Julia Roberts is more than a face for the iconic Lancôme fragrance; she embodies it in its entirety, driven by the same values of this incentive to Happiness. First, there is that smile. The signature of the actress’ charisma and the signature of the bottle, this smile-inspiring authenticity and self-confidence, is the most eloquent emblem of her seduction, natural, warm and spontaneous, without rivalry for other women, many of whom see in the actress a “lifelong friend.” Because she has consistently embodied unadorned seduction since her debut in the 1990s, Julia Roberts attracts sympathy and admiration mixed with a sense of closeness that is unmatched.
The resonance of the La Vie est Belle fragrance with its muse goes beyond a smile. Julia Roberts shares with the Lancôme perfume icon an ideal of Happiness that guides her career and choices. “I believe in Happiness. À 100%. And in following your internal compass,” she confided back in Suppose the actress has a singular career on the international film scene, as much by its longevity as by the variety of roles she has been able to take on. In that case, it is because she has always obeyed her desires and convictions. Authentic and sincere, Julia Roberts has built a career according to her standards. An accomplished actress, fulfilled mother, and committed philanthropist, Julia Roberts cultivates her happiness and that of others. Since 2010, her collaboration with the Lancôme House has been fueled by this. “I take my Happiness very seriously, and we’ve had long conversations at Lancôme about Happiness and what it means.
We all strive for Happiness. And when you’re happy, you’re always working to refine and renew that state. We work hard at it, over and over again. It’s a permanent quest.
From Happiness to beauty, there is only one step. This conviction, which has guided Lancôme since its origins, is one that Julia Roberts has embraced. Instinctively. “I truly believe that the key to beauty is to be happy in your life. I think that’s what’s most evident in all of us: whether you like it or not, you wear your life on your face, in your look and your attitude. I think that’s the key to being beautiful. Indeed, the charm of a smile only works if it reflects sincere happiness. La Vie est Belle and its muse illustrate this every day.”
This year, we’re celebrating the 10th anniversary of La Vie Est Belle. How does it feel to have been the face of this fragrance — and, by extension, the face of Happiness — throughout this time?
“I can’t believe it’s been 10 years already. I’m so proud of us, the whole team. So many people continue to work so hard on the campaigns over, I think, four different iterations. It does nothing but thrills me that 10 years later, we’re not only still going strong but still really enjoying the product and making the campaigns.”
In honor of La Vie Est Belle’s 10th birthday, you shot a new campaign movie in collaboration with François Rousselet in Paris. What was your experience of shooting this extra campaign?
“Shooting anything in Paris has a magical element, but when you’re shooting for a French company that personifies this French ideal, it’s a real pinch-me moment. Also, we were filming at night. There is a dreamlike quality when you’re shooting at night in the city of lights. Do you think this is my job? This is what I do?”
This new campaign comes with the claim, «Happiness is just one step away; all you have to do is take it. Life is what you make of it; make it beautiful. La Vie est Belle” : What images does this tagline conjure for you?
“When I think of life being beautiful, I think of my husband, my children, and my family, but talking about Lancôme always puts such a smile on my face. And it makes me think of the incredible privilege I have of working with people that I appreciate, people that I deeply love. A lot of people go to work at jobs that they don’t love, or they sit next to someone at work that they don’t have anything in common with. So when I think of the 10 years of promoting this fragrance, with a lot of the same people as from the beginning, I think of and am so grateful for how much fun we have been able to have.”
What is your relationship with La Vie Est Belle? Do you still wear it? How do you like to apply it? “
My mom loved it so much, and she wore it every day. So it does always make me smile and makes me happy.”
Over the years, there have been several different iterations of La Vie Est Belle. Do you have any favorites or wear different versions for different events/seasons?
“The original, I think, will always be my favorite. I do like the others, but it’s like when you hear a song for the first time. The wayyou heard it for the first time, even if that was a cover, that’s the way you’re always going to like it best.”
The world has been through a period of immense tumult. Has your idea of Happiness changed post-pandemic? What makes you happy now?
“I think emerging from the pandemic is a nice feeling for everyone. For my family and me, before the pandemic became the pandemic when it was just this weird thing that we were all staying home, and we didn’t know what was going on, I would sort of joke and say, we’ve been training for lockdown our entire lives as a family. We were lucky it didn’t come as a big shock to our systemic understanding of each other to be locked in a house together because I know that part was hard on some families. But I am glad that things are opening and that businesses are surviving. Daily, I’m just so amazed by the determination and innovation of our children’s educators. To keep kids going, to keep them in school, to keep them learning, to keep them connected is the ultimate innovation in our daily life.”
Happiness in movement
Happiness is a state of mind: as continually evolving as the people who chase it, intimately linked to the values and concerns that define an era. In the spirit of each moment of its making, Maison Lancôme celebrates this diversity of Happiness through the campaigns for La Vie est Belle. Calling on the most incredible director talents of our times to choreograph films with impact, personal creative visions of the same idea to enter a conversation with rather than contradict each other. Between real-life and fantasy, one after the other, these visual sequences build up a vision of Happiness, both ordinary and extraordinary, grandiose yet down to earth, in the image of the saga’s heroine, Julia Roberts.
Lancôme La Vie Est Belle Parfum is available at Woolworths, Fosschini and Edgars stores.