Fashion, Fetish & Fantasy

I had heard of Elisa years ago. I had heard about this very beautiful, very special little girl who used to spend her long vacations at her dad’s house in Luxor, Egypt. I had heard about her via her godfather, my friend, the shoe designer Christian Louboutin. He told me she would grow up to be a star. Years passed, and I finally met Elisa. We met in a crowd of people we knew. She too had heard about me and we both knew we would be friends. She came for lunch in my studio. We had salad and chicken and talked about life. Immediately we had a connection. She reminded me of myself as a young girl, and I think she identified with me too.

Since that day we continue to communicate through e-mails, and she comes to see me every time she’s in New York. I love to hear about her life. What is more exciting than the life of a gorgeous, intelligent young woman? Every day is an adventure. Every day you meet people who will change your life forever!

Elisa is serious. Not boring, but serious! She is serious about her life, her career, her decisions. She is well-read, speaks fluent French, English, Italian, and Arabic, and is both very simple and very sophisticated. She is not a girl. She is a young woman. As a matter of fact, I think she was always a woman - maybe that is why I like her so much.

I know she will become a big movie star, and I wanted to be the first one to photograph her as a star. I wanted to do her first real portrait. I am glad she agreed. Diane von Furstenberg

DIANE VON FURSTENBERG Elisa, what is the oldest memory you have of yourself?
ELISA SEDNAOUI I have this image of me in Cairo belly dancing on the kitchen table, the babysitter clapping her hands to the music coming from the radio.
DVF What did you want to be?
ES At the time I don’t think I was really conscious about it. I was playing and inventing many stories, like most of the kids. Later I thought I would become a diplomat.
DVF Who is the most important person in your life?
ES I would say my mother. I’m very lucky: she is the most open-minded person I know. I will never forget the day when I was 14 and I had my first boyfriend and she looked at me very seriously and said, “I just want you to know that I’m here for you and if ever something bad happens I will help you without judging you.”

DVF Tell us about your life, your childhood—living in a small Italian village and at the same time among very sophisticated people.
ES It was made of extremes. I learned to adapt myself, from the more cosmopolitan environments of big cities like Cairo and Milan, to small places like Luxor or the countryside in Italy. People live different lives, have different beliefs, senses of humor, and ways of expressing emotions. Life can be lived in so many ways and still I know it would be possible for us to all live together in respect.
DVF When did you start to model?
ES I shot the first pictures as a model when I was 14, but I finished high school before dedicating myself to it as a career.
DVF When did you do your first movie?
ES Three years ago, I shot it in Lithuania and France. It’s called Eastern Drift and was screened for the first time at the Forum section of this year’s Berlin Film Festival. It’s a thriller about a man involved with the Russian mafia, escaping throughout Europe.
DVF What was the experience of being the lead in Bus Palladium? To be a woman in love with two men?
ES Well…it was real fun. And it was a beautiful challenge to be among young, creative, and daring actors, learning on the road the rhythm of a comedy. It was great to have the chance to play the role of a modern young woman who allows herself the freedom to follow her instincts. She’s still looking for herself and both men give her something that she needs.
DVF What kind of actress do you want to be?
ES I wish to tell stories of our existence. I try to show the great beauty of our soul. Tilda Swinton, Meryl Streep, and Monica Vitti are great inspirations.
DVF In what city do you feel most at home?
ES I feel at home in two diametrically opposite places: New York and Luxor, Egypt. The extremes.
DVF What is your favorite book? Movie?
ES I have many. I love Bukowski’s work, and Garcia Márquez’s. But right now I would say it is The Selected Letters of James Joyce. Natural Born Killers by Oliver Stone, and Stranger Than Paradise by Jim Jarmusch. But I also love Wim Wenders’s Paris, Texas and David Lynch’s Twin Peaks and Mulholland Drive.
DVF If you were not an actress, what would you like to do?
ES I would explore different forms of expression, most likely photography and movie directing. I am fascinated by editing as well.
DVF If you were a flower, what would you be?
ES A lily.
DVF What is your biggest fault?
ES Perfectionism.
DVF Quality?
ES Determination.
DVF If you had one single wish to change the world, what would it be?
ES That people could laugh more.
DVF What is beauty to you?
ES Positive energy.
DVF Ten years from now, where would you like to be?
ES Living in a South American hacienda with my tribe and still inspired to create and enjoy.

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