Sounds Like Portraits

I sat down with Frederic who told me the ATARI story. In 1972 when Nolan Bushnell created it. At that time, he asked his teams to create a game that any drunk guy, in any bar, could play at any time: Pong was invented. With many other successful games, the brand became iconic for a whole generation of gamers. After years of success, the company faltered. In 2013, Frederic took it over and brought...

I sat down with Massimiliano "Chicco" and asked him what makes a creative pizzaiolo."Showmanship is not an option." Massimiliano came from Rimini, Italy, to New York in the 90s. Since then, he has become an accomplished restaurateur with a long list of restaurants in the City. At Pizza Yard, he is about to launch the Pizza School next year with a creative concept: providing high-level pizzaiolo tr...

Ce matin-là, je me suis assis avec Christian qui m'a raconté qu'en 1998, deux mois après avoir repris Lespinasse, il a reçu les prestigieuses 4 étoiles du New York Times.  Il a ajouté : "Chaque recette est comme une carte."  Elle vous mène d'un point A à un point B, puis C, puis D. Mais à l'intérieur de ce parcours, des escapades sont possibles, au niveau des détails : Christian est un interprète....

PSG ? The Parisian soccer team! I sat with Jérôme to talk about PSG's superstar players Neymar and Mbappé. Like Manchester United or Barcelona, or Real Madrid, PSG is now a global brand with more than 300 million fans around the world. That's a lot. Jérôme works to develop the PSG's branding process in South and North America. I asked him: what kind of experience the PSG wants to offer to its Amer...

Assis avec Michel, il a commencé à me parler des réseaux sociaux où tout le monde recherche les likes, les retweets, les avis positifs. (Moi aussi d'ailleurs !) Notre bonne estime de soi est directement liée au crédit que nous recevons. Michel affirme : "Il n'y a rien d'intrinsèquement nocif à une société du crédit. La question est de savoir qui a du crédit et pourquoi." A partir de là, il décrypt...

I sat with Luc to listen his story. In 1987, he went to Nepal for a month. He tried to climb the Annapurna and WOW! It just blew him away. Then, there was no internet, no communication. Nothing. Just him in the wild nature. That really opened his mind to exploration, trying to understand with scientists, what they can report about what they're seeing. Since that, he has been leading many scientifi...

I sat with Nicole to talk about the invasion of food on TV, movies and social networks. She told me that in a time when we are losing a lot of connections between ourselves and the people around us, food remains a constant connector. Nicole is a food stylist. Her job consists in preparing food for photography, video and film. Obviously, she has a lot of tips and tricks. It sometimes means replacin...

When I sat with Rozhia, she told me that there is always a good reason why we decide to eat out. It's not just because of the food. That's why the mood and the sound of a restaurant's space are so important. It's about feeling good. I asked her: what is the creative process behind designing a restaurant?

Whatever our destination, we need a map. It gives us a boundary box for how to place ourselves in the world. When I sat with Kate, she told me that she loves drawing maps because she can place herself in them. I asked her: is mapping a subjective process? Her answer was: yes! And it can be biased. Really? 

I went to Union (NJ) to meet Ariane. She is well known for introducing the first organic chicken in the US. Yes! It was years before the USDA acknowledged the standard with regulation of the organic label that we know today. Concerned equally with the environment as well as the welfare of the animals, she talks about how she created a network of farmers in order to meet D'Artagnan's organic specif...

When I sat with Eric at his gallery, not far from the Metropolitan museum, he told me his story. He comes from a great family of printers in Paris since 1852. They used to work with Picasso, Calder, Chagall, Miró and Dubuffet. To name just a few. He became a galerist to participate in his artists'creative process and to make it available to other people. I asked him: Is it better to know the artis...

Quand j'ai rencontré Pascal, il m'a parlé de sa créativité en tant que géopolitologue. Elle consiste à apercevoir des repères dans les changements que nous vivons à l'échelle planétaire. Le monde semble tourner plus vite de jour en jour. D'où ce besoin de comprendre que nous avons. Pour lui, il s'agit d'expliquer, sans pour autant justifier.

I met Chef Nasim in an apartment above her restaurant. One of the first things she said was that everyday, she starts by a ritual: she lights a tiny candle in a meditative mood, to center herself and to thank the universe. Then, she begins to cook at her Persian cuisine restaurant to offer a very unique experience of hospitality.

Après la Deuxième Guerre mondiale, les Nations Unies ont été créées pour développer la paix dans le monde. Par rapport à cet idéal, Romuald raconte les réussites et les occasions manquées d'une institution qui paraît aujourd'hui sur le déclin, en même temps que le multilatéralisme.

When I sat with Ismail, he told me the story about his special relationship with his clarinet: "My contact with it changes my state of mind and my body feels happier." And then, he told me about his multiple inspirations.  

J'ai rencontré Raphaël dans ses bureaux, non loin des Nations Unies. La stratégie est sa passion. Il m'a expliqué la nature de la créativité des diplomates et des stratèges. Elle leur permet de sortir des blocages d'une situation ou d'une négociation. Mais comment font-ils ?

I sat with Eugene to listen to his relationship to his voice which is also his own instrument.  "Finding your true voice is a real journey."

I sat with Bertrand at his new office office in Hudson Yard with a stunning view overlooking Hudson River. He told me his passion for building in general. For that purpose creativity is crucial: "As the leader of the organization, you have to make sure that everyone can think out of the box."

I sat with Robbie who told me the Japanese origin of origami. The word is used now for all folding practices to make a sculpture from a flat square sheet of paper. It is more than a hobby, a real lifestyle: "In origami, we have a language around things that involves bases and collections of folds."

Quand j'ai rencontré Xavier chez lui à Paris, il m'a parlé avec une joie non dissimulée de sa passion pour la stratégie. Pour lui, tout le monde est créatif dans son domaine, c'est le climat de confiance qui permet à la créativité de s'épanouir dans une entreprise. Créer ce climat et surtout le faire durer, c'est une affaire de management. Voilà pourquoi il a tant lu Clausewitz et Napoléon. 

As Three-Time Audie Award Winner for Best Audiobook Narration, George Guidall has completed narrations for over 1600 unabridged titles. His narrations of classics like Crime and Punishment, The Iliad, Don Quixote, and Les Miserables, along with many popular best sellers, have set a standard for excellence recognized throughout the audiobook industry.

Quand j'ai rencontré Guillaume, j'ai tout de suite senti qu'il était habité par l'écriture. En l'écoutant, j'ai compris que pour lui, écrire, c'était se rapprocher. Des autres, mais aussi de lui-même. 

Before sitting with Hasan, I saw his amazing performance with Omar Faruk Tekbilek at Carnegie Hall. Hasan has always tried to be a good cook because "music is like cooking." He started to play violin and kanun at the age of 8 and came to NY in 1989. His instrumental program of original compositions evokes moods of the Middle East, jazz, new age, and classical music.

I sat with Suzana at Google's office in Chelsea and we quickly talked about speed: what is the fastest reaction time on the Internet? Anticipation is the answer. Suzanna tells her Google's story. She does not only try to understand what customers want, but she anticipates the relevant experiences they will have. But how does this translate into the creative process of the Google's work teams?  

I sat with Mark at his office at the New York Philharmonic to discuss music recording. The three-time Grammy nominee has been the recipient of many more trophies for his broadcast work. He told me that "Studio perfection is false; it stops being the beauty of the music. The written page without the interpreter is nothing more than an academic exercise."