Valentin Petit, director of Nekfeu and Roméo Elvis clips, died in a plane crash at 32

Valentin Petit died in a tourist plane crash on Saturday May 20 in Neuchâtel, Switzerland. According to local police, the flight crashed around 10:20 a.m. in "a forest area, in an area that is difficult to access". Originally from Bourges, the young man was to celebrate his 33rd birthday on Monday. The pilot, a septuagenarian and the other passenger in his thirties also died. An investigation is underway to determine the circumstances of the tragedy.

Devastated, the parents confided in the columns of Berry Républicain. "It was a birthday present that a relative had given him", specifies Didier, his father. “He died as he lived, at full speed. As a child, he was already a little daredevil,” says a family member.

Didier Petit tells of a “passionate and creative boy, who gave himself the means to live the life he wanted”. His journey commands respect. Valentin Petit left his native Bourges for Paris and began a film degree there at the University of Paris VIII. And from 2011, he produced clips for the rising stars of French rap. Among them are the big names in today's French hip-hop scene: Nekfeu, Némir, Alpha Wann and Roméo Elvis.

At 24, Valentin Petit is already recognized for his talents and released a short film Antophobia with which he runs the festivals. In 2018, he produced a second, entitled Le Bruit De La Lumière. His ambition at the time: to conquer the United States and make videos for international artists. In 2019, he directed Green Juice, Asap Ferg and Pharrell Williams. It is also Valentin Petit who is behind Rosalia's cult clip SAOKO.

"I really like to bring a photographic aspect to my work through framing and putting characters into situations", explains Valentin in a promotional video interview for Adobe in 2015. A love of nature also which allows him to give his work "a more impactful rendering". More recently he signed the clip Even not a squeak, by rapper Ziak. Published in January on Youtube, the video has already accumulated six million views.

The videographer also produced commercials. Major brands such as Adidas, Nike and Balmain called on his talents. Valentin Petit was also behind the camera of the Race on the roofs of Paris, the last promotional video for the Paris 2024 Olympics.