The documentary Calendar Girl celebrating the life of Ruth Finley, founder of the iconic Fashion Calendar is coming to VOD in the U.S. on International Women’s Day, March 8, 2022 via digital distributor Syndicado.
For over 70 years, Ruth Finley and the game-changing Fashion Calendar she founded, scheduled every fashion event in New York City. At 95, she sold the calendar, ending an era. Filmmaker Christian D. Bruun celebrates the life of the charming and legendary Ruth Finley in his award-winning feature documentary Calendar Girl.
Calendar Girl took home the Best Documentary Jury Award at Los Angeles Fashion Film Festival 2021, and was also an Official Selection of Berkshire International Film Festival 2021, DOC NYC 2020, among many others.
Ruth Finley, a pocket-sized woman of immense determination, has been the queen of the fashion industry since the 1940s. As a young mother, Finley created the iconic pink Fashion Calendar, a publication that continues to organize and marshal American fashion today. In 2014, Ruth retired at 95 and sold the Fashion Calendar to the Council of Fashion Designers of America. The documentary examines this momentous transition, and reflects on the life, work and legacy of this trailblazer and the industry she helped create. This is the story of a woman who carved out a place for herself in a man’s world and developed a reputation characterized by tenacity, perseverance, fairness, humanity, diplomacy and decency. Finley influenced the inner workings of New York fashion, she celebrated and was celebrated by both the industry’s powerhouses and rising stars, and she survived its many incarnations. Her story is told by industry insiders, her sons, and friends, who bear witness to her long career as publisher, entrepreneur, patron saint and fairy godmother to fashion designers. Featuring Bill Cunningham, Carolina Herrera, Nicole Miller, Diane von Furstenberg, and more, this joyous profile is a love letter to fashion and the extraordinary life of one remarkable woman.
“When I met Ruth Finley for the first time over coffee in her apartment in 2014, she was not someone who readily talked about herself, but with the sale of the Calendar, she was prepared to share her thoughts, and her outlook on life resonated with me,” said Calendar Girl director, producer and cinematographer Christian D. Bruun. “I was committed to understanding her long life and character—she disrupted and redefined an enormous and influential industry, and did so consistently without a narcissistic craving for the spotlight. The film explores her impact on fashion, but at its core, is an intimate portrait of Ruth, focused on personal moments and reflection.”
Watch the official trailer for Calendar Girl.