“For me with Estella, I see the way she operates as, ‘If I don’t let anybody in, or let anybody know that they have got to me, I will always have the upper hand and power.’ She thinks that if she never reveals her true feelings or vulnerabilities, no one can hurt her. When, in reality, there’s so much inner turmoil that is causing her a lot of pain. She is suffering in pain, but she thinks that as long as no one sees it, she’s winning. And I think a lot of people do operate like that, it’s that mechanism that they use to cope with those emotions. That’s the person I have tried to create.”
Gracing our Spring/Summer 2023 issue in Chanel, lead of BBC iPlayers’s Great Expectations Shalom Brune-Franklin speaks with Ella West on becoming Estella, sharing a screen with Olivia Coleman and the importance of being true to yourself.
Shalom Brune-Franklin wears Chanel.
Photography by Guy Lowndes at One Represents
Fashion by Gregory Russill
Words by Ella West
Editorial Director Huw Gwyther
Editor Ella West
Styling Assistant Amy Jolly
Hair by Earl Simms at Caren Agency using Sam McKnight
Makeup by Ninni Nummela at Streeters using Chanel Beauty
Nails by Christie Huseyin
Art Directors Harry Fitzgerald, Livia Vourlakidou, Mike Morton
Cover Design by Harry Fitzgerald
Production Director Ben Crank
Producer Isabella Coleman
Production Intern Frankie Baumer
Photography Assistant Wilbert Lati
Special thanks to Tapestry London
