Who doesn’t love a glamorous Chanel commercial? Before research, I never realized how much goes into creating these short films for Chanel No. 5. From the detailed story, the costume design, and the music, this is not just an everyday commercial featuring a woman spraying perfume and looking stunning.
The film starts with an acoustic version of “The One I That I Want” playing in the background while Gisele Bündchen surfs in the ocean. She looks up and sees her lover leaving her a mysterious note on a table. The note reads, “To my heart I must be true.” He exits the scene, and Gisele’s image is molded into a mother figure when her daughter runs into the frame. She picks up the note and places it next to her makeup, as she gets ready with her daughter at her side.
The next scene of the short film features Gisele modeling for Chanel. She finally opens the letter, and leaves the set to meet with her lover. She is shown crying in a car, driving to find him at a show in a very glamorous location. Upon finding him, the two kiss and the film fades out.
After watching the short film, I watched “The Film Behind the Film,” which showed just how much goes into these commercials. Director Baz Luhrmann stated that after doing research on Chanel, the commercials are not about focusing on a fragrance that’s 100 years old. The major focus is how the “Chanel Woman” changes over the years. Luhrmann’s idea behind this particular film was how a woman’s career and responsibilities are not enough; she still needs love in her life.
Luhrmann shared that the Chanel Woman should be someone who can be with herself alone on a beach one moment, with her children at another, hold an aspirational career, and also incorporate romance into her life. In this short film, the Chanel Woman chooses love. I love how Luhrmann shows the many sides of women because women are dynamic. Coco Chanel herself said, “You can be wearing mens trousers on the beach one moment with a t-shirt and a men’s cap, and then the next moment you can be wearing a beautiful frock. You can be sensual, but you can be practical.”