German fashion legend Karl Lagerfeld took the helm at this year's International Festival of Fashion and Photography in Hyeres in southern France, which puts up-and-coming designers in the spotlight.

Now in its 30th year, the festival which ran Thursday to Sunday offers rising stars of fashion a chance to present their work to established names and celebrities, with the jury this year including Princess Caroline of Hanover.

Lagerfeld acted as this year's artistic director and president of the jury, helping select from the 10 finalists who presented their work in a large aircraft hangar by the coast.

The famed designer and photographer also gave a master class, but refrained from giving much strict advice to young designers.

"I think there are no rules," he said. "They must do what they want, what they can."

He added that he hated the term "young creator". Lagerfeld has always dodged questions about his precise age, but is thought to be 81.

"There are either good or bad creators. This label 'young' is the most dangerous. When I was young, we could not be proud of being young -- it just meant you lacked experience."

However, he did say the new generation of designers had one thing going for them, declaring that they "are much nicer and less pretentious" than their predecessors.
Source: AFP