Patrick Cameron has worked on styling for the launch of the Trolls movie at Cannes. Photo / Supplied
Patrick Cameron has worked on styling for the launch of the Trolls movie at Cannes. Photo / Supplied
Elegant models adorned with frizzy, coloured wigs were a sight to behold amid the usual glitz and glamour on the Cannes Film Festival red carpet.
The man behind it, Kiwi Patrick Cameron, has come a long way from Taranaki to mixing and mingling with stars on the other side of the world.
Known in the hairdressing world as the long hair maestro, he has just finished work on his latest project - ten tall, colourful wigs that featured at the teaser of the DreamWorks film, Trolls.
Ten models adorned with tall, colourful wigs featured at the teaser of the DreamWorks film, Trolls. Photo / Supplied
The animated film features the voice of Justin Timberlake as Branch, a troll who's going on a "journey of discovery" alongside Princess Poppy, voiced by Anna Kendrick.
Unlike the stumpy, creature-like plastic dolls the movie is based on, Mr Cameron's creations featured atop more elegant models to exude a stylish, albeit colourfully playful image.
"When we think of Trolls we often think of ugly little creatures, but these were quite beautiful girls," he said. "It absolutely took Cannes by storm, these girls came out and they stopped traffic."
Adding to the furor at the event in the French city was the arrival of the celebrity duo on a speedboat.
"Just the absolute chaos and madness that ensued was incredible, it was really fun to see." Mr Cameron, who has a reputation as a stylist on board with the latest trends, said this project was not in line with his usual work.
Patrick Cameron spent about seven hours getting all the models ready for the red carpet. Photo / Supplied
Typically the high-flying stylist can be seen travelling the globe to exotic places such as Malta, India and Russia. He has styled shows for huge events including one for 6000 at the Kremlin in front of Mrs Putin and frequently works with big hair brands such as Wella.
"This [Trolls] was completely left-field, it wasn't about trends or fashion at all, this was about fun," he said. "I saw parts of the movie, they showed me little bits and pieces, I fell in love with these little characters."
Mr Cameron said each wig took about three to four hours to style.
He backcombed each one carefully, sewing it together to hold the shape, adding a layer of hair at a time, with a hand-knotted edge to give it the illusion of a real hairline.
Mr Cameron said one piece, the multi-coloured wig had to get specially ordered and cost about $2500.
"You don't want to make a mistake," he said.
The day before the event he also had to trial the wigs on each of the models, and on the big day spent about seven hours getting all the models ready for the red carpet.
Mr Cameron, who initially trained as a graphic designer and worked on window displays, said if you'd asked him 30 years ago where he'd be in the future he'd never expected the success he's had.
"I fell in love with hairdressing and fortunately it fell in love with me."
