Plot Synopsis

Hosted by "ELLE" Creative Director Joe Zee, REVEALING is a series of four one-hour specials that explores the current state of fashion by using man-on-the-street social experiments, interviews with industry insiders, and investigations into real-life stories. Each 60-minute special examines one central idea: "Extravagance," which uncovers what the fixation with luxury brands means to both the future of fashion and the perception of ourselves; "Face Value," which discovers whether beauty is innate or cultivated and whether the relentless pursuit of it helps or hinders us; "Celebutante," which reveals the importance of being a star in the fashion industry; and "True or Faux," which explores whether design can be authentic, while trying to differentiate "inspired by" from "rip-off."
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REVEALING: TRUE OR FAUX premiered on Wednesday, April 16, 2014 at 9pm ET/PT on Sundance, with Joe Zee exploring the rampant theft of ideas in fashion, from counterfeit luxury handbags to chain clothing stores knocking off runway looks. Joe heads straight to the source of the fashion rip-off movement by meeting with vendors and buyers of fake bags, startup designers and lawyers representing established labels. He poses the question of whether affordable fake designer items in fact make high fashion more accessible to the public. Throughout his investigations into fashion phonies, Zee speaks to fashion experts such as: fashion designer Narciso Rodriguez; Creative Ambassador-at-Large Simon Doonan; fashion designer Jean Paul Gaultier; fashion designer Zac Posen; Calvin Klein Collection Women's Creative Director Francisco Costa; fashion designer Carolina Herrera; CEO, People's Revolution Kelly Cutrone; journalist and Bargain Fever author Mark Ellwood; Fashion Law Institute Founder and President Susan Scafidi; The Fashion Law founder and editor Julie Zerbo; and fashion historian Valerie Steele.