In this film, I reimagine the myth of Arachne within a pre-revolutionary Caucasus textile community, where weaving is both a craft and a code of survival. Arachne’s defiance becomes an act of protest against patriarchal control, her transformation into a spider not a curse, but a radical escape. This myth speaks to intergenerational transmission, artistic pride, and the tension between human and natural hierarchies. Through fibre, tradition, and rebellion, Arachne weaves her way to freedom.

Backstage photographs from the filming of Arachne, an ancient Greek myth reimagined within a pre-revolutionary Caucasus textile community, where weaving functions as both survival and resistance. Arachne’s act of defiance becomes a form of protest, and her transformation into a spider signifies a radical escape.

Selected portfolio pages from the Arachne project, introducing the key concepts explored and offering a glimpse into the human and spider worlds between which the protagonist exists. The portfolio includes six character boards featuring the final costume designs for the main characters in the myth. These include Arachne’s post-transformation looks, as well as costumes for supporting characters: Minerva (both disguised as an old carpet weaver and in her divine form as a textile goddess), and Arachne’s parents, her mother, a carpet weaver, and her father, a textile dyer. Alongside these, the portfolio presents process pages documenting early collages, material studies, 2D and 3D trials, and various experiments. It also includes initial costume sketches for all the characters, silhouette and colour palette development, and a hand-drawn three-page storyboard that served as a key guide in the making of the film.