Convalescing around the house on a summer afternoon, Margot Robbie sends a text: See you at 5.
On a sundrenched road, it reaches its target, Jacob Elordi, and the electric suspense of a rendez-vous kicks off.
To mark the debut of Margot Robbie’s first campaign as the face of Chanel N°5, the house released a short film helmed by Challengers director Luca Guadagnino.
Shot in 35mm film across Big Sur’s expansive oceanfront highways, the film captures the endearing impatience of desire and the laughable kismet of missed connections in this tantalising back-and-forth.
As both she and Elordi race to meet, Robbie slips into a red skirt set—a nod to the one worn
by Carole Bouquet in Monuments (1986)—and we see the reflection of the iconic Chanel N°5 bottle in the sparkle of her eye. He ardently pursues her location on his motorcycle as she confidently moves down winding roads in her convertible. Just as it seems the two are closing in on each other with palpable tension, a text exchange reveals a miscommunication. But it’s okay, Robbie laughs, as she understands that the leadup to pleasure can be tantamount to the moment itself.
Fulfilled, independent, and content in her femininity, she instead decides to savour her freedom, ready to delight in the anticipation once again as she dives head-first into the water in a bold red swimsuit.
“I make films about desire,” says Guadagino in a behind-the-scenes interview. “How desire pulls people together and maybe pulls them apart.”
Known for his haunting portrayals of romantic yearning, Guadagino is a master of expressing the inexpressible.
“The projection of desire is something really cinematic as well because it’s about the pulse that is invisible, but at the same time, it’s there,” he explains.
“Sometimes it’s the feeling of anticipation that ends up being more memorable than the thing itself,” echoes Robbie, who shared her excitement about this new chapter with the fragrance.
Having been an ambassador of the house since 2018, and even fronting the campaign for its Chanel Gabrielle Essence and Rouge Allure Velvet Nuit Blanche collection, the actress joins a lineup of great actresses who have famously embodied this world-renowned scent—Marilyn Monroe and Catherine Deneuve, to name a few.
“I think Chanel N°5 is one of the most iconic fragrances in the world. It’s incredible to be a part of it,” said Robbie of the appointment. “There’s such an impressive lineage of women who’ve been associated with the fragrance over the years. I am very honoured to be joining that long list of incredible talents.”
“My relationship with 5 is just beginning,” says Robbie. “It’s a real honour.”
Arguably one of the most recognisable scents—and bottles—in the world, Chanel N°5 was first concocted over a century ago during a time when perfumes were made from the essence of a single flower. To offer something more intriguing, more reflective of her experience of women as complex and layered beings, the visionary set out to create a scent as intricate as one of her tweed suits.
The winning formulation, first created in 1921 by Ernest Beaux in Grasse, boasts a layered floral aldehyde bouquet that gently reveals notes of Ylang-Ylang, lemon, sandalwood, jasmine and many more elements. This blended approach commissioned by Chanel all those decades ago may have been highly unorthodox, but it redefined the world of fragrance to the one we know now.
Today, Chanel N°5 continues to lead the way in fragrance, with a distinct aroma that, just like the house’s ready-to-wear offerings, is bold and defiant yet still able to be reinvented by its wearer, capturing the immediacy and immortality of desire itself.
See exclusive behind-the-scenes photos from the making of See You At 5 below.
Watch Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi in See You At 5 below.
This story originally appeared on GRAZIA International.
READ MORE
Chanel Helps To Bring Singapore Filmmaker Eric Khoo’s ‘Spirit World’ To Life
Getting Ready With Chanel’s Newest Muse Laufey, Ahead Of The Brand’s Paris Fashion Week Show