CARTIER AND CINEMA: A CENTURY OF CREATIVE COLLABORATION
For over a century, the shared history of Cartier and cinema is one of creativity and a dedication to craftsmanship. Through their respective spheres of creation, they share a vision of the world that invites us to dream, and a desire to elevate the human adventure to the sublime.
Since the beginning of the 20th century, the Maison’s jewellery has found its own place in the realm of cinema. The artistry and allure of Cartier creations inspired filmmakers in their productions and led many iconic actors to wear Cartier’s jewels on and off screen.
Cartier Creations for Cinema
A special-order rosary necklace set with rubies, emeralds and diamonds was created for Wes Anderson’s 2025 film The Phoenician Scheme, inspired by a cross pendant made by Cartier in the 1880s. Both pieces are now part of the Cartier Collection. The film also featured two other Cartier creations: the signature Tank Louis Cartier watch and a High Jewellery diamond ring.
Archival jewellery from the Cartier Collection appeared in Maria, the Maria Callas biopic, directed by Pablo Larraín and starring Angelina Jolie. The film, which premiered at the 81st Venice International Film Festival, features Jolie wearing a rose clip brooch that belonged to Maria Callas, and a figurative panther brooch, similar to another from her personal collection, both loaned by the Maison for the filming.
Two unique necklaces were created for Timothée Chalamet and worn on the red carpet for the premieres of Dune and Wonka. Each creation uses a rotating gold structure as its canvas, which was then set with over 800 precious stones per piece, chosen to represent the colours and atmosphere of each film. Both necklaces are now part of the Cartier Collection.
In Jean Cocteau’s celebrated, dreamlike 1946 classic La Belle et La Bête, Belle’s tears transform into diamonds under the magical influence of the Beast. Cocteau insisted that his leading actress, Josette Day, weep genuine pear-shaped diamonds, loaned by Cartier. “A fake diamond doesn’t throw fire,” Cocteau remarked, “only a real diamond shimmers.”
Cartier Clients on Film
In 1926, the celebrated actor – and long-standing Cartier client – Rudolph Valentino took on his final starring role in George Fitzmaurice’s The Son of the Sheik. He was so enamoured with his beloved Cartier Tank wristwatch that he refused to take it off for filming.
USA. New York City. 1950. Joe FERRER kisses Gloria SWANSON during the Academy Awards as the ceremonies were being broadcast on radio from Hollywood. Swanson, who had starred in “Sunset Boulevard” lost the award. Ferrer won an Oscar for “Stalag 17.”
Image envoyé à Megan Dies (Transaction : 632920865944218750)
© Burt Glinn / Magnum Photos
The American film star Gloria Swanson acquired a pair of dazzling rock crystal, diamond and platinum bracelets, created by Cartier Paris in 1930, and wore them not just in public but also on film – most prominently in Cyril Gardner’s 1933 romantic comedy Perfect Understanding, in which she starred with Laurence Olivier, and again in Billy Wilder’s Sunset Boulevard (1950).
Audrey Hepburn was also a devotee, wearing Cartier creations on screen in her 1966 heist caper How to Steal a Million, but also cherishing personal pieces of her own.
Romy Schneider was devoted to her Baignoire watch and wore it in Jacques Deray’s 1969 psychological thriller La Piscine, playing alongside her former fiancé Alain Delon.
Meanwhile the Mexican star María Félix was a keen commissioner of bespoke jewels, some of the most unusual that Cartier has designed. Her passion for reptiles inspired her request in 1975 for a stunning, adaptable necklace, now part of the Cartier Collection, composed of two fully articulated gold crocodiles, studded with over 2,000 yellow diamonds and emeralds.
Cinema and Cartier Campaign Films
The Maison’s relationship with cinema is also illustrated in collaborations with talented filmmakers for its campaigns. A collaboration with filmmaker Alex Prager allowed actress Elle Fanning to evoke something of Grace Kelly’s allure in a short trailer for the relaunch of the Grain de Café collection.
Cartier Ambassador Sofia Coppola created a dynamic film for the iconic Panthère de Cartier watch, where a confident young woman lives a glorious day on her own terms.
Luca Guadagnino’s swooning series of mini romances showcases the beauty and character of Cartier’s engagement rings.
Guy Ritchie’s homage to the French New Wave, for the Tank Française watch, features actress Catherine Deneuve at key moments in her career, observed by an admiring Rami Malek.
Johan Renck pays exuberant tribute to Marilyn Monroe’s iconic number from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend”.
CARTIER AND THE VENICE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL: THE ART OF CRAFT AND CREATIVITY
As an official partner of the Venice Biennale International Film Festival for the sixth consecutive year, Cartier celebrates its dedication to contemporary creation in cinema. The Maison has a long and legendary relationship with this artform, from the red carpet to the silver screen.
This 82nd edition of the festival will take place from 27th August to 6th September, 2025: eleven days of cinematic celebration punctuated by numerous screenings and events featuring guests and ambassadors of the Maison.
For the first time this year, the Maison is the sponsor of all masterclasses on the official festival programme, as well as continuing the BIENNALE CINEMA 2025. CARTIER MASTERCLASSES THE ART AND CRAFT OF CINEMA, a highlight of the festival programming. Cartier is a house for dialogue, where individual talents of craft excellence collaborate. Similarly, The Art and Craft of Cinema masterclasses share the collaborative practices of world-leading film practitioners, whose dialogue helps to give life to the vision of a director. The series puts the spotlight on the diversity of talent in cinema: not only the people we see onscreen, but also those who work behind the camera.
As in previous years, the Maison will present a series of panels of world-leading talents across the various disciplines of filmmaking to explore the often-invisible aspects behind the collaborative and collective dimension of films. This year, four new masterclasses will be held at Match Point Arena on Venice Lido, featuring conversations between Sofia Coppola and Milena Canonero, Jane Campion and Tanya Seghatchian, Sergio Castellitto and Margaret Mazzantini, and Alfonso Cuaron in dialogue with a fellow creative partner to be announced shortly. For the first time, these privileged exchanges will be available to a wider audience through a collaboration with Arte that includes broadcast episodes in the EU and a worldwide streaming service.
As part of this collaboration, the Venice International Film Festival and Cartier pay tribute to exceptional filmmakers through the Cartier Glory to the Filmmaker Award, given to a figure who has made a significant contribution to the contemporary film industry. Previous winners include Claude Lelouch (2024), Wes Anderson (2023), Walter Hill (2020) and Ridley Scott (2021). The Panther head trophy, created in the Maison’s High Jewellery workshops in the heart of Paris, will be presented at a dedicated ceremony in the Palazzo del Cinema.
cartier VENICE FILM FESTIVAL