. I want to be a better storyteller so that when someone hears my songs, it’s not about me, but it’s about them.

I always thought success was a huge crowd singing back your lyrics. But it should also be measured by how truthfully those words connect with people. I don’t want to have a massive career if I don’t mean it.

The most amazing things in life are the most ordinary things, like the joy of playing hwatu or Go-Stop. With the Thom Browne look for the Grammys, some of the fabric was muslin, which I saw so much of as a kid in my family’s garment factory. They also left the stitching exposed to speak to this idea of loving your craft even if it’s not perfect. In fashion, it’s the details I find compelling.

Even for the Met Gala, I wore a piece by Robert Wun about stains of the past and making something beautiful out of your pain. It’s such a democratizing and neutralizing human experience. What really makes a person is what they decide to do with that pain. You can juice it, you can prune it, you can bake it, you can flash fry it, you can do anything with it.

“superHuman” is about wanting to feel everything and being able to express it. A lot of my best work comes from feeling free to be curious and ask questions rather than answer correctly.

Serendipity actually comes from seasons of winter. It takes patience and belief that those moments belong to all of us. I also trust in the process and, to a certain extent, the vibes. I used to hate that word when I moved to LA.

I’m carrying every version of me on my head. I think there’s power in the way hair continues to grow. In the Joseon era, it was seen as a source of strength, so you didn’t cut it. For me, it’s about my ancestors. Our hair is probably very similar.I think you have to hold onto parts of yourself, not to let them weigh you down, but to remember where you came from. My mom is hoarding my baby teeth in a box somewhere, I’m pretty sure.

Audrey wears a dress by QUINE LI and shoes by MAISON MARGIELA

Audrey wears a dress by QUINE LI and shoes by MAISON MARGIELA

Audrey wears a top by KIDSUPER, a skirt by CURIEL and shoes by TAOTTAO

Audrey wears a shirt and skirt by CURIEL and shoes by MAISON MARGIELA

Audrey wears a dress by QUINE LI

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talent   AUDREY NUNA
photography   STEFEN POMPÉE
styling   PACO LAMPECINADO
creative direction   PACO LAMPECINADO + AUDREY NUNA
hair   AKIHISA YAMAGUCHI
make up artist   MITCH YOSHIDA
assistant   VICTORIA GODELIVA
production   PACO LAMPECINADO + MUSICISMUSE
production assistant   HAL GOETZINGER
studio courtesy of   ANGELA KWON

copyright LE MILE Magazine / Stefen Pompée

Inside Grebnellaw’s Red-and-White Universe

perspectives

Grebnellaw Is Moving Into Prime Real Estate

LE MILE

Grebnellaw has kept the work almost entirely red and white for years. The restriction began because too many choices were getting in the way, so a colour code became an obstacle that could force decisions and keep what Grebnellaw calls the “red thread” intact. It is starting to crack. Black, silver and gold were always part of the full system, and the two-colour period may now be nearing its end. The music has been equally difficult to pin down. Songs stayed off streaming because the instrumentals kept changing between performances, until SUPERSAVE THE WORLD broke the rule. Its first performance involved 25 people onstage; later it became a recording, and the version being played now has already changed again, slowed down enough for the lyrics to come further forward.

Grebnellaw
/ photographed by Daniil Kudriavtcev

Grebnellaw
/ photographed by Daniil Kudriavtcev

The early New Population began as digital portraits assembled from consumer debris and material found online, but their stillness eventually became frustrating. Grebnellaw wanted them to move and began building a population that other people could physically enter. Transsy can walk through Milan fascinated by gravity and the strange reliability of a coffee cup remaining where it was left, then feel completely misplaced on a drag-show stage. Pussy the Cat, meanwhile, has just returned from a large performance at Berns Salonger and is currently at home “recharging,” waiting for another reason to appear. In January, Grebnellaw plans to sleep inside Konstakademien, an old palace beside Rosenbad, surrounded by unfinished inflatable creatures and copies of classical sculpture. The home studio already contains deflated red vinyl skins, discarded textiles and electronic tracks sitting unfinished on hard drives. Grebnellaw does not always know whether a character is being made or discovered. Usually, the answer comes when it starts behaving like one.

Grebnellaw
/ photographed by Daniil Kudriavtcev

LE MILE
For years you deliberately kept most of the songs off streaming because they changed from performance to performance. Then you released SUPERSAVE THE WORLD. What made that particular song worth fixing into one version?

Grebnellaw
I think SUPERSAVE THE WORLD was a bit of an anomaly. There was an urgency to it. It felt like an anthem or protest song filtered through hyperpop, and it demanded to exist as a recording. Maybe it wanted to be something people could scream together in a mosh pit. The first time we played it was as part of a huge Grebnellaw performance with 25 people on stage. It was completely insane. At that point I was much more interested in letting the instrumentals mutate with every performance, but this song somehow overrode me. It basically overwrote my instructions.
And ironically, the instrumental version I’m performing now is completely different from the recording. It’s slower and more downtempo, which I love because it brings the lyrics forward: “Evil forces can’t catch us / we’re too savvy and smart for that.” It feels empowering.
Since then I’ve written a lot of new music. It takes me time to get the words right, but I’ve also started thinking about some kind of release. It doesn’t have to be the definitive version of something. It can just be another mutation.

Red and white began partly as a way of reducing too many choices, and you once described it as an experiment to see how long the system could last before it broke down. Has it ever come close to breaking?

The system has definitely cracked, but it hasn’t fallen apart. Nuances have started appearing, and I actually think they produce a better kind of chaos. Every time I explain the colour code, I discover another aspect of how it works. Of course, that’s the point.
I realised I needed an obstacle, so I turned the colour code into a limitation. A visual code to hold the chaos together.It has dictated almost every choice, forcing me to literally keep the red thread intact. Perhaps I need more obstacles. I think I do.
But the full colour code was always bigger: red, white, black, silver and gold. So far, red and white have been enough. The two-colour phase might be coming to an end. I have a feeling the rest of the spectrum is getting restless.

The early New Population was made from the debris of consumer culture, while the Grebnellaws were described as something more organic, almost like climate refugees. Do you still recognise that distinction when you look at the population now?

I have this strange population around me and I’m trying to figure out what it wants. It existed long before I had the language or tools to render it.
The early New Population were digital portraits made from the debris of human consumer culture and the internet. Literal trash transformed into identity. At first I thought my mission was simply to make portraits of them, but then their stillness started bothering me. I wanted them to move.
That desire was one of the things that opened the door to Grebnellaw. What had been images became bodies, costumes, music and performance. Other people could enter the population too, bringing their own bodies and interpretations into it. The work became something that could move between galleries, underground clubs, public spaces, fountains, shopping malls, empty streets, tunnels and botanical gardens.

Transsy went to Milan and became fascinated by gravity, stationary coffee cups, and the fact that ordinary clothes were not made for their body. When you write from inside a character like that, what do you notice about everyday life that you probably ignore as yourself?

Through Transsy’s eyes, everyday life becomes completely absurd. Guards and police tell me to leave, while on the next street someone wants to photograph me or assumes I’m a mascot or an eccentric ice-cream vendor. But Transsy is also fascinated by the physical world. The fact that a stationary coffee cup stays exactly where you leave it feels almost miraculous. Particles behave in ways that are completely alien to everyday experience, while a coffee cup just sits there, absolutely committed to one location.
There’s something of Prince Myshkin from Dostoevsky’s “The Idiot” in Transsy: a very bubbly saint dropped in the wrong dimension, perhaps. Performing from inside Transsy can actually be quite awkward because I experience them as very shy and innocent. They don’t have an extroverted energy. Walking the streets of Milan works beautifully, but putting Transsy on a stage can feel strangely unnatural. I once performed Transsy in a drag show and felt completely lost.

Grebnellaw
/ photographed by Daniil Kudriavtcev

Grebnellaw
/ photographed by Daniil Kudriavtcev

Pussy the Cat apparently became so beautiful that beauty itself was supposed to cause panic attacks and social-media storms. Where is Pussy now?

Pussy is thriving, obviously. She’s probably somewhere with very good lighting, taking another selfie with the Kitty Cunts. Mostly she’s recharging after last weekend’s monster-scale Grebnellaw performance at Berns Salonger in Stockholm. She had some serious competition in the diva department from the rising icon and real-life performer Beata Mona Lisa (BEA) who performed “La Vie en Rouge”, not “La Vie en Rose”. It gave us all goosebumps.
For a moment it looked like high drama was about to erupt: a brutal catfight between Pussy and Bea. Somehow it completely flipped into the sweetest friendship. So Pussy is currently in peaceful deactivation in my home studio, surrounded by the secret red-and-white holy grail, recharging her batteries and waiting for the perfect moment to completely deep-fry the timeline again.

You performed at Konstakademien’s official celebration in 2025. Now you’re returning with Butcherqueen and Leffe Crumlove to enter its collection as what the project calls an “infection.” What changed between those two invitations?

The first invitation was to perform at their annual celebration. This time we weren’t invited by the institution itself, but by 6film / Cinemaqueer. We took over the auditorium for a small performance with Butcherqueen and Leffe Crumlove, but I wrote a proper script for it. The building is so pristine and historically loaded that it almost tells you how you’re supposed to behave. I wanted to work against that. I wanted to trace the ghosts in those rooms: to read the collection, the marble, and the things deliberately left out.

Your January exhibition says you will “camp out” among unfinished inflatable creatures inside Konstakademien. Are you literally planning to live in the gallery?

Yes. I am literally planning to live in the gallery. We’re talking about prime real estate. Konstakademien is an old palace next to Rosenbad, where the Swedish Prime Minister works. So I thought: why not move in?
I love the idea of living there and having visitors hang out with me in my boudoir, where the boundary between studio, dream state and exhibition disappears. And, of course, being surrounded by copies of famous sculptures. But I don’t really think of myself as the person who created this whole population and then put it into the gallery. I feel more like one of its members who happens to have access to the space. By sleeping, breathing, and working inside the installation, the exhibition can remain alive. It stays an active event rather than something completed and frozen.

What is lying around your studio right now that has not become a character yet?

Right now my home is basically a crime scene of future characters. There are deflated skins of red vinyl, scraps of second-hand textiles, foam fragments, prototypes of inflatable bodies, and electronic tracks trapped inside hard drives. A tiny piece of shiny silver. Most of it isn’t a character or an object yet. It’s just raw matter waiting for something to happen.
Sometimes I don’t know whether I’m making a Grebnellaw or discovering one. I usually know something has become a Grebnellaw when it starts behaving like one.

Grebnellaw
/ photographed by Daniil Kudriavtcev

The Personal Edit of Joseph Bass *Paris Fashion Week

#ThePersonalEdit

Joseph Bass Opens His Camera Roll From Paris Fashion Week

written LE MILE

For this edition of The Personal Edit, Joseph Bass opens his camera roll from Paris Fashion Week, sharing the week as he experienced it between shows, collections and the city itself. His pictures take us from Concept Korea and Kenzo to Sandro and a private visit with Dior, before Paris takes over with vintage stores, late-night rides and after-parties.

The Barcelona- and Paris-based model and content creator moves naturally through the fashion world, with his camera roll showing a more personal side of Paris Fashion Week. Between appointments, there is still time for vintage stores, tourist moments and simply enjoying the city. From Casablanca after dark to a French breakfast the morning after, Bass shares the Paris that happened around the official schedule.

A tourist selfie with a view at the Sandro after-party

Waiting for the Bonbom show for Concept Korea to begin

Paris <3

Uber rides hits different in Paris

Red lights at CASABLANCA after party

Wearing new KENZO collection

weekly outfits

quick check to the SANDRO new collection

A tour of the city’s best vintage stores

A little bit of aesthetics was a must

French breakfast

Discovering the story behind the name, a private tour with Dior

Casablanca after party

The best tour around the city with Uber

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all images
(c) Joseph Bass

Just AMA

Ama Writes Her Way Back

interview + written ALBAN E. SMAJLI

When AMA is asked how her London upbringing enters her songwriting, she points to “packed bags at sainsburys” and “blacked out bally and a new north face”. These are details a listener can picture immediately, drawn from the city in which she grew up with Guyanese and English roots. “There is so much of myself in my work that my London upbringing can’t help being a part of it,” she says. A question about identity gets an answer grounded in an errand and the clothes people wear.

AMA wears a dress by FERRARI, earrings by ALEXIS BITTAR and cuffs by DSQUARED2

For her new album, AMA, being understood became a priority. “I wanted the music to be simpler and easy to digest,” she says. AMA describes having hidden behind cryptic writing, leaving listeners to decipher what she meant. Now she wants them to hear how she actually thinks. “My real voice, I think. In all senses.”

The decision followed a writing block unlike anything she had experienced before. After her last album, the songs stopped coming. “I was only able to return to it when I wrote the truth,” she says. “The song would only solidify when I was singing about my real perspective.” As the new record took shape, Ama Lou became AMA. She chose the name she uses in everyday life to reflect how she wanted to appear in the work. “I really just wanted to show up as myself.”
She began writing songs at eleven, and her attachment to melody has survived each change since. “The melodies of a song and how it flows are the most important part to me,” she says. She describes an innate understanding of satisfying structures and melodic hooks, adding that she has “not always acted on them”. For a meaningful collaboration, her requirement is “that they care”.

AMA wears a dress by BLUMARINE

Writing from her own perspective still allows her to invent somebody else. On “So...”, she adopts a male point of view, enjoying the opportunity to play a character as she does in her videos. “It’s honestly just really fun,” she says, and she wants to do more of it. She sees a place for both songs that tell the truth and songs that tell a story, each capable of connecting with people differently. For “Need It Bad”, the subject that interested her was “the desire itself”. She describes the space around her vocal in terms of what a listener might bring to a song. “I think it allows space for the listener to relate to it,” she says. “I love that everyone relates to my music and lyrics in different ways so personal to them.” She wants people to understand her perspective; their experience of the song need not match the experience that produced it.

AMA wears a dress by FERRARI, earrings by ALEXIS BITTAR and cuffs by DSQUARED2

AMA wears a dress by EMILIO PUCCI, earrings by SUSANA VEGA and a necklace by ALEXIS BITTAR

AMA wears a dress by COLLINA STRADA

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talent   AMA
photo   STEFEN POMPÉE
fashion + hair   MARTY HARPER
make up   SHANNON RODRIGUEZ
creative direction    PACO LAMPECINADO
assistants   MARCELLA ANTIKO + IAN ALVAREZ WARD
production   PACO LAMPECINADO + MUSICISMUSE
copyright LE MILE Magazine / Stefen Pompée

The Atanga Twins Come as a Set

Carlsen and Curtis Atanga, Double Vision

One of Us Is a Meal, Together We’re the Banquet

LE MILE

Carlsen and Curtis Atanga exist in stereo, two voices layered over each other, finishing sentences, finishing outfits, finishing the thought before it has even landed. Estate sales and anime, Gucci trenches and rooftop escapes, hopeless romance and twin telepathy, the catalogue of their world reads like a mood board spilled across the floor of a studio that never sleeps. They speak about fashion as if it were oxygen, something you exhale without noticing, something that signals identity before a word is spoken, and they step into every room aware that their presence carries charge, two Black twins moving through high fashion with looks that spark questions, disrupt stereotypes, amplify visibility.

Carlsen and Curtis Atanga wear coats by TAREET and boots by DSQUARED2

Carlsen and Curtis Atanga wear coats by TAREET and boots by DSQUARED2

Carlsen builds rooms around vintage finds, entire atmospheres imagined from a single object, while Curtis folds lyrics into melodies he insists sound great even without an audience, claiming food or song as his fallback languages when the phone screen goes dark. Dreams drift into their daily reality with little ceremony, stories rehearsed in sleep and retold as memory, proof that their ideas are always half a step from manifestation. Atanga as a set, never as a single, a vibe that comes in doubles, meals that only make sense served as banquet, patience for nothing less.

They trade closets, steal archives, guard secrets, confess to coding in silence, the analog residue of their cybersecurity degrees lingering under the gloss of editorials. They joke about switching places on bookings, they joke about candy jars, they joke about walking out after five seconds, but the undercurrent is serious, a refusal to dilute the package. The Atanga Twins arrive together, leave together, live together in the mirrored rhythm of reflection and echo, a double vision that insists on being seen in full.

Carlsen Atanga wears a wool coat by CHEN SIFAN, shorts by MOUTY and shoes by CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN. Curtis Atanga wears a coat by MOUTY and shoes by CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN.

LE MILE
Phones buried under socks and lost dreams, you breathe real air and maybe remember boredom. What do your hands do, suddenly jobless?

Carlsen
I’ve got a big passion for vintage interior décor. I’d probably be driving to an estate sale, because that’s where the real treasures hide. I spot a vintage piece and instantly start imagining a whole space built around it.

Curtis
Music has always been my second language. If I can’t scroll on my phone, I’d probably start creating and reinventing my own lyrics to a famous song. And not to brag, but I sound really good. If I’m not singing, I’m probably eating.

Somewhere in the real world, a stranger makes eye contact. Does your soul freeze, or do you wave back like nothing ever happened?

Wave back, for sure. We have this motto of putting out positive vibes everywhere we go. You never know how much that small moment can mean to someone.

Everyone’s busy career-ing, collecting jobs like stickers, but let’s talk about the one gig you’d take even if it meant showing up as just a single Atanga.

There’s no “single” Atanga gig. We’re a package deal. If one’s there, the other’s there. ALWAYS.

Dreams filed under D for “Double Vision.” Ever get them mixed up with reality, or is reality just what you make while nobody’s looking?

Curtis
I mix them up all the time. I’ll dream about something so vividly, like walking in a show or meeting someone, and a week later I’ll start telling the story like it actually happened. Carlsen’s always like, “Curtis… that was a dream.” But honestly, I think that’s why my reality feels so alive. I treat the wild ideas in my head like they’re just waiting their turn to happen.

Carlsen
Yes, always. You’ve got to dream first before you can make it real. That’s literally how most of our ideas start.

Is fashion your first language, or is it just the easiest one to shout in across a crowded room where everybody’s already pretending they can’t hear?

Our first language is definitely our twin telepathy, haha. Fashion is our most fluent one. We’ve been finishing each other’s sentences since we were kids, but now we finish each other’s outfits too. It’s the language that lets us represent exactly who we are before we even open our mouths. Being two Black twins in high fashion, we know that every look we put together can challenge a stereotype, spark curiosity, or make someone feel seen. Fashion is our way of saying, “We exist, and we exist loudly.”

Every day, new room, new mirror, same faces. Do you wink at your own reflection, or do you wait for your brother to go first?

Carlsen
Curtis always strikes first. I usually just follow his lead.

Curtis
That would probably be me because I know Carlsen will wait for me to go first, lol.

Carlsen Atanga wears a bomber jacket by Y-3, a shirt by NADAV PERLMAN, shorts by MOUTY and shoes by CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN. Curtis Atanga wears a bomber jacket and shirt by ZELIG DAVOULT, pants by EUGENIA ALONSO and moccasins by JACQUEMUS

Carlsen Atanga wears a jacket and skirt by Y-3 and Tabi boots by MAISON MARGIELA. Curtis Atanga wears a shirt and skirt by Y-3 and Tabi boots by MAISON MARGIELA

Some say you can only wear one look at a time, some say twins double the fun. You say what, exactly, when someone asks for “the Atanga vibe” and only brings enough snacks for one?

The Atanga vibe only exists when we’re both in the room. If there’s only enough snacks for one, we’ll politely remind them they didn’t place the full order. The Atanga vibe comes as a set. One of us alone is a meal, but together we’re the full banquet. Why settle for a bite when you can have the whole feast?

What’s the movie you watch when you’re both pretending to sleep, lights off, volume down, the plot unravels like a really good outfit that almost gets away?

Carlsen
Call Me by Your Name. What can I say, I’m a hopeless romantic. The music, the scenery, the way it’s shot… it’s that perfect mix of slow, romantic, and unforgettable, like a summer you never want to end.

Curtis
To be honest, I would probably be watching anime instead of a movie. Either Black Clover or Hunter x Hunter. I love anime because it’s about worlds where you can reinvent the norms of a typical movie plot. Where are my anime lovers at?

Brand loyalty or brand mischief — who’s got the better archive in your closet, and are you ever going to let them in on the secret?

Carlsen
Me, no questions asked. Curtis can’t even argue, he’s always in my closet. He’s probably still jealous of my vintage Kendra Scott x Gucci trench, lol. The secret? Definitely estate sales. Everyone sleeps on those.

Curtis

Carlsen, for sure. I’m so jealous of some of his pieces. I don’t know how he always finds the best stuff.

A hobby that can’t be posted, a pleasure that leaves no digital trace — is there anything left for the analog gods, or have they all gone home?

Coding. I know, crazy! But we did graduate with a degree in cybersecurity. We’re secretly a bit of nerds.

Twins in the industry. Do you ever swap lives for a booking just to see if anyone’s awake?

Not yet. But one day we will, and no one will know until they see the behind-the-scenes years later.

Someone says, “We’ll take just one twin today, the other can wait outside.” How long do you let them think that’s an option before you both walk out?

Carlsen
Five seconds, max.

Curtis

If there’s a candy jar, I would grab some first, but five seconds MAX.

Carlsen and Curtis Atanga wear pants by TAREET and mules by ACNE STUDIOS

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creative direction + photography   OLESYA PARFENYUK
styling   TENWI ARCHIVE
talent   CARLSEN ATANGA + CURTIS ATANGA
agency   FORD MODELS
movement director   EXO BORGIAL
make up artist   SOPHIA GUNEV
hair   SUNDIA WEN
styling assistant   LUCAS LAURENT-CARUGE
copyright LE MILE Magazine / Olesya Parfenyuk

Lara Pulver - On MobLand and The Riders

Lara Pulver on Why Bella Feels Different in MobLand Season 2

interview + written MONICA DE LUNA

On MobLand, the first step back into Bella is usually a fitting with costume designer Rebecca Hale, literally getting back into the character’s shoes before her dry wit and directness follow. Season two gives Lara Pulver more time inside the larger ensemble, bringing her together more often with Helen Mirren, Pierce Brosnan, Tom Hardy and Paddy Considine. Those days, she says, are among the most enjoyable on set, while Guy Ritchie’s method keeps the work unusually precise. Scenes are rehearsed properly, he knows when he has what he needs, and very few takes are wasted.

Lara Pulver
/ seen by David Reiss

Eight performances a week as Golde in Fiddler on the Roof gave Pulver the stamina and concentration that later proved useful on long shooting days, although she sees a fundamental difference in how much control an actor keeps in each medium. A film, in her view, effectively exists three times, first on the page, then in what the actors and director make during filming, and finally in the edit, where the result can change considerably again. On stage, she remains responsible for the performance for the full length of the evening. That experience also feeds into new characters in less obvious ways. Sometimes an earlier role returns through physical memory, with a gesture or quality surfacing during preparation. Pulver describes all of those characters as still being somewhere inside her, available to draw from until the homework is finished and instinct takes over.

That process became particularly interesting with Jennifer in Edward Berger’s The Riders, a character Pulver describes as an enigma. Her task was to work out what could make Brad Pitt’s character spend an entire film trying to find her, without removing the uncertainty that makes Jennifer compelling in the first place. Pulver is equally unsentimental about what happens once the work is finished. The projects that become what she calls “golden nuggets,” creatively satisfying work that also connects far beyond expectations, are rare. And when asked what she would still like to be trusted with, she does not name another screen character. She wants to be back on stage, singing.

Lara Pulver
/ seen by David Reiss

Lara Pulver
/ seen by David Reiss

Monica de Luna
When you return to a character after time away, what comes back first?

Lara Pulver
First day back on MobLand, is usually for fittings with our costume designer Rebecca Hale which is hugely helpful to literally get back into Bella’s shoes. We have a lot of fun creating the character’s wardrobe for the show. Bella’s dry witted directness follows closer after! 

What have you learned about Guy Ritchie’s way of directing on MobLand by watching how he handles an ensemble this large?

Guy knows exactly what he wants/needs from a scene and he knows when he's got it. This often means it's well rehearsed, and then we do very few takes.

Working alongside Helen Mirren, Pierce Brosnan, Tom Hardy and Paddy Considine, what do you find yourself paying closest attention to between takes?

We laugh a lot as a group. It’s actually quite rare that we’re all in a scene together - more so in season two. We relish those big ensemble scenes. They’re enormously fun days.

Do characters from earlier in your career ever return to you unexpectedly when you’re preparing something new?

Sometimes a physical memory is triggered - like muscle memory.  I guess they’re all in me somewhere because they’re all essentially from me, just jumbled up inside. It can be useful to refer back to the quality or essence of a previous character. It’s like a receipe piecing a character together, and then once the homework is done, you let instinct take over.

Lara Pulver
/ seen by David Reiss

What did playing Golde in Fiddler on the Roof sharpen in you that you carried back to the camera?

It’s exhausting and exhilarating doing eight shows a week onstage in front of a live audience. The focus and discipline it requires and the stamina it takes - it sets you up well for long days on film sets. 

After moving so often between stage and screen, what part of acting still feels least controllable to you?

What ends up appearing on screen, is completely out of an actor's hands. There's essentially three movies made. The script is the first version - the writer’s vision. There’s the actor and director's combined interpretation, but that’s also dictated by what the camera actually captures and how, and then the final edited version which can change hugely from the previous two. On stage, for two and a half hours - or however long the play is - you are in complete control of how you tell that story every night. 

What interested you about the character you play in The Riders when you first encountered her on the page?

Jennifer is an enigma. It was up to me to decide what it was about her that would make Brad Pitt’s character go on a movie long odyssey to find her. 

What did you discover about Edward Berger’s way of directing once you were actually working together?

Edward is an artist. Enormously collaborative and an extraordinary film maker. He was all over every detail of The Riders movie. He is the ultimate caretaker of a story. 

Is there something you understand about acting now that you could only have learned by staying with it for this long?

Golden nuggets are rare. A golden nugget being, the combination of incredibly creatively fulfilling work that really lands with an audience… that just hits a moment, and is propelled into the zeitgeist. Exceeding any expectations. 

Which kind of role are you still waiting to be trusted with?

I can’t wait to get back on stage singing again.

Lara Pulver
/ seen by David Reiss

Lara Pulver
/ seen by David Reiss

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talent   LARA PULVER
photo   DAVID REISS
styling   ROSIE ARKELL PALMER
hair   LEWIS STANFORD
make up artist   NEIL YOUNG
copyright LE MILE Magazine / David Reiss

Harriet Herbig-Matten *Beyond Maxton Hall

Harriet Herbig-Matten Beyond Maxton Hall

interview + written KLAAS HAMMER

Who am I when no one is watching? Am I myself when I’m grocery shopping or working? Do I adapt, perform, put on a role? There are countless theories of identity, from Leibniz to Locke to Kant. Kant, for example, describes identity as a distinction between the transcendental self, the one that gives structure, and the empirical self, shaped by experience. From the influences we are born with to those we encounter throughout life, everything contributes to shaping who we are.

Harriet wears a dress by MORPHSTUDIO, shoes by SCAROSSO, rings by ALAN HAMILKO and earrings ARCHIVE

I sat down with actress Harriet Herbig-Matten to talk about identity.
I first met Harriet briefly five years ago at a Fashion Week event in Berlin. What stayed with me was a single thought: what a positive presence. In the years since, the young actress has worked her way up to become one of the most successful German actors of her generation, gaining international recognition through her leading role in the Amazon series Maxton Hall.

Has success, or the industry, changed her? No. When we meet again for this interview, her infectious smile is instantly there. Harriet knows what she wants and, more importantly, who she is. You sense her gratitude: for her success, but also for her family, who have supported her unconditionally from the very beginning.

The years ahead hold much to look forward to: new roles, new facets, while remaining unmistakably Harriet. She lives firmly in the present, yet one day, someday, she will turn her back on the big city. A farm, perhaps a few chickens, and still, without a doubt, a deep love for the profession she calls her own.

Harriet wears a coat by YASPIS, tights by FALKE and jewelry by ALAN HAMILKO

Klaas Hammer
What does identity mean to you?

Harriet Herbig-Matten
Identity is a very big word for me. It’s about how you express yourself in different ways – through fashion, art, or the way you choose to live your life. Of course, what you receive from your family also plays a huge role. For me, identity is closely connected to experimenting and personal growth. It’s not something set, but something that constantly evolves.

You became well known at a very young age. Did being judged by others so early on influence how you see yourself?

Definitely, although I think much of it happened subconsciously. I started acting when I was twelve, and at that time it actually gave me a lot of confidence, because I already knew very early on what I wanted to do. So I don’t think it made me insecure in the beginning. Only now, with the increasing attention (especially through Maxton Hall) and with social media, I notice how easy it is to feel like you have to live up to a certain “image” people have of you. That’s why I believe social media can be dangerous for young people. When I was younger, I didn’t really notice it at all.
With every negative comment, you start doubting yourself and questioning things. That’s why having a strong support system is so important. I’m very lucky to have friends and family who support me and are there for me.

How much of Harriet is visible in the roles you play? Is that something you think about when reading a script?

I think you inevitably give every role a part of yourself. At the same time, you also take something away from each role. That’s what I love about my job – you get to live a character and give them your own interpretation.
On the other hand, I often feel like I learn something from every role. Right now, it’s actually a goal of mine to play characters that, at first glance, are completely different from who I am – to create more separation between myself and the role. That’s not a negative thing at all; I think it can be very enriching.

Fans often don’t see Harriet, but the characters you play. Does fully immersing yourself in a role make it harder to let go afterward?

Yes, absolutely. When we started shooting Maxton Hall, I was 18. If you’re filming for months and fully immerse yourself in that world, it becomes everything for that period of time. But that’s also something really beautiful – you get to escape into an almost unreal world for a while.

Harriet wears a headpiece by THEATERKUNST

Have there been roles where you felt you discovered a side of yourself you didn’t know before?

Honestly, with almost every project. You’re constantly pushed to different limits and learn how resilient you really are. You also meet new people every time. A film set is huge – from fellow actors to set design, hair and make-up, catering, production, and so on. All these different characters and energies come together. That makes it exciting, but also challenging. Actors are just human beings, and if someone is having a bad day, you can’t simply cancel everything.

With Schwarzes Gold, I felt a lot of respect for the role because it’s set in a completely different historical context – a time we can hardly comprehend in our privileged society, where people were fighting for survival every single day. The character was filled with a lot of rage, and understanding that rage – where it comes from and why it exists – taught me a lot.

Does it comfort you to already be so successful at the beginning of your career, or does it create pressure to live up to that success?

Somewhere in between. The paradox of being human is that you always want more and are rarely fully satisfied. But what is the actual goal, and where are you right now? I believe the journey itself should bring a sense of fulfillment, not just the destination.

I’ve moved away from the idea that everything I do has to be as successful as Maxton Hall. I want to takes on roles that genuinely interest and challenge me, regardless of the size of the project. I think that’s a healthy approach, and it can be very healing to focus on what a project gives you personally. Of course, I’m incredibly grateful that Maxton Hall reached so many people. But to truly realize what that means – that hasn’t fully sunk in yet.

When you look at yourself ten years from now, do you think identity will feel even more “settled,” or will it always remain a process?

I’ve always been pretty clear about what I want and who I am. I had that sense of stability quite early on, partly because my family always gave me a lot of support and encouraged me in everything I wanted to do. I grew up very protected, and I think that gives a child a lot – confidence and a strong sense of self.
For a long time, I didn’t take opinions outside my family too seriously – it was more of a “whatever happens, happens” attitude. That has changed now, and I find myself doubting more. But I think it’s healthy to accept life as it is. That can bring a lot of inner calm. I’m not a child anymore; I feel more settled in myself and in my life. Some things simply can’t be controlled. With success comes a growing respect for the next steps — for the roles you choose and the paths you take. Looking ten years ahead, I hope to have found my way back to more inner peace and a stronger trust in life.
Right now, everything feels very intense and fast, which is probably typical for your twenties – you’re caught in a whirlwind, trying to avoid certain things while also trying to control everything at the same time. And yet, there’s also this quiet longing inside me for a calmer life.

Maybe a farm one day, with chickens?

Exactly. Still doing the job I love, of course – but alongside that, I’d really like a simple life as well.

Harriet wears a dress and shoes by VALENTINO and a ring by ALAN HAMILKO

Harriet wears a dress by Sylvio Giardina

Harriet wears a dress by Ferragamo

Harriet wears a dress by ETRO and jewelry by TOM WOOD

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talent   HARRIET HERBIG-MATTEN
photo + creative direction   FRAUKE JOANA
styling + interview   KLAAS HAMMER
production   MAXINE SCHALL
set design lead   EUGENIO PERAZZO
make up artist   PHILIPP VERHEYEN using TWEEZERMAN
hair   ATTILA KENYERES
light tech   EDGAR SCHERWINSKI
photo assistant   JOHANNA SUSTMANN
set assistants   NATHAN LEWI-LEVÉEL and NATALIA DNES
make up assistant   EVA HERBOHN
hair assistant   LOUISA BOCA
styling assistant   LOTTA MICHELS
talent management   MALVE FIEDLER
copyright LE MILE Magazine / Frauke Joana

Noomi Rapace *Acting, Folklore and the Dark Side

Noomi Rapace Has A Thing For The Underworld

interview + written ALBAN E. SMAJLI

We meet on Zoom. Noomi Rapace logs in from her London home — a former blacksmith in West London where horses were once shod. She has just come from training, preparing for her next role, and joins the call in a worn hoodie reading “TOPPER Baseball.” There is a physical alertness about her, even through the screen — as if she is already halfway inside another character.

Noomi wears a dress by COMME DES GARÇONS and shoes by COMME DES GARÇONS X MEXICANA

She moves to a quieter room and settles at a desk. The house, she tells me, carries history. Growing up on a farm with horses in Sweden, she immediately felt connected to the space. “You always feel what’s been happening in a place before you came there,” she says. It’s a sentence that could describe her entire career — sensing what lingers beneath the surface.

Rapace has built her body of work on intensity. Women under pressure. Characters on the edge of survival, identity, transformation. There is something unguarded in the way she speaks — direct, curious, emotionally present. She meets discomfort directly. When I introduce myself as the founding Editor-in-Chief of LE MILE, she smiles and says she has followed the magazine for some time. “It feels consistent,” she notes. “It doesn’t feel like it’s selling out. In this era where everything feels controlled by big machineries and politics, that’s rare.”

With that, we begin.

Noomi wears a total look by AMI PARIS

Alban E. Smajli
Let’s start with a fun fact. In Germany, you’re voiced by Sandra Schwittau, also the German voice of Bart Simpson. Did you know that?

Noomi Rapace (laughs)
That’s amazing. Really?

Yes. It’s a sharp, slightly husky voice with cool intensity — very close to yours.

Bart Simpson and me. That’s amazing.

Have you ever watched yourself dubbed in another language and felt a voice was very close to you?

I once heard myself speaking Italian during interviews years ago. It was very girly and very different from my voice.

In Sweden we don’t dub — everything is original language with subtitles — so it’s not part of our culture. 

The first time I heard myself dubbed was with The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. It was quite a shock. Now I’m used to it. And soon, with AI, there won’t even be a different voice. They’ll just use mine. That’s a bit frightening. I have a voice in Germany, one in France, one in Spain. It’s remarkable that an actress in each country interprets the whole performance.

If you could swap lives with one of your characters for a day, who would it be?

I loved playing the evil elf in Bright. She’s completely dark, a sociopath with magical powers. Embracing the dark side was fun. But on a deeper note, the character in Constellation. I would love to be an astronaut for a day — to be up in space and look down at my life.

Is there a place in Lisbon where you go to reconnect with yourself?

I go to the ocean. The beach is about 25 minutes from my house, and I go even if it’s windy or raining. For me, the ocean is really cleansing. I actually speak to it. I’m like, “Hello, I’m here again.”
There’s something about standing there, feeling the wind, the salt — it resets me. And I have a favorite beach club where I eat lunch and dinner, where I celebrate my birthday. It’s nothing spectacular, very low-key, but I love the owner. It’s right on the beach. That’s really my spot.

What part of your identity has most influenced your choice of roles?

Curiosity. I’m very curious about people. I love asking questions and going deep into people’s lives.

I also have this sense of not belonging to one place or language. I adapt easily. I can become whatever my surroundings are. A bit like a chameleon. That allows me to lend myself to many different characters. I can identify with many people because I have them in me.

Noomi wears a top and trousers by MAISON MARGIELA and a necklace and bracelet by MESSIKA. Sculpture by Jean-Guillaume Mathiaut.

You’ve worked across large productions and smaller films. What excites you most right now?

Directors excite me the most. It doesn’t really matter whether it’s a big studio production, a streaming production — which is the new studio — or a small German indie film. That part isn’t what drives me. It’s always about the people involved. And especially the director. I’m very director-driven. For me, it’s about who I’m collaborating with — who is leading the vision.

If you could direct your own film, no budget limits, what story would you tell?

I’m very intrigued by gods and half-gods, by the underworld — folklore, vampires, elves, trolls. I love that mythology. I’m fascinated by what happens when you mix folklore with the present day. Like Nordic gods living in London today. Or something ancient colliding with something very modern.
I’m drawn to contradictions. When things clash, when they’re not harmonious or perfectly synchronized — that tension is exciting to explore. That’s where something interesting can happen.

Have you ever taken a prop from a set?

When I did Prometheus in Iceland, I had all these armor pieces on me — loads of bits and details attached to the suit. One day we were shooting on a lava field. I was running up this hill, full speed, with a spaceship chasing me. And I lost one piece of the armor. We searched everywhere but couldn’t find it. It was just gone. Years later, when I came back to Iceland to shoot Lamb, the director, Valdimar Jóhannsson, came to me with a small package. He said, “This belongs to you.”

He had been part of the Icelandic visual effects team on Prometheus. He had found the missing piece and kept it all those years — and brought it back to me. It felt almost surreal. Like something completing a circle.

In Mother, what was the most emotionally challenging moment?

There were many difficult days. But there was one night in Kolkata — we were filming the train scene with hundreds of extras. It was around three in the morning. I was completely exhausted emotionally. We had been shooting for months, and I could feel how the environment, the poverty of the city — which hasn’t changed much — was affecting me deeply. I had never seen that level of poverty before. Seeing all the children, all the families… I felt very fragile.

We were waiting for the train for hours. When it finally came, we did a couple of takes. Then the director came to me and asked if I had one more take in me. And I just started crying. I said, “No. I don’t have anything left.” There were moments during that shoot where I felt like Mother Teresa had moved into me. There was no distance between me and her. No cushion. It felt like I was hitting hard surfaces with my emotions.

Some actors talk about “shedding” a role after filming. Have you struggled to leave characters behind?

After Prometheus, I remember sitting alone in a hotel in Iceland and not really knowing who I was. I felt quite lost. It was like I had been in space — and I hadn’t fully come back yet. It took about a week before I felt grounded again. After Lisbeth Salander, it was even harder. When we finished filming, the producers came with a big bottle of champagne to celebrate. And I just ran to the bathroom and started vomiting. It felt like my body was expelling the character. Almost like an exorcism. For weeks I was just walking around the city, feeling like I was in limbo — caught between something. Sometimes the landing is softer. Sometimes it’s brutal. I haven’t found one technique that works every time. Every character lives differently in me.

How do you reset?

I work out a lot. I have my routines. I meditate. I brush my body every day. It’s about reconnecting physically.

I try to stay close to people I feel safe with — my sister, my son, my family, my friends. I don’t travel. I don’t put myself into unknown situations the first couple of weeks after filming. I stay in my cocoon, with people who know me and allow me to be all these strange versions of myself. I’m normally quite emotional, so all the vulnerable reactions are embraced by them. I simplify my life after filming. The physical aspect is very important. Movement. Cold plunges. Shocking the system. Anything that brings me back into my body. That normally helps me reconnect.

Lastly, if you stepped into another profession for a month?

I’d probably run a ranch with loads of horses. Very Yellowstone style. I’d be out riding in big open fields, collecting the animals, living that farm life. I love horses. I grew up with them. There’s something about that life — being outdoors, being close to animals — that feels very grounding to me. So maybe I’d be a horse trainer.

Noomi wears a dress by COMME DES GARÇONS and shoes by COMME DES GARÇONS X MEXICANA

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talent   NOOMI RAPACE
image consultant   NICOLAS AKSIL
photography   ISMAËL NEBCHI
photography assistant   JACOPO MARCONI
stylist   AURORE DONGUY
styling assistant   SILOÉ
hair   HENRY OLIVIER with DYSON & ELEVEN AUSTRALIA
make up artist   JEANNE SCHNEIDER
edit   ABDEL KEBDANI
location   STUDIO A23
production   MEDIA UP PRODUCTION
production manager   YOUMNA BECHOUEL
sculptures   JEAN-GUILLAUME MATHIAUT
copyright LE MILE Magazine / Ismaël Nebchi

Jakob Wirtz *Deadstock Fashion and 87 Metres of Possibility with (1/1)SAMPLE

87 Metres of Possibility with (1/1)SAMPLE

interview KLAAS HAMMER

What would fashion be without its countless young creatives who constantly turn new ideas, sustainable concepts, and extraordinary designs into reality, often with limited resources (money!). LE MILE spoke to one such young creative. Jakob Wirtz, a fashion student at „Hochschule Pforzheim“ currently in his fifth semester, has already completed an internship at Adidas in Herzogenaurach.He tells us what inspires him, where the name of his own label, (1/1)Sample, comes from and all about his latest collection.

(c) (1/1)SAMPLE

Klaas Hammer
What originally motivated you to study design, and what motivates you in your work today?

Jakob Wirtz
creating. I often set myself goals that scare me. I want to constantly evolve and push myself further. But in the end, it should always come back to a place where I feel comfortable and enjoy the process. Believing that the responsibility of introducing new fashion into today’s world should be approached with sensitivity, I think deeply beforehand about whether my work can live up to that responsibility, and then I give it everything I have.

What is the meaning behind the name of your brand?

A sample is an experiment, not something intended for sale. It is the first step an idea takes towards becoming reality. This is where you have to be brave, and where there is room to try things out. I like the perspective of also understanding the final garments of the brand as samples. Everything is a foundation for further development and something new that comes after it.

How would you describe your design (language) to someone discovering your work for the first time?

Simplicity and clarity are my top priorities. I strongly believe that the more general something is, the more personal it can become. I try to be creative within a very precisely defined framework set by the initial concept for a collection. My dream is to create something that a lot of different people can connect with. It doesn’t have to be the same connection. Creating inclusive access to fashion is a great challenge.

(c) (1/1)SAMPLE

(c) (1/1)SAMPLE

What was the starting point for your latest collection, and what idea or story do you want to convey through it?

A reality made entirely from a single fabric. The only individuality comes from the subject itself. Maximum minimalism. Minimalist maximalism. An attempt to find something exciting in between. The material we used is the entire remaining 87 meters of one of the worst-selling deadstock fabrics from a large deadstock company I have worked with. Together with them, I searched for a suitable fabric that many people would initially have considered ugly and undesirable. This fabric is used for the collection, the interior, and the set for the presentation. The set is designed based on the width of the fabric, meaning the fabric did not have to be cut and can be used in its entirety to produce the collection. Each piece has a label indicating the amount of fabric used to make it. I wanted to prove to myself that context alone can be enough to turn surplus into something limited.

Who are your fashion role models and your biggest sources of inspiration?

The list of fashion designers I admire is long, and there’s no one I would single out above the others. Fashion is so multifaceted that there isn’t anyone who excels in every discipline at the same time. It’s the diversity that truly brings beauty. I’m constantly discovering new fashion role models from whom I can learn something.

Inspiration literally comes from everywhere. Often, the greatest sources of inspiration are the impressions I get from real life. It can be anything. That’s why I try to always stay attentive and notice every little detail in the moment. I also share ideas with my friends, most of whom are creatives as well, and we work on them together.

(c) (1/1)SAMPLE

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creative direction + design JAKOB WIRTZ
set design FELIX STÖHR, JAKOB WIRTZ
commercial TIM KREISEL, SIMON BAKENECKER, JAKOB WIRTZ
lookbook TIM KREISEL, JAKOB WIRTZ
talent MARLON BOSSE TITUS PREIS
label SALMA SARAH BENAMAR, JAKOB WIRTZ
fabric FABRICHOUSE
special thanks to JOHN KURZ, FINN SCHÖN, HOCHSCHULE PFORZHEIM
fashion (1/1)SAMPLE

Xander Zhou on Fashion, Identity and Possibility

No Such Zone with Xander Zhou

interview with Xander Zhou
by Hannah Rose Prendergast

Ancient comes from the past or is packaged as the future.
Xander Zhou works here.
Not to resolve anything, but to establish a point of reference.

2026 SSAW XANDER ZHOU PRO SS26, All XANDER ZHOU PRO collection
/ (c) Xander Zhou

Pressure from reality, time, and my own doubt.

If a system stops responding to these pressures, it has already failed.

The body is an ongoing state of operation, not a destination.

It doesn’t belong to a fixed place or identity; it belongs to relationships as they unfold.
Thought forms through the body, and the body is continuously reshaped by thought.

Failure is not confrontation; it is knowing when to stop.

Ending what no longer holds is the most basic form of respect for both the system
and its development.

Some parts will always remain unlit.

Those unlit areas form the shadow.
They are not mistakes, nor something that needs to be eliminated; they are an inevitable
result of a system operating in reality.
I prefer to observe how the shadow shifts, and through that, reassess whether the structure
itself still holds.

2026 SSAW XANDER ZHOU PRO SS26, All XANDER ZHOU PRO collection
/ (c) Xander Zhou

2026 SSAW XANDER ZHOU PRO SS26, All XANDER ZHOU PRO collection
/ (c) Xander Zhou

Those who are willing to enter gradually take on its shape.

They are not being represented, but participating.
The work is not shaped by me alone; it forms through wearing, use, lived experience, and
new interpretations sparked by the images or concepts we put into the world.

Repetition often works like a cycle.

Sometimes it signals that a question has not yet completed its path; at other times it acts
as logic, emphasis, memory, or connection.
When conditions align again, certain structures naturally return into view.
These moments allow memories and images to be retested within new realities.

The materials that make me think differently create resistance.

It forces me to question whether I have become too comfortable with familiar design habits.
In this tension, a sense of freshness toward the unknown often leads to unexpected outcomes.

2026 SSAW XANDER ZHOU PRO SS26, All XANDER ZHOU PRO collection
/ (c) Xander Zhou

Without limitation, would gesture still carry meaning?

Gesture emerges through control, not as oppression but as a form of structural organization.
When the body is placed within limited space, when paths of movement are constrained,
gesture becomes necessary.
In a state of complete freedom, the body no longer needs to produce clear gestures.
Sometimes I ask myself: if one day consciousness could be uploaded, would we truly achieve
freedom?

The body is an ongoing state of operation, not a destination.

It doesn’t belong to a fixed place or a specific identity; it belongs to relationships as they are unfolding.
Thought forms through the body, and the body is continuously reshaped by thought.
Failure is not confrontation; it is knowing when to stop.
I let things fail when maintaining them goes against how they operate.
Ending what no longer holds is the most basic form of respect for both the system and its development.

It exists between order and reality.

In SSAW26, I focus on how formality, regulation, and identity are gradually losing their effectiveness.
We continue to act through these forms, but reality has already shifted.
The rift emerges in this misalignment: when structures keep functioning, yet can no longer truly
respond to the body, rhythm, or environment of the present.

2026 SSAW XANDER ZHOU PRO SS26, All XANDER ZHOU PRO collection
/ (c) Xander Zhou

2026 SSAW XANDER ZHOU PRO SS26, All XANDER ZHOU PRO collection
/ (c) Xander Zhou

Clarity does not come from the beginning.

It forms through continuous judgment, selection, reduction, and correction.
When unnecessary structures are removed, what truly works becomes visible.
Perhaps beneath every methodology, what ultimately matters is remaining honest with oneself
and the need to understand reality clearly.

“Possible” is a form of hope.

Real possibility does not come from unlimited choice, but from conditions that are still workable,
uncertain, yet full of the unknown.
As reality continues to shift, we need to preserve a belief in possibility.
It is not grand; it happens locally, within limits, perhaps moving closer to infinity
and maximum potential precisely because it is constrained.

2026 SSAW XANDER ZHOU PRO SS26, All XANDER ZHOU PRO collection
/ (c) Xander Zhou

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credits
header image: 2026 SSAW XANDER ZHOU PRO SS26, All XANDER ZHOU PRO collection / (c) Xander Zhou

The Personal Edit of Paula Viana *Copenhagen Fashion Week

#ThePersonalEdit

Paula Viana Opens HER Camera Roll From Copenhagen Fashion Week

written LE MILE

For this edition of The Personal Edit, Paula Viana, aka @thebackstagetalks, opens her camera roll from Copenhagen Fashion Week, where days of shows, showroom visits and changing looks were mixed with friends, unexpected pauses and a little time away from the schedule.

As the voice behind The Backstage Talks, Viana has built her career around fashion communication, bringing an informed but accessible perspective to an industry she knows from the inside. More recently, she founded Spain Gallery, extending that work into a platform dedicated to connecting and promoting Spanish fashion and its creative community internationally. In Copenhagen, however, the commentary stays on her phone. From Collina Strada and showroom appointments to the outfits she wore, the people she spent the week with and the rainbow that sent her home, Viana shares the version of Fashion Week that existed around the shows.

Collina Strada Show

FW mood

Looks, looks and more looks.

Cool Kids in CPHFW

Levi´s House

Showroom visits every day

The FW where I´ve loved my looks the most (until next time).
Show Henri Viskov

Sharing is more

Heliot Emil party

That´s how Copenhagen said goodbye to us.

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all images
(c) Paula Viana

The Personal Edit of Bass *Copenhagen Fashion Week

#ThePersonalEdit

Bass Opens His Camera Roll From Copenhagen Fashion Week

written LE MILE

For this edition of The Personal Edit, Bass shares his camera roll from Copenhagen Fashion Week, taking us from the wait outside René’s show and showroom appointments to Henrik Vibskov and Paolina Russo — with a little time to sit down somewhere in between.

The Senegalese-born, Spain-based model and creative has built a world around fashion that extends well beyond getting dressed. Through his own platforms and projects, including TroubleMag and Barcelona creative collective Winner Circle, Bass has made style part of a wider conversation around culture, identity and creative independence. His Copenhagen pictures keep things much simpler. What he wore, where he went, the shows he wanted to see and the moments when Fashion Week briefly stopped being about fashion at all. This is CPHFW as it happened on his phone.

Waiting for René’s show.

Photos outside René’s show.

Showroom time

A little rest (needed)

At the Henrik Vibskov show.

At the Paolina Russo show.

A little rest pt 2.

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all images
(c) Bass

Dora Abodi *ABODI Transylvania and The Chronicles

As It Stands
The Chronicles of Dora Abodi

interview with DORA ABODI
story by HANNAH ROSE PRENDERGAST

ABODI Transylvania Wearable Art Collection: Chronicles 1

At the core of ABODI Transylvania is a world of stories.
Forms evolve, but the narratives endure.

My work has a literary dimension.
I create characters that inhabit each silhouette.

The Chronicles mirror the present.
Dracula embodies fear of the outsider and the cost of eternal youth.
Ancient gods represent natural forces we have lost touch with.

Antique hemp, handwoven fabrics, and vintage lace carry the passage of time.

ABODI Transylvania Wearable Art Collection: Chronicles 1

ABODI Transylvania Wearable Art Collection: Chronicles 1

The collection took a year and a half.
Two principal seamstresses and one pattern maker.
I sculpt the ceramic elements.

Wearable art is an autonomous object.
On the body, it transforms.

Elisabeth Báthory fascinates me.
She managed her own estates and was labelled a bloodthirsty monster.

When an idea feels right, I follow it, even if opinions differ.
I release only what I consider excellent, refusing to compromise on integrity.

Even the simplest garment, like a T-shirt, should be passed down through generations.

ABODI Transylvania Wearable Art Collection: Chronicles 1

ABODI Transylvania Wearable Art Collection: Chronicles 1

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ABODI Transylvania Wearble art collection Chronicles 1
creative director at ABODI Transylvania Dora Abodi
photograper Szilveszter Makó
talent Ursula Wångander

set design + illustrations Obsidian Lune
executive producer Siyan Chen
grooming Chiara Giangrossi
strategic consultant Peter Szurszabo

Régina Demina Shares Her Camera Roll: During the Making of SCRT

#ThePersonalEdit

Régina Demina Opens Her Camera Roll During the Making of SCRT

written LE MILE

For this edition of The Personal Edit, Régina Demina shares a selection of personal images captured during the making of her EP SCRT. Recorded and developed between studio sessions, travels and moments away from the spotlight, the photographs offer a glimpse into the period that shaped her latest release.

Loup, my beloved friend and head of my label Hise, during the shooting of “Osaka Yama”. We edited and colour-graded it the night after. We did everything together during that period. I love her.

Based in Paris, Demina works across music, performance and visual art, building a sound that draws together pop, cloud rap, trap and witch house while reflecting influences from rave culture, suburban landscapes and her Eastern European roots. With SCRT, available to stream on Spotify, she approaches songwriting like a private diary, balancing intimacy with experimentation.

Shared directly from her camera roll and paired with her own captions, The Personal Edit follows the people, places and everyday moments surrounding the creation of SCRT, revealing the creative process through Demina's own perspective.

The original drawing I did in Japan last year, which I used for the cover of the SCRT EP. We reframed it and made it darker digitally with my friend Guillaume Hugon, Head of the creative agency Golgotha. We kept the original close-up for the alternative version of the EP, with slowed and sped-up versions.

The original version of another drawing of mine. I used the detail of the two faces kissing for the first single of the SCRT EP, “Oui ou Oui ou Non”, which I recorded with Vialice, whom I met at a rave in Paris. He lives in Chicago.

Vialice during his gig ans Paris

In a hotel room in Switzerland, during a film festival. I was acting in a film called Une chambre à elle by Lucie Martinez Garcia. During this trip, I rewrote the lyrics for “Cursed Words”, the last song on the EP. The song was not directly linked to the trip. The text was originally written three years ago, but I enjoy the space and bored time alone in hotels to write.

Me and Loup working on a song during a concert in a church Metz

On the way to the Hise studio in Montmagny, I had to bring my Focusrite in my handbag because the one at the studio had crashed. We had to finish the masters and some mixes that day.

Inside the Cathédrale de Metz. We shot the music video for “Osaka Yama” outside because I love churches, gothic things and Yung Lean.

A selfie to check my makeup before a showcase. I tried to recreate the makeup my friend Jennifer Lecorre often does for me. It’s cute, but her pencils are unmatched, and I missed her that day. The cute top is from my friend Harmony Coryn. I like being dolled up by my favourite people.

Loup and Jennifer in my building, searching for melodies for the unplugged versions of the EP. I’m happy Jenny was there that day because she gave me very cute glam, and we shot some reels for Instagram. She is like my sister now and was one of my first loves when I was a teenager. Today, she feels like family.

My nails freshly done and my favourite bag, thrifted in Japan, on the day of the EP release. I needed a small treat after all the hard work.

My favourite picture together with Loup. My booker Florence took it with a Polaroid.

all images
(c) Régina Demina

GIZEM EMRE *On Identity, Confidence, and Staying True to Yourself

Why Gizem Emre Is Done Measuring Herself Through Other People’s Eyes

interview + written THINLEY WINGEN

For years, Gizem Emre has been a familiar face on screens, red carpets, and across Germany’s cultural landscape. Yet despite growing up in the public eye, the actress describes herself as much quieter than many people might expect.

Gizem wears top, pants and jewelry by IOANNES, tights by FALKE and shoes by H&M Studio

"I think many people are surprised when they meet me in person because privately I'm much calmer and more reserved," she tells LE MILE. Born and raised in Berlin, Emre grew up between cultures and learned early on how to navigate different expectations while staying connected to herself. Over the years, she has developed a stronger sense of confidence, letting go of constant comparison and placing greater value on how she feels rather than how she is perceived. "I think the older you get, the more important it becomes how you feel about yourself instead of constantly thinking about how you appear to others." Below, the actress reflects on public perception, belonging, self-confidence, and finding moments of calm in an increasingly noisy world.

Gizem wears look by ELISABETTA FRANCHI and shoes by IOANNES

Gizem wears a dress by DIESEL

Thinley Wingen
Many people feel like they already know you before you've even said a word. How do you experience the difference between public perception and who you actually are?

Gizem Emre
Because I play many different roles and show different sides of myself through them, I’m not even sure if people have one specific image of me. I actually think many people are surprised when they meet me in person because, privately, I’m much calmer and more reserved than some might expect at first glance. As a viewer, you often only see fragments, a role, an appearance, or an interview, but not necessarily the person behind it.

You have been in the public eye for many years. What has changed about being a woman who is constantly seen and judged?

A lot has changed over the years. I’ve become much more confident, I know myself and my body better, and over time, I’ve learned not to compare myself to others all the time. You grow up with certain beauty ideals, and especially in the public eye, you are constantly being judged, consciously or unconsciously. It used to affect me more, but today I see things much more calmly. I think the older you get, the more important it becomes how you feel about yourself instead of constantly thinking about how you appear to others.

Gizem wears a dress by DIESEL

You often come across as very confident and present. Are there still moments when you feel misunderstood or reduced to a certain image?

Being able to speak freely also means allowing yourself to be seen without filters, and I think the fear of being misunderstood or not being taken seriously has been with me for a very long time. Especially when you enter the public eye at a young age, you quickly develop the feeling that you constantly have to prove yourself.

How has growing up in Berlin and as a Turkish-German woman shaped your understanding of belonging, strength, and identity?

I grew up between two cultures, and I see that as a gift. Of course, it can also come with a certain sense of being torn between different expectations or perspectives. But I was lucky enough to grow up in a very liberal family, which meant I never felt like I had to choose one side over the other.

What has helped you stay true to yourself over the years, despite public attention, social media, and outside expectations?

Above all, spending time with myself. I think it’s incredibly important to keep coming back to yourself and sorting through your own thoughts. Especially in a world where so much is constantly coming at you from the outside, you need that sense of calm to stay grounded.

Gizem wears top, pants and jewelry by IOANNES, tights by FALKE and shoes by H&M Studio

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talent GIZEM EMRE
photography NIC SCHOPPET
hair + make up FINA BOATENG
styling KLAAS HAMMER
interview THINLEY WINGEN
management BTA / CAROLINA DACHS

The Personal Edit of Callum Scott Howells: Behind the Scenes of Madfabulous

#ThePersonalEdit

Callum Scott Howells Opens His Camera Roll From the Making of Madfabulous

written LE MILE

For this edition of The Personal Edit, Callum Scott Howells shares a selection of personal images taken during the making of Madfabulous, in which he takes on the lead role of Henry Paget, the eccentric fifth Marquess of Anglesey whose extravagant life became the subject of one of Britain’s most remarkable true stories.

Known to many for his BAFTA-winning performance in It's a Sin, Howells spent months inhabiting a character whose life moved between aristocratic privilege, excess and self-invention. The images collected here sit alongside that process, capturing moments on set, between takes and during the production of a film that brings Paget’s singular world back into view. Shared directly from his camera roll and accompanied by his own captions, The Personal Edit offers a personal record of the journey behind Madfabulous, arriving as the film reaches cinemas June 5.

Meet the 5th Marquess of Anglesey and his big old ship folks

Extra curricular cast + crew trip to Zip World

Just your average, every day Victorian mother and son

“I placed this warm coat on the chair here next to me to save it for you Mr Everett”

“I’ll sit here thanks”

Nothing to see here apart from my slippers

On a serious note, Nadia Stacey is a genius and the GOAT fr

Tom holding Nadia’s Oscar (just to officially back up my above statement)

As Founder of the Ruby Stokes Fan Club, I’m delighted to inform you she’s the real deal

“First position please Mr Scott Howells”

Believe it or not, this was actually a job

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all images
(c) Callum Scott Howells

DRAGON PONY *South Korea’s Rising K-Pop Band

DRAGON PONY
When Four Players Collapse Into One Sound

interview + written AMANDA MORTENSON

Dragon Pony belong to a generation of South Korean bands quietly reopening the space for guitars, drums and collective noise inside a musical ecosystem famous for precision pop engineering. Formed by Ahn Tae-gyu, Kwon Se-hyuk, Pyun Sung-hyun and Ko Gang-hun, the four-piece operates within a musical landscape long dominated by tightly produced pop systems. Their work moves in a different direction, built around live instrumentation, collective songwriting and the physical intensity of performance, Dragon Pony position the band itself as the central creative unit.

total look OKIIO LOUNGE

shirt FOURONESIXZERO tie + jacket ARCHIVE

Each member brings a distinct role into that structure. Tae-gyu’s voice anchors the group’s melodic direction, Se-hyuk’s guitar frames its tonal identity, Sung-hyun’s bass provides the gravitational core, while Gang-hun’s drumming defines the band’s rhythmic architecture. Together, these elements produce a sound shaped as much by chemistry as by composition.

The band’s thinking about music often extends beyond technical language and performance becomes a shared environment where stage and audience collapse into a single moment of exchange. In this conversation with LE MILE, Dragon Pony reflect on sound, time, collaboration and the subtle mechanics that allow four musicians to merge into one evolving presence.

total looks MONTSENU

Amanda Mortenson
When the four of you walk into a room together, what kind of silence follows you — quiet curiosity, anticipation, or something else entirely?

Ahn Tae-gyu
Before a show, I think it’s a “silence of preparation and excitement,” where anticipation and nervousness coexist - hoping that everything we’ve prepared will be delivered well to everyone who came to see us. And after the show, it feels like a “silence of reflection,” as we slowly let the heat and energy from the stage settle and look back on whether Dragon Pony’s message and energy truly came through.

Tae-gyu, if your voice could melt and take a new shape, what would it become when it cools again?

Ahn Tae-gyu
If I borrow the idea of melting and taking on a new form, I think when it solidifies again it would become something like an even harder metal. The stories and emotions that melt and flow through me would eventually become stronger, more solid.

Ko Gang-hun, drummers often speak through impact. What’s the most delicate sound you’ve ever tried to create — and did anyone notice?

Ko Gang-hun
I don’t think the sounds I make are very close to “delicacy,” so I haven’t had many experiences like that! But one thing comes to mind. When I fall for a drummer, I tend to try to imitate everything about him very meticulously - their motions, gestures, even the tone of their kit.
There was a time when I was completely captivated by Thomas Hedlund, the session drummer for the band Phoenix, and I was trying to copy everything about his playing. During that period, a fan once told me that my snare tone reminded them of Thomas’s snare, and I still remember that.

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total look ERREUNO

What’s the most unexpected sound you’ve ever decided to keep in a song?

Pyun Sung-hyun
Before recording bass, I once accidentally captured some noise. I liked the feel of it, so I sampled it and used it as an FX sound.

Sung-hyun, you once said the bass feels like gravity. What happens when you want to escape it?

Pyun Sung-hyun
Whenever I want to escape that gravity, I do my own personal work - taking photos or videos, or trying to make new music. I step away from what’s familiar for a moment and do the things I personally want to do.

Imagine Dragon Pony performing for someone who’s never experienced music before. How would you describe what’s about to happen — without using words like song, beat, or emotion?

Kwon Se-hyuk
(Dragon Pony = 4 / The people joining the show = X)
(4 + X) = 1
Thump thump thump, boom boom boom, waaaah ÷ (4 + X) = ♡

(Interpretation: When Dragon Pony and the audience come together, they become one - and when that show ends, what remains is love.)

total look FOURONESIXZERO

Se-hyuk, if your guitar suddenly refused to play anything “beautiful,” where would you take it to make peace?

Kwon Se-hyuk
I’d take the guitar to the cinema, into nature, to see people - and to meet the people who’ve been waiting for our music - and then come back.

Who in the band has the best relationship with time and who’s always challenging it?

Ko Gang-hun The person who gets along best with time - and the one who has to - is probably me, the drummer. Because drums are tempo itself.
And the person who goes against time - and has to do it well - is Tae-gyu, our vocalist. Sometimes it’s amazing when sounds are played precisely and meticulously inside the tempo, but there are also times when what feels best is playing freely and comfortably without being obsessed with tempo - and I think that’s something unique to the human voice.

There’s always one instant on stage when you stop being four people and turn into one sound. What triggers that moment for you?

Kwon Se-hyuk
I think the time we’ve spent playing together and living together is what allows us to come together as one. That collective synergy is the band’s identity, and depending on what kinds of times we continue to share, we’ll keep growing and changing.

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When your fans sing louder than you, does it feel like letting go or expanding together?

Ahn Tae-gyu
It’s a feeling that’s hard to put into words. In that moment, it’s not just our performance anymore - it expands to include the audience, and it becomes a moment where everyone is playing together. It’s one of the moments that makes me truly happy.

Looking ahead — five, ten, maybe twenty years — what kind of story do you hope people will tell about Dragon Pony: a quiet legend, or a vivid one?

Ahn Tae-gyu
In the end, I want to be remembered as a vivid story. But at the same time, I hope that everything we leave behind through the stage and our music stays with people - and that when time has passed, it might also become a kind of legend someone can quietly take out and revisit.

Pyun Sung-hyun
I want Dragon Pony to be remembered with the image of “a band that burned hot.”

Kwon Se-hyuk
I hope we can simply be Dragon Pony as we are - and that, in our own way, that can shine fiercely.

Ko Gang-hun
It still feels far away for me to imagine, since we haven’t been a band for long. But if I think about it, the bands I respect - like Foo Fighters and Oasis - have all expressed their stories vividly to the world, and they still are. So I think it would be amazing if we could become like that too.

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photography KANG MINJE
photo assistants LEE AHREUM + LEE JAEHO + YOO JIHOON
videography CHOI SEUNGWON
1st ac PARK HWANPIL
b cam KIM DONGHEE
fashion KIM HYUNJEONG
fashion assistant PARK CHEOLBEEN
fashion pr KIM HEEWON
hair LEE SEUNGJOON
make up LEE JEONGWON
band DRAGON PONY
talents AN TAEGYU + PYUN SUNGHYUN + KWON SEHYUK + KO GANGHUN

Aurelien Muller Shares His Camera Roll: Inside Aurelien Muller’s First Cannes Film Festival

#ThePersonalEdit

Aurelien Muller Opens His Camera Roll From Cannes 2026

written LE MILE

For this edition of The Personal Edit, Aurelien Muller shares a glimpse into his personal camera roll from his first visit to the Cannes Film Festival. Moving between hotel moments on the Côte d’Azur, fittings, red carpets and late-night celebrations, the images document the rhythm and atmosphere surrounding one of cinema’s most visible annual gatherings.

Arriving in the sunny Riviera for my first ever Cannes Film Festival.

Known for his recent appearance in Emily in Paris, Muller approached Cannes through a mix of film, fashion and personal observation. Across the festival, he attended events hosted by brands including Chopard, Ray-Ban and HFC Parfums, while stepping onto the Cannes red carpet for the very first time. Shot on his phone and paired with his own captions, The Personal Edit follows the days from arrival to closing night through Muller’s perspective.

A moment of peace at Chatea de Theoule before the excitement begins!

Looking out for any finishing touches before I walk the Cannes red carpet for the first time.

Then come those special Côte d'Azur nights. This evening celebrating HFC parfums was unforgettable.

Talking all things HFC Parfums with this incredible team.

Another day of fittings, grooming, and a special night with Chopard ahead.

My view before heading into Chopard’s The Miracle Gala.

A memorable evening with great company.

What a pleasant surprise!

Back in the chair for a refresh ahead of a busy day at Cannes.

Celebrating Ray-Ban in an all-white ensemble.

The glasses.

A moment for the many outfits of Cannes!

One of the final outfits of the trip, for a very special closing night!

A special moment on the carpet with Daria Strokous for EE72’s celebration of Film and Fashion.

all images
(c) Aurelien Muller

Jacob Greenway Shares His Camera Roll: Prepared to Play Jude Bellingham in Dear England

#ThePersonalEdit

Jacob Greenway Opens His Camera Roll From Dear England

written LE MILE

For this edition of The Personal Edit, Jacob Greenway shares a glimpse into his personal camera roll during the making of Dear England, the BBC adaptation of James Graham’s acclaimed stage production about Gareth Southgate and the England national football team. In the series, Greenway steps into the role of Jude Bellingham, one of the defining young players of England’s current generation.

Read throughs are special because it’s the first time you see the script come to life. I was consumed with excitement, gratitude, and trying to look calmer than I actually felt.

Moving between training grounds, set moments and the atmosphere surrounding a production shaped by football culture and national expectation, Jacob´s photos document a period balancing performance, preparation and the intensity surrounding one of the country’s most closely watched stories. Alongside Joseph Fiennes as Gareth Southgate, the series revisits the emotional pressure, ambition and scrutiny surrounding modern English football. Shot on his phone and paired with his own captions, The Personal Edit offers a direct look into the experience from Greenway’s perspective.

The only photo i’ve got from a base. The amount of hours we spent playing football at base was breathtaking. Some of my fondest memories are from kicking ball with the lads.

My first day filming. Energy was high. Vibes were immaculate.

Pre-training scene in my trailer. We spent a lot of time in these kits over the shoot, but this specific kit was always the standout for me.

Wondering round the pitch trying to get an aesthetic pic when I probably should’ve been paying attention.

A quick break with Roman Kemp and The BBC One Show during my stunt rehearsal. I was lucky to have Tyson with me throughout the process - if I broke my leg best believe he’d step in as my stunt double - had a wig on standby!

Rented out Tottenham Hotspur’s, as you do.

To many people’s surprise this was my first time inside a football stadium.

Sir Paul Whittington watching one of the overhead kick takes - The expression on his face was priceless. It felt good pulling that off.

Action shot from the Switzerland penalties scene. I spent the best part of two weeks making sure my run up was identical to Jude’s - only to get to set and find out they were only shooting my feet. still had to deliver the whole performance though.

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(c) Jacob Greenway

Mulaa Shares Her Camera Roll: On Love Letter, Touring and Finding Her Voice

#ThePersonalEdit

Mulaa Joans Opens Her Camera Roll from Her First International Shows

written KLAAS HAMMER

For this edition of the Personal Edit, Mulaa Joans gives us a glimpse into what life is really like for a young rising artist. Between soundchecks, fan meet-ups, radio interviews, and visits to all kinds of venues, things never get boring. The singer has already caused quite a buzz on social media. She has more than 400,000 followers on TikTok, and her song “Love Letter” alone has been streamed millions of times, with over 50,000 posts created using her sound. To get to know her a little better, she answered a few questions for us.

My first international radio interview in Amsterdammm
photo / QMusic

Klaas Hammer
How did you first get into music, and which artists inspired you the most in your early days?

Mulaa Joans
I got into music because I think I was born with it. I always felt so inspired by and close to the songs my dad and I listened to. He used to play artists like Prince and Pink Floyd. But I really started singing because my mom used to sing to me every night before I went to sleep. It was something she loved to do, and girls love being like their mums. I wanted to be like her and sing. We still sing together to this day. It’s so cute.

What does a typical songwriting session look like for you, and what tends to inspire your songs the most?

I often write songs or melody ideas and concepts in my bedroom, or while sitting by my window, to YouTube beats. It was something I always used to do when I was little because I can’t play any instruments, but I really like that I still implement that in my songwriting today. I then usually take those ideas into sessions with the people I work with, and we make the song better. I’m inspired by literally everything. I think as I’m growing up, I’m learning how to speak about things that may have happened to me in the past, things that maybe I wasn’t ready to speak about when I was younger. But I’m also very inspired by film. I often write songs based on films or TV storylines.

Your music has been all over our feeds, with videos and edits with millions of views using your song “Love Letter.” Why do you think the track connects so strongly, and what is it about it that resonates with so many people?

I honestly think it’s because the lyrics are so blunt and honest, and often people are scared to say exactly how they feel. I’ve always been a very confrontational and blunt person, so I think it comes across in my songwriting. People relate to it because it’s something they feel they want to say to someone in their life, but don’t feel like they can. The song gives them an outlet for that.

Looking back so far, what has been the most memorable moment of your career?

I think the most memorable moment of my career has been my show in Amsterdam. I can’t even express to you how crazy it is that people in another country are singing the lyrics to my songs that aren’t even out yet. That is just actually mad. The fans were so nice, and I really loved getting to stay and chat with them.

Signing my setlists for a newfound fan!!

Claws out for my headline in Amsterdam! It was unbelievable, I loved every second

Visiting a venue I can only dream of playing in Brussels one dayyyy

Fan meet-up in Amsterdam! This blew my mind, and I can’t wait to come back

A moment for the Paris fit… This skirt I will be buried in

One of my fav shots from tour, taken by a very talented fan, @shotbyninte
photo / Ninte Hogeslag

Backstage pouts, ’cause it’s my go-to face 🤫

This was my first time seeing my name in lightssss… WTF

Smiley soundcheck with Kent on the keysss

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(c) Mulaa Joans