Face to Face with... JACK

If anyone knows about being diverse it’s Julien Choquart and Camille Hirigoyen. Originally graphic designers and ex-creatives at Wieden + Kennedy, the two now flex their creative muscle as directing duo JACK.

They’ve only been helming for two years but already they’ve completed jobs around the globe for clients such as Vogue and Nike and have recently signed to Passion RAW for representation in the UK and Dutch markets. Here we catch up with them to ask about their cool new promo for Lafayette (above), recent creative inspirations and what the next 12 months hold.

Tell us a about your latest promo (above) for Lafayette?

When we came back to France two years ago we asked our good friend DJ Etienne Tron (aka Radioclit) “What will be the sound of tomorrow in Paris?” to which he instantly replied “Lafayette!”. We fell in love with the music, then met Fred (Lafayette), and decided to create a promo for him.

The song’s called The Women’s Underwear, so shouldn’t the focus be on the woman?

That is the name of the song, but the lyrics tell a more twisted story. It’s about a sensible man's confession to wearing his girlfriend's underwear, badly liking it, and the sweet torture that ensues.

Where was it shot and did it go as you planned?

We shot in one of the most beautiful apartments we know in Paris. The owner is the mother of one of our best friends. She used to work in the fashion industry and has very clever tastes. We loved the ‘boudoir’ look of the apartment as it's not typically Parisian, but a clever interpretation of many influences. The first time we went in, we instantly saw frames of where to put Lafayette and his girls. At the very first sight, the movie was almost there. The multiple cuts are totally assumed, and an absolute perverse choice. We wanted to create frustration for the viewers.

You are on the road a lot. Where have you done jobs recently?

For the past six years we've been living and working all around the world. London, Shanghai, Tokyo, Amsterdam, but now we're based in Paris. Next, we're flying to Slovenia to shoot a commercial. We’ve also just finished a perfume film for Agatha Ruiz de la Prada (out in July) for Spain and South America.

And why did you sign to Passion RAW?

We really like the family spirit of Passion RAW's structure and its genesis is quite similar to our own. It comes from Passion Pictures: animation/graphic design background and is evolving in its own way with its own vision, by mixing everything with wide freedom and very cool energy. Passion RAW is like the ‘enfants terribles’ of Passion Pictures, and we like that idea.

Your work always seems to have a bright and fun palette; does this reflect your personalities?

Haha! Sure! Camille is the pink side of the duo and Julien the blue one. Seriously, we're indeed two very convinced optimists.

You do art direction and illustration too, how do you decide what you’ll do on a particular job?

Actually, we don't decide. I think it just comes to us instinctively. But whatever the project, we always start with lots of drawings. Drawing is a precious tool. It’s the key to all the work we do.

And which jobs do you prefer, promos or commercials?

It's different, and we can't say which one we like the most. We love to be completely free on a promo, build a story, a universe and test new things. We have to love the song, live with it and find cool solutions to transform it into a film. We also like the challenges a commercial can bring. As we both had a graphic design education, being briefed is not a torture at all. Finding the clever and unexpected way to expose our vision within the constraints is quite an exciting game for us.

Can we probe you for any recent favourites that spring to mind?

It's not that recent but last year we were completely blown away by the two Massive Attack promos Splitting the Atom and Atlas Air directed by Edouard Salier. How Edouard managed to inject so much emotion into these almost abstract CGI worlds is very impressive.

Most recently, we’ve fallen totally in love with the feature film Tomboy, directed by Céline Sciamma. We’ve been big fans of hers since Water Lilies. What's happening in video at the moment in France is massive and full of energy.

What can we expect to see from JACK over the next 12 months?

At the moment we're working on a very exciting fashion project with our friends at Von Engelswacht (a young fashion designers’ representative). The commercial we’re shooting next week will be broadcasted in more than 40 countries in September so there’s no chance you'll miss it. Apart from that, we’ve had crushes on some cool artists... so great promos to follow them up with hopefully!