From the film-maker:

Moroni's portrait of 'The Tailor' stands out from the gallery collection for its subject and composition: not many painters in Renaissance Italy chose to paint portraits of craftsmen. I imagined that the tailor must have had an extraordinary personality to be chosen as the subject of a portrait in the hierarchical society in which he lived. 'The Thread' is based on a similarly charismatic character in an east London vintage shop - the alteration tailor. The film takes us through a strange encounter between the tailor and a shopper. Will the two ever be together; will they dare to cross the boundaries within the contemporary social map?

Anshu Poddar

A piece inspired by Giovanni Battista Moroni, The Tailor ('Il Tagliapanni'),1565-70,