Louis de Caunes has just returned to live in Paris following several years making films in New York. We caught up with the director to find out more about his music videos
Your latest video for Saint Michel, Would You Stay, is beautiful, it’s also hot and completely different from your earlier work with the band for the track called Katherine. One is sensuous live action and the earlier one is vfx driven.
Do you collaborate closely with the band? And how did the ideas for both videos evolve?
I actually only met the band on the set of the first video, Katherine, but we immediately felt a connection.
The idea for Katherine came when I moved to New-York. I was really mesmerized by all the lights of the city, and thought it would be really groovy in a music video. When the song came, it just felt right.
The first time I heard the song Would You Stay there is a heavy breathing sound in it and I envisioned a woman pleasuring herself. It sounds weird now that I think about it but it was pretty instinctive. Anyway I like that in both videos the music creates physical reactions.
What were the main challenges of making the videos and how did you resolve them?
The main challenges were money, money and money.
Seriously though, for the first one we shot on a super tall building, a super narrow ledge, and I happen to have a big problem with heights, so that was quite a challenge.
I think for the second one the challenge was to not make the viewer feel like a perv. I have no idea how I resolved that.
Mon Epoque for Cyril Mokaiesh is entirely different again, did you create this in reaction to the lyrics?
This song came to me right in the middle of the ‘Occupy’ movement, and it was happening down the street where I worked. The song has a very revolutionary feel to it, and I thought it sounded like a cool soundtrack for ‘Occupy’. I went down with my camera, not really knowing what I would do, and I just started taking pictures.
What is your background and what led you to directing?
My family is in the business, and I basically grew up on film sets, so it always felt very natural to me to go this way.
What is your favourite part of the film making process?
I really like the moment of the shooting, that’s when everything happens, where your ideas go from something totally abstract to a very concrete image. All your imagination is suddenly converted to reality, and I find that pretty poetic.
Where are you based? Are you signed to a production company?
I just moved back to Paris and I am in talks with a couple of production companies. I have a new music video coming out soon I did with one of them, but I’m still a free agent as of right now.
Music Videos, commercials, films – where does your heart lie?
Music videos and commercials are funky undertakings, but films are what brought me to this, and this is where I’m heading.
