Storytelling for the Screen: Clueless

Clueless (1995) is director Amy Heckerling’s sharp, stylish update of Jane Austen’s classic novel Emma.

The film follows the wealthy and popular Beverly Hills teenager Cher Horowitz (Alicia Silverstone) as she navigates high school, charting her evolution from well-intentioned but shallow matchmaker to someone capable of empathy and genuinely improving the lives of those around her.

Both a satire and celebration of 1990s youth culture, the film captures the dynamics of teenage friendship, social hierarchies, and the decade’s ever-evolving fashion.

Using bold plaid prints and coordinated sets, costume designer Mona May made wardrobe choices that became instant cultural touchstones.

The film’s fashion shaped real-world trends, influenced designers for decades to come, and spoke to the film’s preoccupation with reinvention and the performative nature of teenhood.

Clueless endures not only as a coming-of-age teenage classic, but as one of the most fashion-forward films in American popular culture.

Costume designer Mona May will join moderator Kelsey Moore (Film and Media Studies, UCSB) for a post-screening discussion of Clueless.

After the Q&A, Mona May will join audience members in the Michael Douglas Lobby for a book sale and signing of her book The Fashion of Clueless.

Costumes are encouraged!