Yelle's 'Comme Un Enfant' Video: 'Something More Sweetie'
French trio Yelle, whose name stands for "You Enjoy Life," indulges its sweet tooth in the second single off the band's sophomore album, " Safari Disco Club." Singer Julie Budet takes center stage in the bubble-gum pink music video for "Comme Un Enfant," directed by Montreal-based Jérémie Saindon. Saindon, whom Budet claims as a close friend, previously worked with the group on the two-in-one " Safari Disco Club/Que Veux-Tu" video. She attributes their shared artistic references to Saindon belonging to "the same generation."
"For 'Comme Un Enfant,' we wanted to work around the mouth because 'comme un enfant' means 'like a child,'" Budet explains. "And we wanted to express something really scary about all the dentist thing. And something more about the candies, something more happy, and something more sweetie."
YELLE - Comme Un Enfant (official music video) from Yelle on Vimeo.
Like minimalistic sugarplum fairies, dancers dressed in pink bodysuits prance before mirrors cleverly designed to resemble teeth. In the middle of it all, Budet appears as a confectionary dream draped in cotton-candy-like sleeves, posing on a circular platform that serves as the mouth's tongue.
"The new video, it's more about aesthetics. We wanted to do something with beautiful images, and dance moves," says Budet.
Choreographer Dana Michel, also from Montreal, incorporates contemporary dance moves into Budet's signature quirkiness. Budet, who has no formal training other than one year of dance lessons as a child, likes to get her groove on to everything from old '80s hits to pop house music to Madonna. She admits, "I like the really cheesy thing, and the really dance-y song."
The heightened aesthetic of "Comme Un Enfant" also allows Budet to play with high fashion even more so than before. Stylist Clémande Burgevin goes all out, dressing the budding style icon in Stella McCartney:
Lacoste:
Avalon Vega:
Budet enjoys collaborating with designers with whom she has a "real relation." For example, during its live shows, Yelle continues to wear the same outfits originally designed for the album cover by Jean-Paul Lespagnard. Budet, however, describes her everyday dress as being more practical than her flamboyant onstage persona:
"I like to find really old pieces in vintage shops. I like to work with new designers, too. But I like to wear something really simple. … I like to mix. It depends on the day sometimes. But I always like to have a little color touch. It's more about the mood. And the weather, of course."