Ridley Scott of RSA Films directed this epic short for Hennessy X.O. out of agency DDB Paris. A :60 version of the film is slated to air during the 91st Oscars telecast on Feb. 24.
Complementing the idea that “Each drop of Hennessy X.O. is an Odyssey,” the Academy Award nominated director of the films The Martian and Gladiator as well as breakthrough films Alien and Blade Runner, creates a visual journey that explores the seven flavor profiles in a surreal, sensorial and immersive narrative. The film is a creative interpretation of each of the seven tasting notes, described by Hennessy’s Comité de Dégustation as illustrations of Hennessy X.O’s taste and feel: Sweet Notes, Rising Heat, Spicy Edge, Flowing Flame, Chocolate Lull, Wood Crunches; culminating in Infinite Echo.
“I was attracted to this project because I was inspired by the potential for art and entertainment to bring this story to life,” said Scott. “Hennessy has a great product, and I was lucky enough to have the freedom to interpret this and create something amazing.”
All seven notes evocatively take shape under Scott’s direction, with his subversive sense of narrative, unique light, and knack for radical, and technical innovation. The seven notes, envisioned as individual worlds, are brought to life through wondrous and extreme physiography. The director leaves it to the viewer’s imagination if the film occurs in the future or the past, in reality or in a dreamscape as he takes us through vivid scenes offering snapshots of each world.
Scott’s film depicts the gathering of shimmering golden liquid, human figures walking in the shadows of bronzed giants, androids coming to life through spicy synapses, beings gliding through a fiery atmosphere and meditating peacefully among levitating rocks while lush woodlands are stirred by invisible spirits. As the film culminates we see the worlds co-existing in an omnipresent nebula.
The Seven Worlds production team included VFX house Moving Picture Company (MPC), which previously collaborated with Scott on the films Alien, The Martian as well as Blade Runner. Composer Daniel Pemberton, who previously worked on Scott’s films All the Money in the World and The Counselor, created The Seven Worlds score.
