2012 (June) Miguel de Santos - Interviews 2012-2015 - File Catalog

Simon Baker "signs" for Longines

Australian actor Simon Baker is the new image of the watchmaker brand, for representing perfectly their slogan "Elegance is an attitude." We were with him in Chantilly (France) at the Prix de Diane Longines, which brought over 44,000 people to the Aga Khan's racetrack. Quite an event.

Longines celebrates its 180th anniversary in a big way. It's their second time as official timekeeper and sponsor of the Prix de Diane Longines, a sports and social equestrian event of great significance, that last weekend united more than 44,000 spectators in an atmosphere of elegance, where etiquette (tie and suit for men, decorative hats for women) was required.

But the reason for our trip was to interview the new male ambassador of the brand, Aussie actor Simon Baker, who we had the opportunity to meet last night at a dinner we were invited to at the Castle of Chantilly, owned by the Aga Khan. An exquisite party culminating in a brilliant display of fireworks in the gardens.

The Calm Man (can be translated as quiet, relaxed, calm, easygoing or laid-back)
Facing reporters from 47 countries over a morning meal cannot be pleasurable, for Simon or for anyone else. Especially knowing that most of the questions and the answers have to be politically correct, because Simon Baker is on a mission to "communicate" as the new Longines Ambassador of Elegance. Nevertheless, we were greeted with a warm handshake, with great patience and exquisite amiability.

- Do you feel you are an elegant man?
I am very proud and honored to be associated with a brand that has been around for such a long period of time. Its values of quality and elegance are certainly the ones that I like the most.

- Are you good with new technology?
I'm not bad, but not very good. I have no facebook, and I have no twitter ... I love Email, because with so much to do its something that really helps. I have mixed feelings about it. I believe that new technologies are great, but I'm a little old-fashioned, for example, I feel lost without my phone, but at the same time I cannot wait to lose it. It is a strange relationship.

- Do you think that new technologies are a tool to join people or to isolate people? I believe that much of the common misunderstanding in which we live is due to new technologies. They have become a kind of drug. Today there’s not many people who smoke, yet people compulsively look at their mobiles: at a dinner in the middle of conversations ... and I disagree with that. I think it shows a lack of respect. I have two teenage sons, so I see many teenagers, and it is important for me to see how they relate to eachother. And I see that they can often be together in one room without speaking for a long time, simply because they are talking to others by phone.

- Do you consider yourself a "celebrity" who lives in Los Angeles? Do you have problems with the paparazzi or do you have a quiet life?
I work a lot, and that is one of the main reasons why I live in Los Angeles, because that's where the industry is. Also I travel a lot, I’ve just finished filming a movie in London, and in the past I’ve shot a film in New York ... so lots of travelling. The rest of the year is dedicated to "The Mentalist", living in Los Angeles for about nine months a year. Do I see myself as a "celebrity"? The truth is no. Sometimes I see someone eating in a restaurant and I say "Oh, look who's there". But the truth is that that's life in LA and nobody looks at anyone there twice. It's when I go away from there that I realize for example how successful "The Mentalist" is.

- And what is your relationship with fashion?
It's interesting because I can appreciate the aesthetics and certain things related to fashion. I appreciate the forms of beauty, especially in a woman, the way the shoes look, for example. But regarding my own style it's always simple. What I feel comfortable with. Many times, due to my work, I take refuge in certain characters, it is a way of protecting ourselves, our soul, but at other times I feel quite exposed. But that's how things are, always between two extremes. And I always try to feel comfortable in both sides.

- One of the last films you worked on was "Margin Call", where you played an ambitious broker, so I wanted to know your opinion about the current economic crisis, especially here in Europe ...
Obviously I made this film because it's a situation in which we are immersed right now, the global financial crisis. From many points of view its not as severe as the Great Depression, because we live in a different time. It is perceived differently. Until recently Australia was one of the "untouchables", but since three years ago it has started to suffer. Like in the US, which is also experiencing some recession. And you see so many countries having problems ... What do I think of this? I think it's obviously a simple matter of "bad maths". And a problem of greed. And if you saw the movie I think it illustrates very well the way in which certain companies try to make easy money. It is a concept that we need to change. If you have 20 euros in your pocket, you have 20 euros in your pocket, and you know how you feel about that. I have always had the working class mentality. So the idea of having 20 euros but think that I can make them 40, and then spend those 40 without thinking it over ... that’s not me. And I think we should take this as a lesson to learn something.

- Do you have the same sense of humor in real life as in fiction, such as your character in "The Mentalist"?
Do you think so after my previous answer? (Laughs). The truth is yes. Definitely. I put a lot of my sense of humor in the character of "The Mentalist". And I've been portraying him for so long that I think it's difficult for it to be otherwise.

- What do you think a watch adds to the appearance of a man?
It’s something that rounds out the look. You know how people now usually look at the phone to check the time? Well, the watch is aesthetically nicer and it’s a symbol of style.

- Did you have a watch before becoming Longines Ambassador?
I have some old watches that my wife has bought me on different travels, very old and almost none of them work. But they look phenomenal.