Luxury watch film cinematographer
James Coote is a cinematographer for luxury watch and jewellery films. He shot Jaeger-LeCoultre's Made of Makers films with pastry chef Nina Métayer and light artist Guillaume Marmin, directed by Killian Lassabliere and produced by Players Paris, and a Tissot commercial directed by The Bardos. He works from Paris and London across Europe.
What is different about lighting a watch?
A watch is a small object made of polished metal, sapphire crystal and sometimes enamel or gem-set surfaces, every one of which is a mirror. The lighting is designed in reflections: large soft sources placed so their shape reads in the case and bezel, black flags to draw the edges, and a single small specular to make the crystal and indexes live. Macro lenses and a motion-control or slider pass give the movement the brand expects.
And when the film is about people, not product?
Made of Makers is a portrait series about craft. The watch appears, but the film is about hands, workshops and the maker's attention. James lit those films as documentary portraiture with campaign finish: natural-feeling light with a controlled key, so the product shots cut cleanly into the human story without a change of world.
Does the same apply to jewellery and accessories?
Yes. Stones, pavé and precious metals follow the same logic of reflection and specular control, at a different scale and with more attention to fire in the stones. Leather, eyewear and small leather goods sit between watches and fashion, and he lights them with the fashion-film sensibility described on the fashion film page.
Where are watch films shot?
Manufactures, Paris studios and locations across Europe. James travels with the production and works with local crews in either language. For campaigns that need several environments in a day, he also lights LED-volume virtual production.
Watch and luxury credits
- Jaeger-LeCoultre — Made of Makers · dir. Killian Lassabliere · prod. Players Paris
- Balmain — Pre-Fall 2022 · dir. Norbert Schoerner · prod. La La Land
- Loewe · dir. Netti Hurley · prod. Object & Animal
- Valentino — Holidays · dir. The Bardos
- Tissot · dir. The Bardos · agency Fondamentale
How to book
Email james@intangible.tv with the brief, the references, the pieces to be shot and the dates. See hiring and rates and the full profile.