The movement director: a cross between a psychologist, a film director and a choreographer
By exploring the dramaturgy of the body, Pat Boguslawski has transformed the ritual of fashion shows into stage movement and the models into performers. Today, he has stepped behind the camera.
New York, 16 May 2026: Times Square is closed to traffic. Giant advertising screens light up the world’s most famous crossroads, whilst a crowd of stars, photographers and onlookers wait for the show to begin. Then they arrive: ladies from the Upper East Side, businessmen with laptops under their arms, Gen Z youngsters, red-carpet divas. They cross the square with different strides, postures and demeanours, like characters straight out of a film. Tom Brady struts down the catwalk in a suit, Paris Hilton plays herself, and Cindy Crawford brings the show to a close in a whirlwind of black feathers. For Gucci’s Cruise 2027 collection, Demna didn’t just bring a collection to New York. He staged a human drama. But for a garment to become a character, exceptional casting and spectacular set design alone are not enough. It requires rhythm, gestures and a precise way of occupying space. Behind that choreography of bodies lies Pat Boguslawski, the creative mind who has transformed movement into one of the most sophisticated languages of contemporary fashion.
A Polish former dancer and model, Boguslawski worked for almost eight years with John Galliano at Maison Margiela, contributing to some of the most memorable fashion shows of recent years. He has collaborated with Haider Ackermann for Tom Ford, with Junya Watanabe, and directed Nicole Kidman and Rihanna in the cover shoots for W. His profession is still difficult to define precisely, as it straddles the boundaries between directing, psychology and choreography. ‘It’s always tricky to sum it up in a single sentence. People call me movement director, but I don’t actually think I really am one. If I had to choose just one word, I’d say I direct.’ He directs the music, the lighting, the set design, the emotions, the movement, the action. Rather than a choreographer, he sees himself as a director or a sort of acting coach. For him, the point isn’t to teach a sequence of steps, but to help the person wearing an outfit understand who they are becoming. When he sees a look for the first time, he starts with intuition and, even before that, with the character. ‘I need to understand who that person is, what story they carry with them and what they need to convey on the catwalk or in front of the camera. Only then do I think about how they’ll move. I don’t just turn up and say: “Do this step, then turn like this.” That’s what a choreographer would do. I start from something deeper: from what the character is feeling and from what I want the audience to feel.”
This is where his work ceases to resemble a lesson in poise. Models, he says, are actresses. They must not simply show off a dress well, but make it look believable. ‘When I work with them, I try to help them understand what works and what comes across as artificial. I always want to bring out the best in each of them.’ Many experience that session almost like a masterclass: they observe the way he moves, receive guidance, and pick up tips. Then they return, perhaps the following season, and something has changed. “I can see they’ve improved, that they’ve taken those suggestions on board. In a way, it’s a school.”
His life story, too, seems tailor-made to lead him there. He began studying dance in Poland at the age of 15, then continued in London and Los Angeles. At 18, he was discovered as a model and walked the catwalk for Dior, Rick Owens and Alexander McQueen. But he never really felt like one. “I saw myself more as a performer.” At the age of twenty-three, he returned to Poland to study acting. “At the time I was confused; I wanted to do everything at once: be a dancer, a model and an actor. Now I realise that those experiences were preparing me for the work I do today.”
The moment when it all began to take shape came during the rehearsals for an Alexander McQueen fashion show. Sarah Burton spotted him amongst the other models: he had captured the spirit of the collection, the relationship with the music, and the way the body was meant to inhabit the space. She asked him to show the others how to walk in a more theatrical way. “Something clicked at that moment, even though I didn’t yet think it could become a career.”
