LIGHT, FACETS, AND LEGACY: TONEVO PARIS REIMAGINES DUPUY COGNAC THROUGH CINEMATIC CGI

Maison Bache-Gabrielsen partners with TONEVO Paris and creative director Tom Illand to unveil DUPUY Cognac’s Prestige and Rare Réserve collections through cinematic CGI. The project transforms the iconic Auguste crystal decanter into a digital jewel, demonstrating how luxury heritage brands are embracing 3D “digital twin” storytelling for modern e-commerce.

In the quiet, amber-toned world of cognac, where time is measured not in minutes but in decades, storytelling has traditionally relied on heritage, terroir, and craft. Now, that narrative is finding an unexpected but powerful new medium: cinematic computer-generated imagery. For the unveiling of the Prestige and Rare Réserve collections of DUPUY Cognac, Maison Bache-Gabrielsen turned to TONEVO Paris and its creative director, Tom Illand, to create a series of high-end CGI visuals that reframe how luxury spirits are presented in the digital age.

The result is not merely a product showcase but a cinematic interpretation of cognac as an object of light, geometry, and rhythm. At the centre of this digital narrative is the Auguste decanter — a hand-blown crystal vessel whose faceted form becomes, under Illand’s direction, something akin to a jewel suspended in motion. Through carefully orchestrated light and composition, the decanter’s surfaces catch, refract, and reveal, echoing the complexity and depth of the eaux-de-vie it contains.

This project marks a deliberate shift in how legacy maisons approach their online presence. With luxury increasingly experienced through screens, the e-commerce environment has become an extension of the brand’s universe. Illand led the full CG production, from animated product videos to key visuals, translating DUPUY’s visual and cultural identity into a digital language that remains faithful to its heritage. The objective was not to replace reality, but to build what TONEVO describes as a “digital twin” — a 3D representation of the brand’s world that allows every curve, reflection, and shadow to be precisely controlled and elevated.

For Maison Bache-Gabrielsen, whose history dates back to the 19th century, this approach offers a new way to express old values. The Rare Réserve Collection, for instance, comprises unique, limited lots of cognac that have been hand-bottled after aging for decades. These eaux-de-vie rest in the historic Chai Paradis, preserved since 1852, and originate exclusively from Grande and Petite Champagne — the most prestigious crus of the Cognac region. Traditionally, such details would be conveyed through text and photography. In this digital reinterpretation, they are suggested through atmosphere: the slow choreography of light, the stillness of the frame, and the reverent pacing of the animation.

The Auguste Collection, however, is where the visual narrative reaches its most striking expression. The hand-blown crystal decanter, topped with a diamond-shaped crown, becomes the protagonist of the film. Illand describes it as “the diamond of cognac, a jewel with multiple facets of eaux-de-vie,” and the CGI work leans into this metaphor. The animation emphasises the decanter’s geometry, allowing light to travel across its surfaces as though it were passing through a gemstone. The result is a visual experience that feels both modern and timeless, technological yet artisanal.

Developed in close collaboration with Claire Ronsin, Marketing and Communications Director at Maison Bache-Gabrielsen, the project sought to align product advertising with a new form of digital motion. The CGI visuals are designed primarily for the brand’s e-commerce platform, where customers encounter the product not in a cellar or tasting room, but on a screen. Here, the decanter does not simply sit on a surface; it exists in a carefully constructed digital environment that amplifies its rarity and craftsmanship.

This approach reflects a broader trend among luxury brands that are rethinking how they translate tactile, sensory products into digital experiences. CGI offers a level of precision and control that traditional photography cannot always achieve. Reflections can be perfected, lighting can be sculpted, and perspectives can be designed to guide the viewer’s eye with cinematic intent. For a product like cognac — where colour, clarity, and bottle design are central to its appeal — this control becomes a powerful storytelling tool.

At the same time, TONEVO’s work avoids the trap of making the product feel artificial. The textures of crystal, the warmth of the liquid, and the weight of the decanter are rendered with such realism that the viewer is drawn into the illusion. This balance between authenticity and digital artistry is what defines the “digital twin” philosophy. It is not about creating fantasy but about presenting reality with heightened clarity and elegance.

For Maison Bache-Gabrielsen, the collaboration underscores how heritage and innovation can coexist. A cognac aged for decades in the Chai Paradis can now be revealed through a medium that did not exist when it was first laid down in barrel. The past and the future meet in a digital frame, where light becomes the bridge between craftsmanship and technology.

Ultimately, the cinematic CGI created by TONEVO Paris does more than showcase a product. It reframes how luxury spirits can be experienced in a digital-first world. The Auguste decanter, with its faceted crystal and diamond crown, becomes a symbol not only of rarity and precision, but of a new visual language for heritage brands. In this language, light replaces words, movement replaces description, and the screen becomes a window into a world where time, craft, and design converge.