Peter Do and Samuel Schler’s collaboration moves like a conversation. The pair’s new dance film, directed by Philipp Paulus and scored by Brooklyn producer Matt Composure, brings together nine dancers dressed entirely in Do’s new PD-168 line. Shot inside the Brooklyn Museum, the project is less a traditional fashion film and more a meditation on how the body can hold tension, identity and belonging all at once.
Do and Schler have been creative collaborators for years, but this marks their first foray into a choreographed medium. “We realized we were working on similar thematics via different mediums,” Schler says. “It seemed fun and exciting to take our partnership into a new, more expressive direction.” What emerged is a kinetic dialogue between uniformity and individuality, between the collective and the self.
PD-168, Do’s latest venture under his namesake brand, serves as both wardrobe and metaphor. Designed as a modular system of machine-washable black separates, each piece is marked by a single tattoo line on the left side — an emblem of subtle connection. “Dance was the perfect medium to convey one of the key pillars of PD-168: clothes made for everyday movement,” Do says. “There’s something special about seeing the line in motion.”
In the film, Schler’s choreography resists a clear narrative, instead favoring rhythm, feeling and sensation. “I love dance as a medium that doesn’t force a story but triggers deep emotions,” he says. “It allows the work to become personal.”
Together, the collaborators have built a world that blurs the edges of fashion, art and human experience. Through it all, the film asks the questions: How do we remain ourselves within a collective? What does it mean to belong? And how can a garment, or a gesture, hold all of it at once?
PAPER caught up with Do and Schler to talk about the making of the film, the evolution of their creative partnership and what it means to move as one.
What first inspired this collaboration between the two of you?
Samuel Schler: Peter and I were chatting earlier this year and realized we were working on similar thematics via different mediums. I had been thinking about choreographing a dance piece, and he shared his vision for PD-168. The thematic alignment was obvious: We both wanted to talk about identity and individuality, and it seemed fun and exciting to take our partnership into a new, more expressive direction. The trust we developed over the years gave us the confidence to explore a new format that felt relevant to conveying our message. We had a lot of fun with the process.
Peter Do: Dance is a discipline I’ve always been interested in and appeared as the perfect medium to convey one of the key pillars of PD-168: clothes that are made for everyday movement and endure the demands of physical activity.
How did you create a shared language across dance, fashion and film?
Samuel: We tried to maintain a balance between choreography, costumes, music and film direction. As we crafted the piece, we ensured that none of these four elements overpowered the others, but instead complemented one another in supporting the overall theme and tone. We worked in a totally collaborative way across disciplines. Peter and I started thinking about costumes before we even began the dance creation process, Matt Composure (who composed an original score for the film) created the music while watching us work in the studio, and Philipp Paulus (Film Director) attended multiple rehearsals to immerse himself into the work and determine what angles and equipment would make the most sense.
Peter: We worked collaboratively to define how PD-168 would be incorporated throughout the piece and adapted the existing line to perfectly fit the choreography, dancers’ bodies and physical expressions.
Eleanor Simmons, dancer
Individuality versus collectivity is central to the piece. How did you want that tension to come through in movement and clothing?
Samuel: From a dance perspective, the way I built the narrative was purposefully non-linear and sustained a consistent level of tension. This translated into choreography that reflects the various states we go through as humans confronting our own individuality and our perception of otherness. I played with compositions, pacing and movement vocabulary that was either repetitive or unique to each scene of the film to convey this ever-lasting dialogue between our need to exist as individuals and our craving to belong.
Peter: At the core of PD-168 is the idea of creating a wardrobe that serves the individuals who wear the clothes, empowering them to share who they are as individuals with the world.
PD-168 is rooted in uniformity and function. How did the collection shape the choreography and visual story?
Samuel: PD-168 was the perfect wardrobe for this piece. Uniforms felt like the perfect medium to question individuality within society. How do you exist as yourself when looking like others? Is individuality a utopia?
Peter: PD-168 comes exclusively in black with a single tattoo line emblazoned on the left side of each garment, and we loved the idea of having a group of nine dancers dressed in uniforms to create a strong visual effect. Moreover, PD-168 is designed with performance in mind and allowed for Sam to push the physicality of the choreography knowing the collection would sustain it.
Peter Do and Samuel Schler
What do you personally hope people take away from experiencing this film?
Samuel: I conceptualized this piece with a wide range of emotions in mind and hope viewers feel that range as they watch the film. The way I created it, this film is made of eight scenes which I’ve associated a specific emotion and movement vocabulary. I personally love dance as a medium that doesn’t force a narrative on the audience or viewer, but has the ability to trigger deep emotions and feelings that allow the work to become personal. Someone on social commented that they felt anxious watching the film and didn’t like that. Did I want to make the viewer feel anxious? Maybe.
Peter: I hope people enjoy watching fashion in a different context. There is something special about seeing PD-168 in actual motion, which is exactly what the line was designed for.
Do you have a favorite behind-the-scenes moment that captures the spirit of this collaboration?
Samuel: Day 4 of rehearsals — that was the moment all the pieces came together. The choreography was 80 percent ready, the musical base was built, and the costumes were ready. The moment we put it all together and watched the full vision come to life for the first time was magical.
Peter: Fittings are always where the magic happens, and the day we saw the choreography with the costumes was special.
Creative direction and choreography: Samuel Schler
Film direction: Philipp Paulus
Music: Matt Composure
Production: Collab x Collab
Colorist: Dylan Hageman
Assistant choreography and rehearsal direction: Laura Osterhaus
Dancers and choreographic collaborators: Eleanor Simmons, Isabella Aldridge, Jamal Wade, Marco Vega, Nicholas Lamaina, Ny Opong, Pilar Mellon-Reyes, Tessa Russ, Vivake Khamsingsavath
Director of photography: Vince Rappa
Steadicam: Geoffrey Jean-Baptiste
AC: Percio Luciano
Editing: Philipp Paulus
Graphic designer: Mark Wolfe
Hair: Kennedy Trisler
Backstage photography: Deonté Lee
From Your Site Articles
Related Articles Around the Web
