Oscar campaigns are not won, they are endured. There are parties, festivals, For Your Consideration screenings, press conferences and talk show appearances. The night before the Academy Awards, I found myself (by no means an important person in the industry) at two separate parties. Imagine if you are a nominee and they take you around, shaking hands and making small talk. At the first event I caught a glimpse of legendary actress Minnie Driver, nominated for supporting actress for the film “Good Will Hunting” in 1998. She posed, smiled and looked as glamorous as ever. And, with extreme grace, he disappeared through a door in the back. Fagot. Missing.
And like magic, it reappeared on the carpet right in front of me, at Chanel's legendary pre-Oscar dinner at the Beverly Hills Hotel. She dazzled in a sparkly dress, a totally different outfit from the one she had seen just an hour before. After years of being in Los Angeles, I'm not particularly starstruck anymore, but right now, I was kind of that. How does one glide through the chaos and camera flashes of Oscar season with poise and perfection? And how do they stay calm despite everything?
It takes a strong will to be a star, to endure the setbacks and struggles that come with making it in Hollywood. To stay on top, it takes even more. It takes a team. And one of the most important members of any celebrity's team is their stylist. The people who dream up the looks that shine at high-profile events and make sure that even if you don't feel perfect, you at least look that way.
Stylists are the consigliere, therapist and trusted right hand of any Oscar nominee. Without the stylist, Oscar season would be completely different and probably a little worse. How do you prevent your clients from giving in to pressure? “It's just about asking simple questions, like, 'How are you today?'” the lively celebrity stylist known as Turner tells me. She is the top celebrity fashion advisor and works with Sonic Youth's Natasha Lyonne and Kim Gordon. She says a big part of her job is “knowing that everything that is shared in that fitting room stays in that fitting room.” Because once you leave the fitting room and enter an event like the Chanel dinner, the eyes and ears of the world are on you.
This year marked the 17th time that Chanel hosted its Oscar party, an event that insiders see as the last stop on the calendar before the big night at the Dolby Theatre. It is co-hosted by British producer and businessman Charles Finch, who presides over the event with the charm and kindness that characterizes the best hosts. The Chanel dinner brings together fashion, film and art in a stimulating way. It is both one of the most exclusive and sought-after invitations in the city and a raucous, crowded party. Trying to make my way through the crowd of movie stars, filmmakers and other luminaries was almost like an Olympic event. If they were handing out medals for not tripping over Mick Jagger, he should probably win gold.
Mick Jagger at Chanel and Charles Finch's annual pre-Oscar dinner at the Polo Lounge in Beverly Hills.
(Virgil Guinard / CHANEL)
Awards season itself is its own kind of challenge. Millions and millions of dollars are poured into the growing Los Angeles film economy to drum up support for the year's Academy Award nominees. Much of the economic health of the entertainment industry (Variety, Hollywood Reporter, etc.) depends on the avalanche of advertising investment and free content that comes from the Oscar campaign. The season seems to lengthen each year, moving closer into the spring and summer months, with heavyweight awards like “Sinners” and “One Battle After Another” dropping just months after the last Oscar ceremony. And as artificial intelligence and studio consolidation shake up the business, the Oscars are an even more important barometer of the health of the films themselves.
The demands placed on nominees, especially actors, are heavy. To be in public, exposed and exhibited, in a fight for your professional life, you not only have to be charming, intelligent and witty in front of journalists and voters. You also have to look good for the group of photographers documenting your every move at events like the BAFTA Tea Party or the Essence Black Women in Hollywood Awards. Celebrities have to be prepared for the marathon at all times.
Lily-Rose Depp and Gracie Abrams at the Chanel and Charles Finch Annual Pre-Oscar Dinner at the Polo Lounge in Beverly Hills. (Jon Kopaloff/WireImage)
From left, Gracie Abrams, Lily-Rose Depp and Sarah Pidgeon at the Chanel and Charles Finch annual pre-Oscar dinner at the Polo Lounge in Beverly Hills.
(Virgil Guinard / CHANEL)
The conversation between stars and stylists starts early, often with collaborative meetings and mood boards. Spencer Singer styles Chanel devotees Lily-Rose Depp (in a sleeveless vest adorned with pearls and rhinestones) and Gracie Abrams (in a beautiful black tweed dress). Their process is extremely detailed and focused on the client's objectives. “With a particular project, you tend to become more thematic, or maybe it's just the place we both are in our lives when we love a particular aesthetic,” he says. “The most fun part is throwing everything against the wall and then taking out the things that feel the strongest.”
Teyana Taylor wears an exciting multi-colour shearling coat from Chanel's latest Fall/Winter 2026 ready-to-wear collection.
(Jon Kopaloff/WireImage)
Sometimes the customer knows exactly what they want and makes the call on the spot. “I'm always plotting,” Teyana Taylor, nominated for supporting actress for “One Battle After Another,” told me on the Chanel carpet. Taylor sported an exciting multi-colour shearling coat – look 57 from Chanel's latest Fall/Winter 2026 ready-to-wear collection. Taylor wore the coat fully buttoned, ready to take it off for a dramatic reveal later that night. She first saw the coat on the runway and knew immediately she needed it. “I wasn't even backstage when I thought, 'The coat. I have to get it.' I knew tonight would be the perfect night for it.”
“I really love this party, because it's easy to see people you admire and would love to work with,” Sigourney Weaver says of Chanel's pre-Oscars dinner.
(Jon Kopaloff/WireImage)
Sigourney Weaver is a three-time Academy Award nominee and one of the most notable veterans of the Oscar circuit. “It's not a routine for me,” she said in a yellow and black Chanel coat from spring/summer 2026. Weaver relishes the opportunity to dress up and embrace the glamor of the season. “I'm very casual in real life. I really love this party, because it's easy to see people you admire and would love to work with. The Oscars themselves are too formal, in a way, unless you're together backstage.”
Weaver and Taylor make it look easy, but sometimes it's not that easy. Alexandra Mandelkorn has styled dozens of A-list names (Janelle Monáe, Rachel Brosnahan, and Laura Dern, among others), helping them get through event after event looking their best. For Mandelkorn, style is as much about storytelling as it is about natural impulse. When starting a project, ask, “Are we leaning into the character?” [they play in the film]? Is she naive? Are we trying to achieve a resurgence or some kind of different look for her and give her a new identity within fashion and the industry? Once this is established and the objectives are clear, the story can be told. Clothing, like movies, is a medium for creativity.
Stylists also have to get creative when things go wrong and make sure cameras don't capture a bad moment for eternity. “There are so many things that can happen between the audition and the moment you hit the carpet,” Turner says of the many perils of awards season. “Your dress can get wrinkled in the car. Your strapless bra can drop four inches while you're sitting in the car, and then you forget to pick it up once you get to the red carpet. Did your strapless dress also fall off when it was in the car and you forgot to pick it up? And then you get to the carpet, look at the photos afterwards, and say, 'Oh, God, okay, bookmarked for next time.'”
Mandelkorn tells the story of a dangerous time when a strap came off Monáe's shoe. “She couldn't walk in that,” he says. “Somehow it had to be put back on. We ended up fixing it badly using safety pins. Luckily, the shoe couldn't be seen while I was walking.” Zippers may break, buttons may pop, but stylists must stay strong for their clients. “I keep upholstery thread in my kit because it's so strong,” Mandelkorn said. “Usually when a zipper opens, it's because it's too tight. Girls love to wear tight dresses, so some of these zippers just give way. We make it work, and [fans] you never know. “You would never know.”
The risks can be significant and the rewards may not always come. Five people out of thousands of performances in a year can be nominated for an award, but only one wins. Uncomfortable shoes, flashbulbs, and endless rides in rental cars can wear anyone down, but beneath all the work, there should still be joy. Teyana Taylor put it simply: “I get excited because I love wearing clothes. I love clothes, I love fashion. I appreciate the art of making it. I appreciate the fabric. I appreciate every piece of clothing.”
Nicole Kidman, left, and Teyana Taylor at the Chanel dinner. The spirit and beauty of the films is alive and well.
(Virgil Guinard / CHANEL)
Attendees at this latest Chanel party channeled all the joy they could muster before sitting down to dinner. Even in a time that seems bleak, the spirit and beauty of the films is alive and well. As I said goodbye and returned to the lush darkness of the Beverly Hills Hotel, I thought about the end of another awards season coming to a close. Hollywood continues to go through a transition that is shaking the foundations of the entire industry, the most important thing we can all do now is just that. Appreciate the art of it.
