To film a luxury product, you first have to watch. Paying attention to the smallest detail to catch the right gesture, understanding how each person carries themselves, and knowing what to film at the right moment: that is what brings a refined, distinguished atmosphere to the screen, far more than the equipment. We lived it on 5 September at Hôtel Royal in Evian, filming Prunier caviar for the four-hands dinner cooked by Yannick Alléno and Yohan Fatela.
The film lasts 33 seconds. We co-directed it with Ilya Kagan (Ilyafoodstories), in a single day, and I want to tell you how that day went, because almost everything we know about filming a product like this one fits into it.
Caviar is filmed very close up
The product is a blue tin and some grains. Nothing else. So we stuck to them: macro on the lid as it opens, grains that shine, the mother-of-pearl spoon going in and coming out full. On those shots, the slightest missed reflection shows straight away, and a dull grain on screen is a product that looks less good than it is.
We worked with raking light, a window or a single source, on a dark background, and we shot the gestures at 50 frames per second. In the edit, that lets us slow things down just enough to see the grains glisten and slide off the spoon, without it looking like a special effect.
Watch before you roll
The most important part does not show in the film. It is all the time spent watching people before shooting. In the kitchen, you have to understand how everyone carries themselves: how the brigade moves, where each person stands, the moment Yannick Alléno leans over a plate. That is how you know what to film at the right time. If you walk in asking people to repeat a gesture for the camera, you lose exactly what you came for.
For that part of the day, the instruction fit in one line: don’t direct, find your spot and wait. It takes patience, and above all attention to the smallest detail, because the right gesture lasts a second and does not always come back.
No camera during dinner
One rule was set from the start: no camera during service. Guests come to dine, not to be filmed, and that is fair. So every table scene was staged beforehand, in the afternoon, with a member of the service team for the gesture. The plate comes into frame, the hand sets it down, the hand leaves. We did it two or three times per plate, asking for a slow, natural gesture, no look at the camera.
That is not cheating. It is how we work in hotels: we fit our slots to the life of the house, never the other way round. We worked the same way on the Hôtel de Crillon film.
Equipment, the other half of the job
What you don’t see when you watch a film like this one is the logistics. Equipment is complicated. If you come with a lot of gear, you sometimes have to move it from one place to another within the same day, and discreetly, because these places are hard to access for a whole day of shooting. In Evian, we went from the kitchen to the table, then outside, to the Salle des Fresques, back to the kitchen when the chefs started plating, and finally out on the terrace for the sunset over the lake, just after 8pm. Every time, you have to arrive, set up, shoot and leave without getting in anyone’s way.
That is why we go in with a very precise shot list, room by room and hour by hour. On this shoot there were more than fifty shots. It sounds like a lot for 33 seconds, but it is what keeps you from forgetting something when you only have half an hour in a room.
In the end
The film runs 33 seconds, in vertical format, made for social media. If I had to keep one thing from that day, it is that we invented nothing. It was all already there, in the way a chef places a spoon or a waiter sets down a plate. We just had to pay attention to the smallest detail to catch it at the right moment, and not spoil it by trying to do too much.
The film is on the project page: Prunier, Four Hands. We have also gathered our art de vivre and luxury films, and I wrote about the mistakes that damage the elegance of a brand film.
Frequently asked questions
Who directed the Prunier film with Yannick Alléno at Hôtel Royal in Evian?
The film was co-directed by Ilya Kagan and Maxime Vaux, founder of SIGNS Films. It was shot in a single day, on 5 September 2026, at Hôtel Royal in Evian, for the four-hands dinner cooked by Yannick Alléno and Yohan Fatela around Prunier caviar. It lasts 33 seconds and can be watched in the SIGNS Films portfolio, Art de Vivre category.
How do you film caviar so that it shines on screen?
Very close up, with raking light that catches the surface of the grains, a window or a single continuous source, on a dark background. On the Prunier shoot, gestures such as opening the tin or dipping the mother-of-pearl spoon were filmed at 50 frames per second, so they could be slowed down in the edit to show the grains glistening.
Can you film during service in a fine dining restaurant?
Rarely, and it was ruled out at Hôtel Royal: guests come to dine, not to be filmed. The answer is to stage the table scenes before service, in the afternoon, with a real member of the service team for the gesture. We do two or three takes per plate, with a slow, natural gesture and no look at the camera.
Are short videos essential for a luxury brand?
They matter a lot on social media, but short does not mean quick to produce. The Prunier film lasts 33 seconds and took a full day of shooting and more than fifty shots. On the other hand, the three-minute film SIGNS Films made for Le Royal Monceau passed 6 million views on Instagram: length matters less than the quality of the images.
A product, a maison, a place to film? Write to us: we reply within 24 hours, with a first take on how to film it.