The Guerlain Christmas Dance
Beakers Beer
Le Nöel de mes rêves – Galeries Lafayettes
Professor Clarins We Care
Born to Be – La Samaritaine
The Lacoste Wrapping Machine
LACOSTE ASKED ELSA TO IMAGINE THEIR XMAS CAMPAIGN : WE FLAUNT LACOSTE ICONIC CROCODILE IN AN INGENIOUS ORIGINAL ANIMATED SHORT FILM !
LACOSTE celebrates the end‑of‑year festivities by showcasing its trademark crocodile in animated format. The film takes place on Christmas Eve in a setting that brings to mind a Parisian roofspace workshop. The viewer is plunged into the animated world of Crocodile, a contemporary, whimsical reincarnation of brand creator René Lacoste. Seated at his desk, Crocodile has just completed his latest invention: the marvellous Lacoste Wrapping Machine. In a precise, elegant sweep of the hand, he sends a tennis ball soaring to the other side of the room to trigger the mechanism and activate the device for wrapping up LACOSTE fragrances.
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VISUALS
For the first time in Lacoste history, the iconic crocodile comes to life in a striking and offbeat animation for our Christmas campaign ! Elsa imagined a contemporary, whimsical reincarnation of brand creator René Lacoste Working together with Jeremy Macedo -characterdesigner – and all the brand’s team to get this character design.
It took two months to Stephane Viola and Thomas Gebczynski to construct the sculpted, articulated Crocodile figurine. They had to create a skeleton for the puppet. After this, they sculpted it, moulded it, cast it in silicone and hand‑painted it.
The clothing was also all made by hand by Coralli Grieu : an elegant pair of trousers and sweatshirt from the Autumn/Winter 2021 Lacoste collection, all set off by the new L001 sneakers.
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PUPPET FABRICATION
A STUNNINGLY REALISTIC ANIMATED WORLD
It was a painstakingly precise task, involving the creation of miniature 1/7 scale figures of each element in the film. It took two months to construct all the components used in the decor, involving so many people.
BRAND HERITAGE IN EVERY DETAILS
From initial sketch to final production, Elsa have striven to embody the brand and its values in every details. The campaign contains numerous references to the brand heritage and universe. In the apartment setting, viewers can spot a replica of René Lacoste’s famous patented ball-launching machine, an assortment of trophies and numerous tennis racquets. Crocodile’s contraption also borrows design elements from the brand, with a giant L.12.12 Blanc fragrance bottle for the central pillar of the mechanism, L001 sneakers serving as mechanical arms, a golf club busily sticking on labels and a tennis net-turned-Santa sack catching the falling gifts. The multitude of bright colours used are part of Lacoste’s and my own creative DNA.
For the apartment furniture, Elsa thought it would be fun to pick from the catalogue of Galerie Jacques Lacoste, which is run by René’s grandson. Elsa added a lot of my own personal taste, too, so his apartment looks a little bit like mine! From furniture to style to character, it’s all quite contemporary, yet steeped in history. His clothes are miniature replica pieces from the recent AH21 runway show, which actually have a rather quaint 1920s look!
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BEHINDTHE SCENE
Our hero has just completed his latest invention, which is a machine for wrapping his favourite gifts, namely, Lacoste fragrances! His contraption has been built following the aesthetics of one of Leonardo da Vinci’s gadgets and a Rube Goldberg machine, all cobbled together with Lacoste sports and tennis accessories. To activate the machine, he must give his best serve, which he performs with elegance, agility and humour.
Imaging the machine was a long and arduous process. There were many versions, and it was ultimately Vincent Leplat who envisioned and designed the final version.
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Elsa had the vision of producing the whole film in stop motion animation. To bring Crocodile’s story to life inside a 30-second film, 750 photos had to be carefully selected and assembled, each one setting in motion the gestures and expressions of the protagonist and his extraordinary machine. With each day of work culminating in 30 seconds of film, fifteen days were required to capture all the photographic content. This was a precise, rigorous task that used a blend of tenacity and daring, in step with the brand’s values.
This campaign was broadcast on television in several markets, including France and the UK. The visuals were used in POS, and a massive week-long pop-up allowed customers to immerse themselves in the film.
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360°
