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Impasse of the pickpockets
“The great city began as a cluster of tradesmen’s villages. Only the names remain unchanged.”
Herbsaint Sazerac (Owen Wilson)
The alley next to 14 rue du Sauvage is unrecognizable in The French Dispatch. Both filmed in black and white and in color, “made up” in two different ways in order to make a collage on the screen illustrating the past and the present, it actually keeps a very picturesque character. This small artery alone expresses Wes Anderson’s high standards and the meticulousness with which he shot The French Dispatch.
“To find spaces a little out of the ordinary in order to build our sets. We’re getting used to it.” That’s how set designer Adam Stockhausen described the making of The French Dispatch in the pages of Ad Magazine, paying tribute to Wes Anderson’s ability to anchor his stories in unique environments.
However, if the alley transformed into a dead end for pickpockets remains difficult to identify, Angoulême knows how to shine on the screen. A city that the actors of the distribution have appreciated very much. Bill Murray in particular, did not fail to praise the beauty of the city, as Wes Anderson explained to La Charente Libre: “Bill loved it. He was to come only once. He insisted on coming back. The second time, he stayed for a week for a single day of shooting. The Saint-Gelais hotel is a big part of it. I needed a place like that to bring the actors together and for the team to feel comfortable. And then it was easy to bring them in thanks to the TGV.“
The Texan director also insisted on casting all the extras one by one. The inhabitants of the city and the region appear on the screen, in the course of the numerous scenes taking place in the city or in the studios built in a former felt factory in Gond-Pontrouve.
The French Dispatch is the ninth film that Wes Anderson has made with Bill Murray, his favorite actor.
14 Rue du Sauvage
This picturesque, somewhat timeless alley is located right in the middle of Angoulême town centre, near several monuments.
Close to Saint-Pierre d’Angoulême cathedral, the museum dedicated to African art and that of Oceania, the cinema and many shops, rue Sauvage is one of those somewhat hidden places in the city. Used as part of the filming of The French Dispatch by Wes Anderson, this tiny alley is also recognizable thanks to its cobblestones.
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Cult! music: 100 mythical music places [French Edition]
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By Gilles Rolland
Passionné de cinéma, de rock and roll, de séries TV et de littérature. Rédacteur de presse et auteur des livres Le Heavy Metal au cinéma, Paroles de fans Guns N' Roses, Paroles de fans Rammstein et Welcome to my Jungle : 100 albums rock et autres anecdotes dépareillées. Adore également voyager à la recherche des lieux les plus emblématiques de la pop culture.