The great success of French electronic music, brought with it a group of French directors, from a variety of art disciplines, who made music videos with a striking new style: the 'French New Wave'. Inspired by artists such as Air, Etienne de Crecy and Mirwaïs, the directors ensured a fresh wind through the music video world. Their use of animation led to an identifiable genre, in which animation and abstract consequences were combined in narrative music videos. Their command of set construction and other disciplines can be seen in their subtle references to classic cinema and animation art.The stunningly beautiful new video by the H5, How Does it Make You Feel for Air is an excellent example of the refinement and ambiguity that these French directors manage to incorporate in their videos. In The Child for Alex Gopher, the city is shown as a comic strip of words that are at the same time people, cards and buildings: a clear example of the different narrative layers that together form a clear autonomous unit. This emphasis on stylistic refinement does not lead to a dearth of strong narrative concepts. A good example is formed by the collection of videos by Geoffrey de Crecy for his brother Etienne, commenting on 'global culture' using images of fast food, shopping centres and stock exchanges among others. Director: artist, song (supplied by) Stephane Sednaoui: Mirwais, Disco Science (Sony/Epic) Stephane Sednaoui: Mirwais, I Can't Want (Sony/Epic) Stephane Sednaoui: Jamiroquai, Little L (Sony/Epic) Geoffrey de Crecy: Etienne de Crecy, Am I Wrong (V2) Geoffrey de Crecy: Etienne de Crecy, Scratched (V2) Geoffrey de Crecy: Etienne de Crecy, Tempovision (V2) H5 (=Antoine Bardou-Jacquet): Alex Gopher, The Child (Partizan) H5: Zebda, Oularadime (Partizan) H5: Ben Diamond, In Your Arms (Partizan) H5: Air, How Does It Make You Feel (Partizan) Alex & Martin: Cassius, 99 3 (Partizan) Alex & Martin: Air, Radio #1 (Partizan) Numero 6: Superman Lovers, Starlight (Partizan) Quentin Dupieux: Mr. Oizo, Flatbeat (Partizan) Philippe Andre: Roger Sanchez/Laurent Garnier, Another Chance (Sony Music) S. Jhaveri: Laurent Garnier, The Man With a Red Face (Wanda, Mute) Yann Ornhan: St. Germain, So Flute (EMI) Sebastian Fau: Le peuple de l'herbe, PH Theme (Virgin)
Directors
Various Artists, Stephane Sednaoui, Geoffroy de Crecy, Antoine Bardou-Jacquet, Ludovic Houplin, Hervé de Crecy, Alex Courtes, Martin Fougerol, Numero 6, Quentin Dupieux, Siraj Jhaveri, Yann Orhan, Sebastian Fau
Country of production
France
Year
2000
Festival Edition
IFFR 2002
Length
72'
Medium
Betacam SP PAL