Thursday November 5, 2009
Epic journey
Compiled by Patsy Kam
The making of the Chanel N°5 short film is an epic by advertising standards as it took a month to complete.
WHEN Chanel took over the number five, it forever changed its status from being a mere numerical figure to an iconic legend. The fragrance Chanel N°5 created by renowned perfumer Ernest Beaux, made its debut in 1921 and till today, is still touted as “a woman’s fragrance that smells like woman”.
Tautou and director Jean-Pierre Jeunet in a discussion during the filming of the ad for Chanel. In a recent extravagant advertising splash, Audrey Tautou was announced as Chanel’s latest muse for N°5, taking over Nicole Kidman’s role. The newest short film from Chanel – Train de Nuit – depicts a mysterious ride on the Orient Express where a handsome stranger becomes addicted to Tautou’s scent at the first whiff. A combination of fate and chance leads to a romantic destiny in a chapel (reminiscent of The Da Vinci Code).
Following the films Amelie and The Long Engagement, this is the third collaboration between Tautou and director Jean-Pierre Jeunet. The star seemed the obvious choice for the role as she portrayed a young Coco Chanel in the biopic Coco Avant Chanel as well, which was released in the United States in April this year.
Both the director and actress talk about the making of the short film and what transpired behind the scenes, in an interview transcript provided by Chanel.
Star quality: Tautou portrayed a young Coco Chanel in Coco Avant Chanel Audrey, how did you feel when you found out that Jean-Pierre Jeunet would be directing the film for this fragrance – the fragrance for which you are now the ambassador?
Tautou: It all happened at once. It was Jean-Pierre who phoned me to talk about it.
Jeunet: I think I said something like: “I’m pretty sure you’re going to tell me to shove it, but I’ll try my luck anyway.”
Tautou: And then he went straight into the technical details: “We’re going to take the whole crew, it’ll be fun, everyone will be there ... we’re going to travel, we’ll be going to Istanbul, it’ll be great ...”
Jeunet: At last we had this opportunity to produce the final episode in our trilogy, it was something we’d been talking about for a while. And it is a real movie, it’s the world of film-making, it’s not really just an ad. It’s a film, and so it was a great opportunity.
Jean-Pierre, why did you feel that Audrey, and not someone else, should be the Chanel N°5 woman?
For an actress to take on this type of role, where there is no dialogue, there has to be a real intensity in her eyes. It is very difficult to get across emotions and intentions through nothing but the look in people’s eyes and in a very short space of time. I haven’t worked on advertisements much – it’s a very different approach from the one you would take with feature films. A character’s gaze has to be much stronger, much more intense than usual.
The iconic Chanel N°5 fragrance. Jean-Pierre, how has Audrey progressed? You knew her when she was just starting out.
Jeunet: Yes, I knew her when she had just begun acting. And I found her even more professional ... her comments, the way she behaved ... I could see it with The Da Vinci Code, Stephen Frears. Everything that she did between the two projects, everything that she has done since. She had taken her professionalism to an even higher level. She has a lot more confidence in herself.
Tautou: It’s because we know each other so well, we understand each other. We don’t need to use many words to know what the other person is thinking. There has always been something special about our relationship – we always agree and we feel the same way about the work we are doing.
Did you work together on the character of the N°5 Woman? Were you consulted, Audrey?
Jeunet: No, I said to her: “I think that with a small role like that, it’s up to you to do what you want with it. So I’ll leave you to it – but you have to have, somewhere in your mind, an idea of where this woman is at in her personal life, so that it isn’t just about making faces in front of a camera.”
I didn’t ask her what she had in mind, I don’t even want to know if she did have something in mind, but I think it was important to make the suggestion.
Audrey, what did you have in mind?
Tautou: Well you know, the thing that I found the most tricky with this project is that I had to be – or at least this is how I saw things – somewhere between the person that I am and the character that is revealed in a very short time frame. To a certain extent, I gave in to chance and, most importantly, believed in the vision of Jean-Pierre, the world he was creating, and the reasons why I was there with him.
Jeunet: I immediately told her that the approach, the pace, would be a little different from when you work on a feature film, since the shots are very short, of course, in advertising. You have to condense the scene, and overplay things to a certain extent.
Did you surprise each other? Did you learn new things about each other?
Tautou: I was surprised by the way in which Jean-Pierre succeeded in capturing sensuality on film.
Jeunet: I was going to say the same thing. I was surprised by her sensuality, even though I’d already seen it in A Very Long Engagement, but only in brief moments, and here we had to go much further. When you make an advertisement, there’s a lot of filming. It wasn’t that easy, and yet she was extraordinary. It was a real pleasure but also a nightmare when we were doing the editing work. We had to choose which tiny shots we wanted to use, and the choice was hard, since there were so many wonderful ones.
In the film, there are no words. Is that an additional challenge?
Jeunet: It’s not much of a problem for me, I enjoy doing long visual sequences.
What was the best moment for you?
Jeunet: There was a wonderful moment on the Bosphorus (Istanbul), with the sun setting in the background. I had my crew with us and they all had these big smiles on their faces. We were all so happy to be working together again, after such a long time.
Tautou: That was the best moment for me too: seeing everyone again, being with the crew, the atmosphere when we were filming, being in Istanbul. It was a luxurious and enriching adventure in many different ways.
Jeunet: There was an unforgettable moment, when a member of our team saved the life of a Turk who had fallen into the water, at the port.
How long were you filming?
Jeunet: We took our time. Three weeks of filming and almost an entire week just to work on the light effects.
Do you have a favourite shot?
Tautou: I think what most impressed me was the emotional power of this short film. There was never a time when I felt like I was shooting an advertisement. I always felt like I was telling a story and not making an ad. Ah yes, there is a shot that I love, I thought the idea was really great and I realised that after the filming. It’s the shot when I’m in the train cabin, with all the lights going past the windows, and the reflection of the bottle moving around me on the cabin walls. I thought to myself that lots of directors are going to be put out because, once again, it was Jean-Pierre who had the idea!
Jeunet: I really liked the “missed encounter” moments, when one door opens just as another closes, because we’ve all experienced situations like that. Everyone is perfectly familiar with that kind of situation. Even I can remember missed opportunities that we still talk about years later, saying: “You should have gone for it, it’s such a shame.” And it leaves you with regrets. This film covers that subject, and it’s something that everyone understands.
Tell me about this handsome guy.
Tautou: Travis Davenport, the young man I worked with, is not an actor, and I find him remarkable in this film. It’s quite an achievement to get across an emotion – and not only for a non-actor, but also in this kind of context – and it’s a real success.
Jeunet: We were looking for a young man who had a slightly feminine side to him and who would be capable of showing sincerity. It was essential that people would not get the impression that he was looking for a one-night stand, but was really looking for the woman of his life. He captured all of that, he was really excellent.
Related Story:
Feminine mystique
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