Bottega Veneta released a short film and photo series entitled “What are Dreams,” by Duane Michals, starring Jacob Elordi, who was appointed as a Brand Ambassador in May 2024.

The 12 images and film were shot in black and white inside of Michals’ New York home, and captured Elordi in a mysterious, enigmatic situation, distinguishing Bottega Veneta’s work since the 1960s.

The series stages Elordi with props and motifs common to Michals’ oeuvre, recalling several of Michals’ favorite Surrealist artists, such as Giorgio de Chirico and René Magritte.

During the film, Elordi reads Michals’ poem “What are Dreams,” which was originally published in a 2001 photo book “Questions without Answers,” and is what lends the project its title.

“I’m very much interested in the realm of the invisible,” Michals shares. “My problem is how do I make the invisible visible? Of course, movie-making is also a dream, and Frankenstein is a scary dream. Jacob understood exactly what I was trying to do with the project. He was right there for the magic and the mystery of it.”

This project brought together artists of different generations and disciplines while still reflecting Bottega Veneta’s commitment to creative exchange. This collaboration is a tribute to the past and present of the house, as Michals shot a Bottega Veneta campaign in 1985, and Elordi is a current ambassador.