Fashion brand Lacoste believes that “Life is a Beautiful Sport,” showing that taking risks is simply wonderful. It is then when the #CrocodileInside us comes out. Central to this concept stands the company’s “Crocodile Inside” campaign, which, unlike its predecessors, features a less romanticized love story. During this week’s #ThrowBrandThursday column, we are going to focus on a stubborn couple and their possible breakup (and other love stories imagined by Lacoste).

Created by agency BETC, the campaign features comedians Oulaya Amamra and Kevin Azaïs playing the roles of two love partners who are intensely arguing about something. As the fight escalates, the environment degrades to the point where the two are separated by a huge crack formed in the floor — a symbol of their separation, which seems inevitable between the two. Once they realize that they have let anger replace rationality, they decide to return to each other.

Directed by MEGAFORCE, the short film’s action is intensified by Edit Piaf’s “L’Hymne à l’amour” song, reinforcing the idea that not even a destroyed world can keep two lovers apart, as they will “sing a hymn to love.” Speaking about this cinematic moment, Co-President and CCO of BETC and head of the Havas Creative Council, Stéphane Xiberras, says: “This film is like a little excerpt of a feature film and it perfectly reflects the phrase ‘life is a beautiful sport’, because in sport, as in life, you can’t win without confrontation.”

The film was widely applauded, stated Le Figaro. Yet, some critics called for more decency, pointing out the dramas that had happened in France around that time.

Crocodile Inside’s predecessor is titled “Timeless” and comprises 80 years in a 90-second-video “capsule.” The short video tells the romantic story of a man who follows a woman on a train, played by Damien Chapelle and Dorcas Coppin. Each scene features a different era, yet, one thing is omnipresent: the polo shirt.

The project has been produced by Wanda for BETC and directed by Seb Edwards. The film is a beautiful ode to René Lacoste, a French tennis player and creator of the eponymous brand, who, inspired by a friend who was wearing a polo shirt, had the “practical idea” of designing one of its own.

In the “Timeless” video, director Edwards wanted to reiterate the success of his previous campaign for Lacoste, “The Big Leap.” Created under the same mantra, “Life is a Beautiful Sport,” the ad is about courage and taking risks in life. It is also a story about love but told from a bold point of view. The video shows a man about to make a decision. While he is all “go for it,” his mind generates a scenario in which he seems to be in danger. The award-winning film stars Paul Hamy and Anna Brewster.

Credits:

Client: Lacoste

Agency: BETC

Campaign: Crocodile Inside

Chief Creative Director: Rémi Babinet

Creative Directors: Aurélie Scalabre, Olivier Aumard, Damien Bellon

Copywriter: Olivier Aumard

Art Director: Aurélie Scalabre

Assistant Art Director: Jessica Fecteau

Account Managers: Bertille Toledano, Gaëlle Gicqueau, Fanny Buisseret

Strategy: Philippe Martin-Davies

Director: MEGAFORCE

Dop: Bradford Young

Production: Iconoclast

Post-production: Time Based Arts

Campaign: Timeless

Agency: BETC

Production: Wanda

Director: Seb Edwards

VFX Supervisor: Stéphane Allender

VFX Producer: Christophe Huchet, Xavier Questel

Lead CG (Paris): Vincent Coni

3D Team: Adam Tinning, André Monteiro, Jonathan Carrier, Olivier Lukaszczyk

Flame: Stéphane Allender, Angus Wilson

Coordination VFX: Nicolas Huguet

Datalab: Nicolas Daniel, Pauline Royo, Jonathan Cayssials

Editor: Léa Latassa

Campaign: The Big Leap

Agency: BETC

Agency Producer: David Green

Art Director: Damien Bellon

Copywriter: Gabrielle Attia

Creative Director: Antoine Choque

Director: Seb Edwards

Executive Creative Director: Rémi Babinet

Production Company: Wanda Productions

Sound Design: Schmooze

Special Effects: MPC

Account Handler: Brune Failliot, Matthieu Kuster, Bertille Toledano