“The Designer is Dead”: Little Spain’s new documentary reconstructing the story of Miguel Adrover

An island, a myth and a disappearance. Today, August 1, at 8.30 pm, Filmin presents at the Atlàntida Mallorca Film Fest its new Filmin Original: The Designer is Dead, a documentary that reconstructs the rise and fall of Miguel Adrover, the Mallorcan designer who challenged the rules of fashion from the epicenter of the system: New York.

Directed by Gonzalo Hergueta and produced by  Little Spain -the audiovisual factory founded by Antón Álvarez (C. Tangana), Santos Bacana and Cristina Trenas-, the project marks a double milestone: it is the first feature-length documentary produced by the company with external direction, and the first to deal in depth with the figure of Adrover, one of the most radical, visionary and silenced designers of recent decades.

The Designer is Dead is not an ordinary biopic. It is an investigation that starts from the archive and ends with an uncomfortable question: why did the industry forget one of the most advanced designers of his time? We are talking about the creator who recycled clothes before “upcycling” became an industry maxim, who spoke of multiculturalism and social criticism when people still looked the other way.

With testimonies such as those of Robin Givhan (Pulitzer for fashion criticism) or Jennefer Hoffman, and meticulous archival work, the documentary reconstructs Adrover’s meteoric rise -from his arrival on the Lower East Side to winning the CFDA Award and appearing in Vogue- and his subsequent disappearance after the Utopia show, which dynamited any attempt to tame him.

After winning the Goya with La guitarra flamenca by Yerai Cortés, Little Spain produces here its first feature film directed by an external director: Gonzalo Hergueta, a Spanish director based in New York, with experience in visual design, advertising and fashion. He has worked with brands such as Nike, Adidas, NASA, Prada, and artists such as Young Thug, ARCa or Judeline. His visual and narrative approach fits perfectly with Adrover’s universe: political, marginal, and very sharp in his vision.

Although he has been out of the circuit for years, Adrover has not stopped influencing. His name resurfaces in interviews and references from artists like A$AP Rocky, Marc Jacobs or Chloë Sevigny. And his discourse, based on the mixing of cultures and a structural critique of the fashion system, fits better than ever in the current conversation.

The Designer is Dead vindicates a pioneer in the industry, as a dissident and as a key figure to understand why fashion sometimes prefers to forget those who go off script.