Sewing Machines in Cinema

My 5 Favorite Instances of Sewing Machines in Film & TV

Iconic Sewing Machines & Sewists in Film & TV

Honorable Mention: All Quiet On The Western Front

“All Quiet in the Western Front” is an incredible movie with stunning cinematography. It tells the brutal story of a young German soldier’s experience in the trenches during World War I. Within the first 10 minutes of the movie there is a prominent sewing scene that features a factory full of treadle machines mending thousands and thousand of uniforms. The uniforms belonged to fallen soldiers and are being mended so that they can be re-used for a fresh batch of patriotic youths. I found it to be a very poignant scene, and sewing machines were at the center of it.

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5. Seinfeld - Season 8, Episode 16 - “The Pothole”

I’m a Seinfeld fan, so perhaps I am bias, but nobody can deny that a sewing machine plays a major role as a plot device in “The Pothole.” The sewing machine in question is a beautiful old Singer blackhead machine— I think a Singer 201. Does anybody actually sew on the sewing machine in the episode? No. In fact, the sewing machine only shows up when someone runs over it on the highway in their car. In classic Seinfeld fashion, it happens twice.

Here is the episode’s plot description from Wikipedia:

Jerry accidentally knocks his girlfriend Jenna's toothbrush into the toilet, and she uses it before he can tell her. Since she is as fastidious about cleanliness as him, he is afraid to tell her afterwards. He directs Jenna to sterilize her mouth with various cleaning agents, but can't get over his fear that she may still be unsanitary and can't kiss her. Jerry tells Jenna about the toothbrush; angered that he didn't tell her sooner, she locks him out of his apartment and tells him she stuck something of his in the toilet. Jerry throws away everything he owns that could have even partially fit in the toilet, unable to trust it is clean.

George realizes he has misplaced his keys, and retraces his steps to where he jumped over a pothole that's now been paved over. He employs a freelance maintenance crew to dig the keys out, but he succumbs to thriftiness and agrees to do the jackhammering himself so that he only has to pay for the equipment.

Kramer complains about the failing highway infrastructure after running over an abandoned sewing machine, so he adopts a one-mile piece of the 'Arthur Burghardt Expressway' through the Adopt a Highway program. Not trusting the work to the city's maintenance crew, Kramer cleans the road himself and repaints the four-lane highway to two extra-wide lanes, but his efforts only result in mass confusion and congestion.

Elaine tries to order a new Chinese dish, Supreme Flounder, but she lives across the street from the boundary of the Chinese restaurant's delivery area. Her neighbors across the street refuse to let her order from their apartments, so Elaine moves into a janitor's closet in the building. The superintendent believes her to be the janitor and pesters her about maintenance that needs to be done. Elaine brings the building's trash to the dump in Jerry's car, swerving all over Kramer's wide lane and unknowingly dropping a sewing machine on the road, similar to the one Kramer ran over.

Being used for garbage eliminates Jerry's car as a sanitary haven, and he breaks down in front of Jenna. Satisfied she has got her revenge, she tells him what she put in the toilet: the toilet brush. George unintentionally severs a water main while digging up the road, causing Jenna's toilet to erupt and dump its contents onto her. Jerry is disgusted and dumps her on the spot. Kramer tries to return the highway to four lanes but spills flammable paint thinner all over the road. Newman drives by. His mail truck catches the sewing machine and drags it on the highway, sending up sparks that ignite the paint thinner and cause his truck to go up in flames. A torched, stranded Newman wanders off in a daze. Kramer offers him a ride, but after getting no response, flees to evade the law.

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4. Phantom Thread

Director Paul Thomas Anderson and actor Daniel Day-Lewis first worked together on the historical drama, There Will Be Blood. It was one of my favorite movies (still is to this day), so I was very excited when the two of them teamed up again on Phantom Thread, which was released in 2017.

The film is about a London fashion designer in the 1950’s named Reynold Woodcock, an extremely talented dressmaker revered by his high-class socialite clients. Woodcock is a dressmaking genius, but it comes at a price. He has an extremely prickly personality. He is difficult to work with and insists on having the day-today-operations of his life micromanaged by his sister. His daily routine is extremely rigid— he must not have anything distract him from the art of dressmaking, or he will blow a fuse. As the film progresses, Woodcock forms a relationship with a waitress named Alma. Alma becomes Woodcock’s muse and lover, and as the film examines their relationship, Woodcock’s peculiar psychological makeup is slowly revealed.

Overall, this film is slow and subtle. If you enjoy the “portrait of an artist” genre, then I’m sure Phantom Thread is something you’ll appreciate, especially since the artist in question is a garment-making extraordinaire. There are not a ton of shots of sewing machines themselves in the film, but if you look closely and pay attention you will spot a few in the corner of the screen. There are a lot of scenes of people sewing by hand, a lot of beautiful dresses, and fantastic acting performances.

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3. Dior & I

The only documentary on my list, Dior and I is an intimate, behind-the-scenes look at the prestigious French fashion house Christian Dior during the creation of Raf Simons' first haute couture collection as the creative director.

The documentary explores the high-pressure world of fashion as Simons, a Belgian designer, takes on the responsibility of designing and producing a couture collection in just eight weeks. The film showcases the meticulous craftsmanship, dedication, and teamwork of the atelier's skilled artisans as they bring Simons' vision to life. It also delves into the creative process, the challenges faced, and the personal and professional relationships that develop during this intense period.