Baron Otard - 'Immortal Splendour'

BARON OTARD Immortal Splendour 16 September 2013

INTRODUCTION BARON OTARD is a brand steeped in a rich and noble history. Contained within each bottle is over a 1000 years of tradition, master craftsmanship and heritage. Located on the banks of the River La Charente it is the only Royal cognac from the only Royal Chateau de Cognac.

It is only Baron Otard that aligns these unique elements to create the most luxurious and magical Cognac in the world.

This is the story we want to tell.

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OVERALL TONE We will create a mystical, beautiful, dark and rich world within the Chateau’s walls that brings to life the Baron Otard brand and its rich unique history.

Powerful and mysterious imagery combined with an evocative rich voiceover and beautifully designed text will absorb the viewer into the magical and wonderful world of Baron Otard.

The film will highlight the crafted heritage and tradition of a world steeped in history. The tone will be intelligent, layered and mercurial, of this world but hinting at something greater.

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NARRATIVE STRUCTURE This film has a strong cinematic aesthetic. It celebrates the rich unique history of Baron Otard Cognac. The narrative is drawn together by a timeless single figure travelling through the majestic Royal Chateau de Cognac.

This figure is a man of mystery; we see only abstract teasing glimpses of him, never his face or full body. We see his shadow passing along walls, his feet passing through shot, the back of his body stopping to look up at the Royal Salamander placed by King Francois 1st.

Who is this man? What is he doing here?

Where is he going?

His journey allows us to reveal the unique awe-inspiring heritage of the building. As he walks through a living history we take in the architecture, the engravings, the portraits of Monarchs that reigned supreme and the Leonardo Da Vinci designed State Room.

A deep, mysterious voiceover guides us through this magical location and the historical events that have shaped the Chateau’s past. We hear that this is an

ancient Chateau, built on the banks of the River La Charente where the mists are allowed to seep through natural, three metre thick, limestone walls deep into the Chateau.

This is the birthplace of Kings; the setting for epic battles and the location if the great hall designed by one of the sharpest minds of the last 1000 years.

Each part of the story is partnered by an evocative soundscape that transports us back through time to experience the history for ourselves. We hear a baby crying and gasps of celebration as the King of Kings is born. We hear the echoes of soldiers in full armour running through the ancient stone passageways to hold the medieval fortress from the hands of an approaching enemy.

The history is further brought to life with designed type that beautifully flows across the image to emphasise key historical milestones such as “1494 – birth of King Francois - the King of Kings”.

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Our mysterious stranger journeys deep into the depths of the Chateau and the grand cellar is revealed in all its glory. We see traditional distillation equipment, rows of barrels and big copper pots. A soft light bathes the room giving the impression that this is a place where traditional craft and technique are given the utmost respect. We are almost in the realm of the Devine.

He continues down a stone staircase through dark passageways into the bowels of the Chateau. Our voiceover continues our journey through history and our soundscape gets richer, building with echoes of past lives, ringing out louder and louder as we are transported deeper into the magic of our surroundings.

As we enter into the cellar our world begins to expand. Our eyes acclimatize to the dark and we can see an old Cognac distillery. Our Cellar Master comes fully into view.

For the first time the voiceover romantically describes how the building’s rich history has led to the creation of the perfect environment for the aging of cognac. It is as if it was preordained that this place

be destined to produce the golden nectar. Over a 1000 years of powerful history, romanticism and mysticism flows into that cellar and through the hands of the master Maitre de Chai.

Our stranger dons an apron and gets to work carefully controlling the distillation process, moving barrels and tasting the cognac. We begin to describe the care and attention that goes into producing every bottle of Baron Otard Cognac.

Journeying through the labyrinth of cellars with our Master allows us to highlight the details in the distillation process that relate to the Chateau’s surroundings.

We see a hand brush past a barrel and are transported outside to the grounds of the Chateau and an earthy red soil being thumbed by experienced hands. The demijohns evoke a view of the river and we see a powerful surge of water lick the walls of the Chateau. Each abstract flash of detail within the cellar relates to the uniqueness of the location, we see misty vineyards, hills, and greenery.

All the time we are guided through the process by our authoritative silky voiceover.

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We end our journey as we reach the Paradise cellar where the rarest eaux-de-vie is kept.

It is here we describe how a truly unique cognac can only be produced through the combination and alignment of a 1000 years of history, the perfect environment and a heritage of traditional values and techniques.

Born out of this unique and almost devine royal alignment, this is the immortal splendour, the King of Kings – the cognac of all cognacs.

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A VOICEOVER SAMPLE The voiceover will be rich, powerful and seductive with French undertones.

It will set the tone and take the viewer on a journey deep into the rich world of Baron Otard.

The voiceover will be emotive and evocative but not be overly specific when describing the details of the Chateau’s history but rather hint at loftier themes and give an epic, powerful overview of the story.

“There is an ancient Chateau on the banks of the River La Charente. A place where great Kings were born and battles were fought...”

For example, the great hall will be described as…

“A room born from one of the greatest scientific and artistic minds of the last 1000 years…”

The specific details and names will be highlighted in beautifully designed type that flows within the imagery.

In this vein, we will describe the unique details of the Chateau’s cellars…

“If these walls could talk, what a magical tale they would tell.”

“A mists rises from the River La Charente enveloping the Chateau and penetrating deep into thick ancient limestone walls. Hidden within these walls lies the perfect environment for aging the eaux-di-vie. So perfect, it is as if fate itself has led to its birth…”

Rather than referring directly to Francoise 1st we talk about…

Our voice continues with a haunting description of the Angels share…

“The birthplace of the greatest of all Kings, the King of Kings…”

“Held aloft, the cognac is offered to the heavens for the angels to receive their share of the golden liquid and bask in the unique aromas and the complex rancio flavours…”

This theme continues as we travel further through the Chateau.

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VISUAL STYLE This film has a strong rich photographic look to it. Each frame and scene is carefully composed to enhance the overall brand essence we are trying to capture. Â A strong aesthetic binds the images together allowing us to shoot in different environments and conditions. In the Chateau, the images covering history are predominantly dark and beautiful using strong accents of light to cut through the darkness adding drama and an epic feel. In the cellar the lighting is subtler and crafted, providing an element of softness and artistry. The focus will drop away to give us luxurious soft backgrounds and an artisan look. Â The natural surrounding environment is portrayed with a touch of magic and other worldliness; mist rises of the river in the early morning, rays of sunlight shine down through the forest canopy and golden sunlight dances on the flowing water.

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MUSIC AND SOUND DESIGN Music will be used to further the ethereal and magical quality of the film. Using piano and choral elements we will create a mercurial, mysterious backdrop to frame our journey through the Chateau and into the cellar. The tone will be that of wonder and tie together all parts of the journey from interior to exterior.

Although mysterious, the tone will never be dark, imposing or ominous but rather uplifting, minimal and beautiful.

Below are example tracks that we feel would work well within the film: 12_DEM078_ BeautyToTheEnd https://soundcloud.com/deep-east-music/12-dem078-beautytotheend-main 07_DEM017 Our Paths Will Cross https://soundcloud.com/deep-east-music/07-dem017-ourpathswillcross 06_DEM086 LoveLoopings https://soundcloud.com/deep-east-music/06-dem086-loveloopings-main

Throughout the film, sound design and Foley will play an important role to set the tone and recreate the soundscape of the past. As we move through the Chateau and see the visual historical elements we will also hear them – the birth of a King, the clamour and uproar of battle, the celebration of victory and the voice of a 15th century genius at work.

A combination of music, sound design and evocative language will create a fully immersive journey into the story of the Baron Otard brand.

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PACKAGING AND BRANDING

We want to show that all the care and attention that goes into making the worlds finest cognac also goes into designing the branding and bottle.

Although we might not have access to the new bottle at the time of filming we can use the cellar scenes to allude to something new and magical coming soon from Baron Otard.

In the final scene of our film, we pan around the cellar and linger on a section of bottles. Our view is obscured and distorted but we can make out their heavenly glow. These bottles are clearly special; they are bright, new and shimmer like a halo out of the dark. The display is roped off and no one is allowed access to them.

Our voiceover tells us: “With all the care and attention that goes into producing the world’s finest cognac, it is only natural that we use a bottle that also reflects its splendour and majesty. Soon it will be ready to reveal to the world but as you know, perfection takes time…”

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IN SUMMARY This film will embody Baron Otard’s key brand values of immortal splendour, luxury, mysticism power, tradition, heritage and legacy.

Highly photographic visuals will give the film a dark and beautifully rich aesthetic that draws the viewer into a world of history, romance and tradition.

The visual narrative will focus on a journey through the Chateau as led by a mysterious, timeless figure. Everything we see will be an intriguing glimpse of abstract details furthering the feeling of wonder and other-worldliness.

Throughout the journey, the history of the Chateau and cognac production process will be narrated by a deep, seductive, rich voiceover that will evoke feelings of romance, power and mysticism. This will be further brought to life with the use of sound design as we hear the echo of past lives reverberating around stonewalls.

Beautifully designed type will flow over the imagery and to give specific details of the Chateaus past.

Every element of the treatment is designed to seamlessly integrate the historical, environmental, and human factors that give Baron Otard it’s unique market positioning with a feeling of mysticism, romance, power and absolute luxury.

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For further information please contact Lisa Green Executive Producer & Strategic Partner M: 07860 799527 P: 020 3301 2173 Lucy Murray Account Director M: 07980 547983 P: 02033 012 179 15