Interview teaser

Serg Riva: The Urge to Serg Interview from Serg Riva on Vimeo.

All Fashion is Fiction; some people just tell more interesting stories. Learn more about aquatic couturier Serg Riva as he reveals insights into his creative process, intellectual struggles, and deep devotion to the art of bespoke swimwear.

If you've been following along, then you know that I am at work on a reality TV series called Serg Riva: The Urge to Serg. Tako and I sat down together and cut a new teaser reel for the show. Watch it here.

If you are new to the blog, then this video gives you a quick sense of what it's all about. If you can't play the video, or are at work and don't have headphones, then here's a short overview of the last four years on this blog:

My name is Serg, I create bespoke swimwear. My best friend is a DJ and producer named J.J. and the love of my life goes by the nickname Tako. We are shooting a reality TV series about my life as an aquatic couturier. Currently, my workshop is on land while my boat is getting repaired, but usually, we are all working from my floating atelier. We have lots of parties, yes, but design is serious business. It is a lot harder than it looks to consistently nail the trends year after year when your metier is four triangles of fabric held together by string.

Serg Riva: Stormy Weather

Here's another short video from the Reality TV series
Serg Riva: The Urge to Serg...

Serg Riva: Stormy Weather from Serg Riva on Vimeo.

Have you ever loved someone so much that you'd brave a storm just to watch the sunset? In this short video from the hit Reality Series, Serg Riva: The Urge to Serg... we find Serg and Tako having a heart to heart while out at sea. The audio cuts out, due to a tremendous storm rocking the yacht which serves as Serg's floating atelier, but Serg and Tako keep talking until the suns goes down. Subtitles fill in the blanks to keep you in the loop.

About the video
This was shot during the same storm where I lost my tooth. About an hour after this was wrapped, I went back up on deck to check that everything was holding together and ended up getting tossed against the guard rail. We're not sure if this clip will air or not, because the storm caused all kinds of technical problems and a one point the audio cuts out and is gone. There are subtitles so you can follow along with the conversation, but it is a little tedious to have to read every word. It makes the whole thing feel a little more like a foreign film, however, so maybe we'll keep it. I love that I finally got Tako on screen for more than a few seconds.

Glad the storm is over. Now to get back to business.

Dream vs Reality TV

A first look at the Serg Riva Reality TV show...

You may remember that a few weeks ago I agreed to doing a Reality TV show. Well, we are finally starting to see some of the footage.

(please be patient while the video loads below, and if you're at work, wear your headphones, there's both creepy music and a deadpan voiceover...)

Serg Riva: Dream vs Reality from Serg Riva on Vimeo.

Ever feel like you are caught between a dream and daily life? Serg Riva knows the feeling. Why does he keep dreaming of his own murder? Is it his life or his high fashion atelier that is at risk? Who is the masked woman? Who is the dancer? What is the meaning of the man in the chauffeured car? Judge for yourself.

About the Video...
Even though Tako is my most trusted companion, I still never know what will make it into an episode and what will get cut. She tells both my true story and a fictional version of it at the same time.

For instance, I told her about a dream I had where I was murdered. We had been watching night after night of Film Noir classics, like Double Indemnity and Criss-Cross and so I told her my own dark, noir dream. The cameras were rolling and so she got the whole story on tape, right down to the flat-fake-film-noir voice I used to tell the story.

But then when I saw the episode, instead of showing me sitting there telling everyone about it, she attempted to re-create the dream. She cut together pieces of my life that she'd already filmed and lined them up to match my story. Next, whenever I mentioned something that was in the dream, but didn't happen in real life, she sent her crew out and filmed it as a "re-creation" using the members of her crew and sometimes complete strangers as actors to fill in the gaps.

The result is something like a reconstructed dream. As the person who had the dream, the experience is unsettling. But I'm proud of Tako, I think she did a great job.

Posted here is the first peak at the Serg Riva Reality TV show. It is the Dream Sequence I just described. Tako and I still haven't decided what to call the show. I want to name it "Interstitial Orrery" whereas she is voting for "The Urge to Serg."

Serg Riva: The Urge to Serg

Too much? Not enough? If you can think of a better name for the show, please let me know.