The longest queues at the Venice film festival have not been to see Hollywood stars like Brad Pitt or Scarlett Johansson.
Instead the most hysterical fans were those who thronged the Lido dreaming of a selfie with Chiara Ferragni, the fashion influencer who has become rich selling clothes and her starry you-can-have-it-all lifestyle on Instagram.
Hundreds were turned away from screenings of a new Amazon Prime documentary, Chiara Ferragni — Unposted, about her remarkable rise.
“You will never understand our love for her,” said Angela Fozzi, 24, who had made the long trip from Milan to see her and waited outside the cinema till 1 a.m. in the hope of a chance encounter.
“She is the greatest role model for women in the world,” the supermarket cashier said.
“She did it all herself. All she had was her smartphone and determination. She is an inspiration for women and we are so proud she is Italian,” she added. Ms. Ferragni told screaming fans that this “was one of the greatest days of my life” when she briefly appeared on stage late on Wednesday before a screening in a black Dior haute couture gown.
Earlier she had posted a video of herself weeping uncontrollably at the film screening to her 17.2 million Instagram followers.
Such is Ms. Ferragni’s appeal that her wildly lavish three-day wedding ceremony last year in Sicily, where she tied the knot with Italian rapper Fedez, reportedly made more of a splash online than the British royal wedding of Prince Harry and American actor Meghan Markle.