What was the creative behind this project?

This end-of-the-year project was a commission for the launch of the Manscaped brand’s first-ever signature cologne, Refined. Manscaped, a direct-to-consumer brand, brought us in at the ideation of this project in a short amount of time to create something that had incredible visual impact, while also creating a story of the scent to establish a new level of sophisticated sexiness.

The Manscaped signature scent is light, approachable, & complex in all the right ways.

This cologne features a clean & fresh scent designed for the refined gentleman. Opening with a light citrus burst, it dances around with a gentle touch of jasmine before settling into the anchoring notes of vetiver and light woods. The scent description is exactly what we were seeking to capture in the creative. 

How did you execute this work?

We shot this project over two days in my compact studio with a limited crew because of the current COVID-19 risks. Our crew consisted of one hair & makeup artist, one videographer, two models, & one assistant. Although the crew was minimal compared to our typical shoots, this ended up working well to keep the focus on the project at hand. We implemented our COVID-19 protocols to ensure a safe set for our crew. 

Why paint? 

The paint was used to create a symbolic allude to the way that the scent covers the body. We incorporated black & gold paint for a sleek, minimal look. The gold paint speaks to the premium nature of the product. There was a certain sexiness of the use of the paint the way that we created this mixing of the two colors that didn’t completely merge. The black & gold came together, but stayed separate, essentially the way the bodies came together. This was a metaphor for the connection between the two bodies. 

3 words to describe this campaign?

1. Sexy

2. Complex

3. Arresting

What did you look for in casting the two models for this project?

We cast very fit & sexy type bodies & wanted a certain level of sexiness to capture the epic nature of the cologne. The entire line is sexy & we needed to capture this to put forth a beautiful symmetry between the models & the cologne. 

What kind of props were used? 

The props spoke to the different scents of the cologne. The grapefruit is one of the ingredients in the product & also included lemon, wood, & jasmine to capture the essence of the product. The props were the core in the making of this campaign. 

Where will this be seen? 

I directed an exclusive video for Manscaped that is used on social, broadcast, & on the website. Overall, this was such a fun creative to execute, especially with the use of paint that we had already been exploring for other fine art shoots.