Max Richter scores Maison Margiela’s joyous fashion film
The Academy Award-nominated composer leads a prodigious orchestra in "Joy"
When it comes to legendary composers, Max Richter is practically today’s Mozart. Having worked with everyone from Martin Scorsese to Ridley Scott, his sweeping compositions have become synonymous with modern cinema. Most recently, his work on Hamnet earned him an Academy Award nomination at this year’s ceremony, further cementing his reputation as one of the most influential composers of his generation.
Bringing his signature sound to the world of fashion, Richter – alongside child musicians from Orchestre à l’École – scored Maison Margiela’s latest fashion film, Joy. The campaign follows the brand’s Spring/Summer 2026 Co-Ed show in October at Paris Fashion Week, where the young musicians performed a selection of classical pieces from Bizet’s Carmen to Mozart’s Symphonie n.40.
Soundtracking the film is an original composition by Richter, who also takes a starring role. At the helm as composer extraordinaire, he leads the young musicians while wearing select pieces from the collection. In the house’s signature deconstructed tailoring Richter tickles the ivories. Meanwhile, the orchestra of kids don oversized suits painted white as a nod to the brand’s “Bianchetto” treatment.
“Playing music together allows us to understand one another in a unique way and to communicate a shared vision that elevates and transforms us,” Richter explains in the press release. “I loved working with Orchestre à l’École association and Maison Margiela to bring this vision to life.”
Glenn Martens, the creative director, drew inspiration from founder Martin Margiela’s 1990s presentations, in which he featured local children walking the runway. By reimagining this concept for the Spring/Summer 2026 Co-Ed collection, Martens bridges past and present, blending playful youthfulness with the brand’s signature avant-garde tailoring.
The collaboration with Max Richter further amplifies this vision, pairing music and fashion to create a multi-sensory experience that honours Margiela’s legacy while pushing it boldly into the future.