The moment the metallic figures glide across the screen—synchronized, sleek, their shadows merging—I realized this wasn't just another fashion spot. The Replicant, directed by the French duo Milli (Vic Chhun & Leyla Kaddoura), revives hand‑drawn animation with a pulsing, cyberpunk heartbeat. It premiered on July 2, 2025, via YouTube and was flagged by Catsuka and FirstShowing as mandatory viewing.
A Ballet of Bots and Couture
Let's be real: the title The Replicant feels like a tip—nay, a nod—to Blade Runner, and yes, Deckard's world shadows every frame. But these aren't bleak replicants fleeing persecution, they're stylized mannequins in an abstract runway‑ballet. Sweat becomes mercury. Bodies multiply like LiDAR scans. There's a sense of design meeting dystopia—minds meeting machines… fashion meeting philosophy .
What struck me was how the LGN clothing—structured coats, transparent underwear, sand‑tone stripes—emerges almost organically from movement, not glued on for show. Animators choreograph swirling silhouettes so that clothing both clings and breathes.
Milli & Wizz: A European Anima-Intervention
Wizz Studio, based near Paris, commissioned Milli—veterans since their graduation film—to helm this. The production credits read like a director's art‑lab: storyboard by Alma Frohlich, layouts by Chhun, color scripts by Kaddoura. Compositors, background artists—all weaving traditional craft into a high‑tech vision.
There's also music by MODE‑F, contributing a relentless, strobing pulse. It's almost as if electronica collided with its analog twin—a sensory volley that keeps the whole promo taut.
Cultural & Cinematic Ripples
It's impossible not to see shades of Interstella 5555—the Daft Punk anime—here. Those sleek, mechanized bodies; the repetitive loops; the mysterious, fevered elegance. But whereas Daft Punk's piece rides on a narrative, Milli's promo embraces abstraction—not story, but gesture; not plot, but poetry.
In a world leaning digital—AI fashion generated, CGI visuals domineering—The Replicant quietly asserts the enduring power of hand‑drawn frames. And it's no random choice: hand‑drawn lines add warmth to cold metal.
Why It Matters
Yes, it's a 2‑minute advertisement. But it's also a statement: the synthesis of art and commerce, craft and coding. And as the spring/summer 2026 collection drops, LGN is saying—through motion, not just press—“this is who we are.”
Final Thoughts
It made me gasp. I gasped. Then I thought—why don't more fashion brands do this? Why don't more creatives marry high fashion and high art this way? The Replicant isn't a promo—it's a manifesto: the future of fashion is crafted, animated, alive.
Is it perfect? Maybe not. It's fragmented. Loopy. Hypnotic. It delights in being enigmatic—and that's the point. It's an invitation: to pause, to watch again, to feel the mercurial motion.
