Avène x Elle case study
Skincare brand film Avène × Elle inspired by thermal spring water
A film exploring the origins of Tolérance Control: the Avène thermal spa, recognised dermatological expertise and local production just a few hundred metres from the spring.
Bringing the origin of skincare to life
The project
An editorial film connecting thermal spring water, research and skincare.
The film supported an Avène x Elle feature about sensitive skin, the Tolérance Control range and an active ingredient derived from the microflora found in Avène thermal spring water.
The intention
Explain a scientific promise without losing the gentle tone of the subject.
The film had to explain the thermal spa, D-Sensinose research, sterile cosmetics and environmental responsibility without turning the story into a technical presentation.
Watch the film
“Everything begins at the spring: the water, the skin, the research and the care.”
This idea guides the film: showing that the product’s effectiveness begins in a real place, with a medical history, a spring and the people behind it.
The visual challenge
Film a scientific world without making it feel cold.
The subject covers active ingredients, microflora, sterile cosmetics and quality control. The imagery had to remain gentle and consistent with sensitive skin and thermal spring water.
Production
A brand shoot at the heart of the Avène ecosystem.
LocationsThermal spa and production facility
FormatEditorial film and social media edits
UniversThermal spring water, skincare, sensitive skin
What the film explores
A short production chain linking the spring, research and the finished product.
The story explains the role of the thermal spa, which welcomes more than 2,000 visitors from around the world each year to soothe sensitive skin. It also introduces D-Sensinose, an active ingredient derived from the microflora of the thermal spring water and developed after more than ten years of research.
The film then connects this origin to the production facility: Tolérance Control is made a few hundred metres from the spring using sterile cosmetics technology, with no preservatives or fragrance and a formula made with 98% ingredients of natural origin.
From the spring to skincare
The Avène x Elle film is more than a product video. It is a skincare brand story built around a clear fact: Avène thermal spring water has been used for skin conditions for more than 200 years.
The story unfolds in three stages: the thermal spa, D-Sensinose derived from the water’s microflora, and the production facility where the Tolérance Control range is made close to the spring.
The directing challenge was to make a scientific subject easy to understand without weighing it down. The imagery had to remain gentle, sensory and human while retaining the precision expected from a dermo-cosmetics brand.
This kind of production meets a clear need: a carefully crafted brand film that explains an innovation, presents a real place and works in an editorial feature, a case study or on social media.
A process for exacting skincare brands
A dermo-cosmetics film needs more than attractive imagery. Its message must be reliable, clear to the audience and visually consistent with the sensitivity of the brand.
Preparation
Understand the brand codes before filming.
Reviewing the editorial story, scouting the thermal spa and production facility, and identifying the key messages: sensitive skin, D-Sensinose, sterile cosmetics and local production.
Filming
Create precise, discreet and refined imagery.
Interviews, skincare routines, textures, product shots and the laboratory environment: the imagery had to remain precise, bright and reassuring.
Post-production
Shape a concise story without overexplaining.
Editing, colour grading, sound design and multiple formats connect the thermal spa, research, production and product benefits in one coherent story.
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