It is one of the most anticipated films of the year. And some sequences were shot in Bourges, in the Saint-Etienne cathedral. “Notre-Dame is burning” had its world premiere this Thursday at the CGR cinema in Bourges. The spectators were able to follow the heroic work of the firefighters who prevented the destruction of the building, plagued by flames on April 15, 2019. They were also able to discuss with the director of the feature film. Jean-Jacques Annaud also gave a long interview to France Bleu Berry, at the microphone of David Hébert.
Magnificent scenes shot at Bourges Cathedral
Jean-Jacques Annaud explains that he visited several cathedrals to do some scouting. The choice of Bourges was obvious. “Here, the ambulatory and the naves are very poetic. The vaults are high, harmonious, moving. About 10% of the film’s scenes were shot in Bourges. And we were lucky enough to shoot some very beautiful scenes, among the most beauties from the movie”says the director.
The realism of the film is breathtaking. And for good reason, many sequences were shot with real flames, in the conditions of a real fire. This requires some logistics. “The cameras were in flames sometimes over 1000 degrees. We had extremely robust and ventilated boxes built with large pipes that blew cool air”says Jean-Jacques Annaud.
The camera was in flames, hence the sensation of the spectators to find themselves in the flames.