“We could have flown to Boston at this rate,” spat one late arrival to the premiere of Persol’s Magnificent Obsessions: 30 Stories of Craftsmanship in Film exhibition last night. For many of the film and art glitterati that attended the event at the Museum of Moving Image in Astoria, Queens, the trek, albeit worthwhile, seemed endless. The Italian eyewear brand, which has a storied history in cinema–it provided Cary Grant with sunglasses in North by Northwest and Marcello Mastroianni in La Dolce Vita–honored costume designer Arianne Phillips and director Todd Haynes at the event. Publicist-groomed celebs such as Zoë Saldana and Patricia Clarkson mingled alongside fashion legend Diane Pernet and creative cognoscenti.

On the second floor, John Turturro engaged guests in an intimate discussion on cinematography, while others soaked up the history and painstaking process of filmmaking through interactive installations on the third. Magnificent Obsessions is the second installment in a series of three, which boasts rare film props, equipment, costumes, sketches and footage to provide viewers with an insider perspective of some of cinema’s most acclaimed motion pictures.

The Observer caught up with Mr. Haynes to learn more about his unique approach to the art of filmmaking and to see if he actually likes Persol’s eyewear. Read More