OFF DUTY WITH DAN CASTANO
27 August 2024 | Words by PayPal Melbourne Fashion Festival
Welcome back to ‘Off Duty’ where we get to know the faces behind the Festival – on and off the job.
Shooting for the likes of David Jones, Henne, NGV and Dan Murphy’s, it’s safe to say Dan Castano is a creative Melbourne legend. Dan first picked up a camera at our 2010 Festival and now she’s our go-to for backstage content. Dan's unique perspective shines through in every shot, so keep reading to learn more about the person behind the lens.
How were you involved with PayPal Melbourne Fashion Festival (PMFF) in 2024?
I’m a photographer and shot all the backstage content every Premium Runway night.
What was your first ever encounter with PMFF?
I went to L’Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival (as it was called at the time) in 2010 and it was the first time I ever picked up a camera to shoot street style. I turned up with a point-and-shoot Olympus, took two terrible photos from a distance (because I was too scared to get close to anyone), and then left, vowing to come back when I knew what I was doing.
And then I did the following year, and I’ve been to the Festival and photographed it in some capacity ever since.
Can you share your favourite moment from PMFF 2024?
I really loved the closing Block Party Runway x Visit Melbourne. Soo many good local designers doing cool stuff. I literally shopped that runway straight after.
Backstage at National Graduate Showcase Runway x Emporium Melbourne
Backstage at Block Party Runway x Visit Melbourne
“My advice for aspiring photographers is to make the type of work you want to get booked for and start sharing it. If you’re not putting it out there and no one can see it, then they won’t know you can do it.”
Do you have a side hustle? If so, tell us about it.
Not anymore. Ironically, photography used to be my side hustle.
How would you like to see the Victorian fashion industry evolve or innovate in the future?
I’d love to see more organic and meaningful support for the industry across the year, not just during the Festival. From supporting local designers with opportunities to upskill their business acumen to continuing the ‘local fashion’ conversation in the media more regularly. This needs to happen to educate people about the incredible local designers we have around us here in Victoria and be an ongoing, consistent conversation, not a once-a-year thing.
I’d also love to see the continuation of support for our First Nations fashion community through actual job offers across all areas of the industry, not just token placements.
If you had to describe your relationship with fashion in just one word, what would it be and why?
Enduring. I’ve always loved fashion and everything that goes on around it; the beauty, the spectacle of it. I always wanted to be involved with the creation of something beautiful
in the fashion space.
“I love how Melburnians mix and match. Melbourne style to me is all about mixing, whether it be high and low designers or different styles. We are so good at mixing things to create unique looks for ourselves.”
If you could only shop from one Victorian fashion brand for the rest of your life, what would it be and why?
Aside from thermals? My black Neuw jeans and my Lucinda Babi x R. Sport tee. My Tibi joggers have also been getting a thrashing for over a year now too.
What's your favourite non-fashion hidden gem to visit in Melbourne?
Austro Bakery in North Melbourne. They do the most delicious baked goods with an Austrian influence. The coffee scroll is outrageous.
What's something most people wouldn't know about you?
I’m a qualified makeup artist.
Dan wears Lucinda Babi
Dani wears Haulier