P&G | Flora | 2009
In a Sea of White Flowers, a Girl Takes Control of Nature / Gucci "Flora"
Chris Cunningham shoots a perfume ad. The man behind the nightmarish music videos for Aphex Twin and Björk takes on Gucci's new fragrance.
The problem
Flora traces back to 1966, when it began as a scarf made for Princess Grace of Monaco. Creative director Frida Giannini reworked it into a scent, and following her previous collaboration with David Lynch on "Gucci by Gucci," she this time chose Cunningham.
The insight
Concept director Riccardo Ruini aimed to break away from the image of the "dreaming maiden." He wanted to portray women as active beings who command nature, capturing in the film a shift from girl to powerful woman.
The idea
Model Abbey Lee stands waist-deep in white flowers. Against a setting sun, the wind sweeps through her hair and the flowers at the same time. The edit alternates between close-ups and sweeping wide shots, and the four-day shoot used more than 20,000 artificial flowers. For the music, Cunningham himself re-recorded Donna Summer's "I Feel Love."
What happened
The campaign won Gold for Best Use of Music at Cannes Lions, along with a Bronze in the Toiletries category. Creative Review praised it, saying the unlikely pairing of a dark filmmaker and a fashion brand paid off brilliantly.
Afterthought
20 seconds that barely show the product, carried entirely by feeling. Gucci had the nerve to hand its perfume over to a filmmaker known for his unsettling work, and Cunningham delivered. Doing this back in 2009 took real guts—and watching it today, it still hasn't lost its edge.
Awards
- Cannes Lions Gold 2009
