Arthur C. Clarke famously said, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” Of course, from the very beginning, Disney has been synonymous with magic, creating worlds where dreams come to life and the impossible seems attainable. But it’s the synergy between imagination and technology that’s been at the heart of Disney’s magic. Walt Disney himself assembled a team of visionaries called “Imagineers”—a fusion of engineers and dreamers tasked with bringing fantastical worlds to life.
This blend of creativity and cutting-edge tech was on full display in last night’s collaboration between ready-to-wear fashion brand Coperni and Disney for the first-ever fashion show held at Disneyland Paris. Coperni, the self-described “techno-chic” label founded by Sébastien Meyer and Arnaud Vaillant, has consistently stood at the intersection of fashion and technology. So it’s little surprise the legacy media company tapped the duo for the honor.
“We met with Disney about two years ago. The most exciting part for us was to bring more innovation to this world,” says Vaillant in the Coperni studio the day before the big spectacle. “The most important thing for Mr. Walt Disney was imagination and making the impossible possible through technology—which is what Coperni is all about ,” he adds.
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One of the most visually striking examples of this collaboration was the creation of Coperni's iconic Swipe Bag using Rapid Liquid Print (RLP), a pioneering technology developed by MIT’s Self-Assembly Lab. RLP represents a shift in 3D printing, moving beyond traditional limitations by allowing objects to be “drawn” in a gel suspension similar to a hair gel or hand sanitizer. Unlike conventional 3D printing, which builds objects layer by layer on a flat surface, Rapid Liquid Print frees designers from gravity, enabling the production of soft, stretchable, and durable products like the Swipe Bag.
This bag, made from platinum-cured, recyclable silicone, exemplifies how Coperni is pushing the boundaries of sustainability and technology in fashion. The RLP process itself is eco-friendly, using nontoxic materials with minimal environmental impact. Visually, it looks like magic too. Almost like it’s being conjured into the world by a sorcerer’s wand. “It’s like bringing something to life in a tank, with no limits to scale other than the size of the container,” Vaillant explains. The liquid-like consistency also made it a fitting tribute to Disney’s aquatic worlds, such as The Little Mermaid.
Skylar Tibbits, codirector of MIT’s Self-Assembly Lab told WIRED in 2017: “The gel has two key functions. The first is that it can suspend objects so that we aren't fighting gravity, and we don’t require support materials, which are time consuming to print. This means that a part can be printed quickly within the gel and then removed and simply washed off with water. The second is that the gel self-heals after the nozzle passes through. This allows you to continuously move and print within the gel and not create tunnels or cavities which would fill up with printed material.”
Liquid Printing
Despite its potential, traditional 3D printing has yet to achieve mainstream adoption due to several limitations, including slow production times, high costs, and constraints on material versatility. The process is often too time-consuming for mass production, with objects being built layer by layer, which limits its scalability. However, Rapid Liquid Print (RLP) could change this landscape, offering a versatile, cost-efficient, and environmentally friendly alternative to traditional manufacturing.
Coperni has yet to decide how many RLP Swipe Bags will be put into production, but for Meyer, starting a conversation around these innovations is more important than immediate commercial success. “It’s about subtly enhancing our lives in ways that feel natural. In ways that aren’t necessarily obvious, but impactful,” he says. “Above all, I want to use the show to platform scientists and technologies that could make the industry better.”
This isn't Coperni’s first foray into viral, tech-driven fashion innovations. The brand first gained international recognition for its internet-breaking “spray-on dress,” which captivated audiences at Paris Fashion Week in 2022.
Made from a liquid fabric called Fabrican, it was sprayed directly onto supermodel Bella Hadid’s body, solidifying upon contact to form a wearable garment. The dress generated more than $22 million in earned media value, but many overlooked the deeper message behind its creation. Beyond its visual spectacle, the spray-on dress was a sustainable innovation—machine washable, re-liquefiable, and reusable.
"We see it as our mission to push the boundaries of what’s possible in fashion," says Meyer. "A designer’s duty is to improve and find new solutions, not just for aesthetics, but for practicality and sustainability."
Their iconic Swipe Bag (inspired by the “swipe to unlock” icon of an iPhone) has become a platform for scientific experimentation. The founders consistently push new frontiers in sustainability and wearability each season. Previous collaborations include a project with professor Ioannis Michaloudis from the American University of Cyprus, to create a bag made from aerogel—a barely-there material that is 99 percent air, can withstand temperatures up to 1,300 degrees Celsius (2,372 Fahrenheit), and was previously used in space by NASA to catch interstellar dust.
Sci-Fi Fashion
At the core of these innovations is Meyer’s love for science fiction. As a self-proclaimed “geek,” he draws inspiration from sci-fi's imaginative worlds, which often serve as blueprints for future technology. Last season’s Coperni collection was an ode to the genre, featuring references to iconic sci-fi films such as Star Wars, Dune, and The Matrix.
But, for the brand, fashion isn’t just about creating visually stunning pieces, it’s about building worlds that help the audience visualize the future, making it one step realer in the process. “It’s beautiful how sometimes you can do something that is unfamiliar or unknown, but when there is emotion, people react well to new ideas,” says Vaillant.
In an era where AI advances regularly outpace public understanding, brands such as Coperni and visionaries like Walt Disney are a reminder that the real magic happens when imagination and innovation are combined, and then technology brings those dreams to life.
