The Symbolic Politics of Luxury Brands in Film and Television: The Strategic Logic of Cultural Capital Competition
Abstract
Against the backdrop of accelerated aesthetic consumption in the short-video era, film and television—often regarded as “slow media”—have re-emerged as strategic arenas where luxury brands contest cultural discourse power. This paper takes Dior and the Apple TV+ series The New Look as a case study, drawing on Bourdieu’s theories of cultural and symbolic capital, Edelman’s concept of symbolic politics, and recent scholarship on cultural branding to explore how luxury brands leverage audiovisual narratives to construct identity myths and consolidate cultural authority. Employing qualitative case analysis of series content, character portrayals, and audience reception on both Chinese and international platforms, the study demonstrates that luxury brands are moving beyond surface-level visual exposure toward active participation in narrative production. Specifically, the findings show three key mechanisms: Dior’s construction of a morally charged brand identity; its symbolic positioning in contrast to Chanel; and the overlap between premium streaming audiences and luxury consumers, which reinforces brand identification. These strategies enhance Dior’s cultural legitimacy and symbolic capital, but they also generate debates around historical authenticity and the instrumentalization of culture. The analysis highlights both the potential and the constraints of film and television as cultural battlegrounds for luxury brands seeking symbolic power.
References
- Bourdieu, P. (1980). The Logic of Practice. Stanford University Press. https: //books.google.com/books?id=YHN8uW49l7AC
- Edelman, M. (1964). The Symbolic Uses of Politics. University of Illinois Press. https: //archive.org/details/symbolicusesofpo0000edel
- Hall, S. (1997). Representation: Cultural Representations and Signifying Practices. SAGE. https: //archive.org/details/representationcu0000unse_g7g0
- Cayla, J., & Arnould, E. J. (2008). A cultural approach to branding in the global marketplace. Journal of International Marketing, 16(4), 86–112.
- Granot, E., Russell, L. T. M., & Brashear-Alejandro, T. G. (2013). Populence: Exploring Luxury for the Masses. Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, 21(1), 31–44.
- Diaz Soloaga, P., & Garcia, E. A. (2016). Fashion films and storytelling. Communication & Society, 29(4), 45–57.
- Serdari, T. (2022). Rethinking Luxury Fashion: The Role of Cultural Intelligence in Brand Strategy. Palgrave Macmillan.
- Vogue Business. (2023, May 23). Inside fashion megabrands' whirlwind at Cannes. https: //www.voguebusiness.com/fashion/inside-fashion-megabrands-whirlwind-at-cannes
- Rocamora, A. (2009). Fashioning the City: Paris, Fashion and the Media. I.B. Tauris. https: //www.bloomsbury.com/us/fashioning-the-city-9781845118976/
- Zwick, D., & Cayla, J. (Eds.). (2011). Inside Marketing: Practices, Ideologies, Devices. Oxford University Press. https: //academic.oup.com/book/8032