Bon Anniversaire Jalouse

British Vogue celebrated their 90th birthday with a special-ish sort of cover and a flimsy supplement.  Jalouse, one of my absolute favourite French magazines, celebrates their 10th anniversary (and 100th issue) by making a film.  Directed by longtim Jalouse collaborator, Matthew Frost, this 26 minute film takes a look at Jalouse, the magazine headed up by a fictional boss (played by legendary model Marisa Berenson), with her daughter Lauren (L√©a Seydoux) and son, Thomas (Virgile Bramly) working with their mother at Jalouse.  They are looking for a ‘new face’ for Jalouse and haps upon a young American actress Jane (played by the underdog of American actresses Nora Zehetner).  Jane gets invited out to Paris and embarks on a jet-lagged and confused ‘American in Paris/Lost in Translation’ type experience. 

This short film is a little like a contemporary ‘Qui √™tes-vous Polly Magoo?’ with subtler parodies and mockeries of the fashion industry.  For instance you get a slightly air-headed, bitchy fashion assistant (played by Alexia Landeau) and  distainful fashionistas at parties.  But there is also something quite well-rounded about it with the character of Lauren harboring discontent in her job, a stable practical journalist Prudence (played by model Caroline de Maigret).   Shot with a 16mm camera, there is also some beautiful cinematography of Paris through the eyes of Jane and some soul-baring close-up shots too especially of Jane who is a little lost whilst the fashion world moves around her. 

The styling and looks of the cast are also pleasantly un-preened yet artfully chic.  A far cry from the exaggerated cliched fashion portrayals that we get (not pointing any fingers or anything *cough cough* Devil Wears Prada)…

The frightfully chic ‘Big Boss’ (played by Marisa Berenson) // Jane, the young American Actress (played by Nora Zehetner)

Lauren, Jalouse’s slightly vulnerable fashion editor (played by L√©a Seydoux) // Thomas, the playboy editor-in-chief at Jalouse (played by Virgile Bramly)

Sabrina, the ditzy assistant (played by Alexia Landeau) // Prudence, the straight talking journalist (played by Caroline de Maigret)

The DVD is available as a separate supplment to the magazine for 10 euros and I nabbed it whilst buying gum at the airport in Toulon.  Sadly, I’m not sure it is available outside Europe (or even outside France!) but if you are an international subscriber, I think you can buy it through Jalouse directly.   I would highly recommend picking it up if you per chance see it somewhere and of course probably all French readers will have bought it already.  You can watch the trailer here to see what I’m chatting about, if it’s too hard to get hold of.  Trust Jalouse, a magazine that always hits the right buttons for me in terms of youthful, non-pretentious fashion to produce a gem like this.