Alexandre Courtès
Freunde von Freunden offer us a rare glimpse into Alexandre Courtès’ life (and his apartment in Paris) in their latest interview with the acclaimed music video director. Courtès has made a signifacnt contribution to the French Touch genre, working artists and bands such as Cassius, Phoenix, Air and Daft Punk through his music videos and visual identities. He’s also the man behind the infamous Daft Punk’s cult helmets!
Here’s a brief excerpt of the interview…
Before getting your name out there as a director, you were a graphic designer, right?
I still am!! I have always loved to draw. Since a kid, I wanted to illustrate music. I remember a drawing I made in elementary school, inspired by a Janis Joplin song. When I was 15, I had my real first aesthetical shock at the movies with “A clockwork Orange.”
In your work there are many references to graphic design from the 1960’s. Can we call it an influence?
I love Philip Castle, that’s a fact. The idea of the White Stripes’ Seven Nation Army video clip came from the poster of “A clockwork Orange.”
Movies like “Little Big Man or Sunset Boulevard” left a big impression on me while watching them as a little kid. But it’s mainly the music we were listening at home that is haunting me until today. I clearly remember the day I got the audio tape of “The Kinks.”
You never wanted to become a musician?
Ha! That is one great contrariety in my life. Everything came smoothly and natural in regards to drawing. Music, on the other hand, was something else. I never had the required patience to practice the guitar… and my fingers look like cocktail sausages, so I quit pretty quickly.
Thanks guys very kind.