The charming Villefranche de Rouergue (Aveyron) was the scene of the filming of a biopic dedicated to Olympe de Gouges, the author and revolutionary politician. In this well-preserved town, the talented Julie Gayet plays the lead role and makes her debut as co-director. Reporting.
Black smoke rises in the picturesque streets of Villefranche de Rouergue (Aveyron), while the filming of the next film dedicated to Olympe de Gouges at his best. We are not in the bustling streets of Paris, but in this charming city in the southwest of France, which serves as the backdrop for this historical biopic.
The town’s picturesque streets provide a perfect playground for the film. • © Luc Tazelmati – FTV
The co-director, Matthieu Busson, explains the reasons for this choice as the ideal setting for filming: “As the shoot is very short, we needed all the sets to be as close as possible, so as not to travel an hour or two hours. For us it’s horrible when we waste a lot of time. And there we have everything left with this city which is extremely beautiful, extremely well preserved. So pretty quickly it became obvious to do everything we could do here.“
The co-director, Matthieu Busson (left of the image) gives his instructions. • © Luc Tazelmati – FTV
The lead role in this production, author and revolutionary politician Olympe de Gouges, is played by the talented Julie Gayet, who also makes her debut as co-director.
Gayet was keen to film in the character’s native region to bring historical depth to the project. She states: “She is truly an author in her own right, an important political woman, who is also used enormously in relation to women in politics, for all these reasons to say that it is important that here, in the region, middle school students, high school students, cinema options can also come and study, but let us know her and know that she comes not far from here, from Montauban.”
Julie Gayet. • © Luc Tazelmati – FTV
The filming of this biopic, scheduled to be broadcast in September next year on France 2, mobilized around 270 extras, mainly local residents, during the month of October, who played an essential role in the recreation of the revolutionary atmosphere. Christel Castela, a local trader, shares her enthusiastic experience: “All these little hands around, really the smallest detail, and it’s a great team because they really take care of us. We feel like a family with them suddenly, but everything is great.”
A particularly short shoot. • © Luc Tazelmati – FTV
This is the second time in two years that this charming Aveyron commune has been in the spotlight, and it is no coincidence. The rich heritage of this bastide attracts directors. Jean-Sébastien Orcibal, mayor of Villefranche de Rouergue: “We can present a diversity of settings, where we can have both medieval, we can also have belle époque, which we needed for Netflix, as well as the 18th century, so just before the revolution, we have very beautiful private mansions, since it is the peak of Villefranche-en-Rouergue, and therefore this is also how we manage to respond to a diversity of settings within our city.”
A guillotine larger than life. • © Luc Tazelmati – FTV
Filming of this exciting historical biopic concluded on October 21 in Toulouse, promising a captivating broadcast in September next year on France 2.
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