EXCLUSIVE: Lane 4 Entertainment has officially announced Stretched, a feature documentary that provides a revealing look at controversial billionaire Lululemon founder Chip Wilson. Stretched is directed and produced by Trish Neufeld (Dancing With Mom, Save Space Nugget) and executive produced by John Ritchie (65_RedRoses, The Love Crimes Of Gillan Guess) and Graem Luis (Day Of The Dead, The Amazing Race Canada). The film is currently in post-production.
Stretched is the first intimate look at the intense personal trials, heated corporate battles, and changing social landscape in which Chip and Summer Wilson revolutionized fashion, turned the technical apparel brand into a global icon, and spearheaded a multi-billion dollar athleisure industry.
“I’m thrilled to present a raw and unflinching look at Chip Wilson, the man who transformed technical apparel,” explains director, Trish Neufeld. “His story is about a key turning point in fashion and society, the science and design of technical garments, alongside the early days of cancel culture.”
The film unravels the rise of yoga pants, the little black leggings that skyrocketed across the globe, permanently shaping culture and igniting moral firestorms around sexuality, ultimately replacing denim as the world’s most popular pants. How did these little black pants change fashion? And who is lululemon founder Chip Wilson – a visionary who elevated a generation of women, or a fat-shaming billionaire?
This project includes intimate interviews with key players who were instrumental throughout the history of lululemon, business moguls, and some of the fashion industry’s biggest names such as Tommy Hilfiger, as well as extensive archival footage.
Dennis “Chip” Wilson is a self-made Canadian billionaire, entrepreneur, philanthropist, founder and former CEO of lululemon. Wilson founded lululemon in 1998 and opened his first store in Vancouver in 2000. Wilson resigned as chairman in 2013 before stepping down from lululemon entirely in 2015.
Stretched was developed with support from Bell Fund and Creative BC. Visit stretchedfilm.com for sales information.
