FAIT DU SOIR In Sauve, the cast brings the crowd to the cultural center to appear next to Clive Owen – Objectif Gard

The director of the Netflix series Le Jeu de la dame will shoot, from the end of August, a series around Sam Spade, a character played by Humphrey Bogart in The Maltese Falcon (1941), between Pézenas and Sauve. More than 700 extras are pre-selected so that the film crews can then refine their choice. Tattoos, piercings and colored hair, abstain: the plot takes place in the 60s.

“Your hair color, is it natural? Do you live in the area? No tattoo? Do you do theater or know how to play an instrument? Do you smoke or would you be likely to fake for a scene? You have a dog ? » Faced with the line of pretenders to the figuration which took place in the hall of the cultural center, Loreleï Wisser repeats these questions for those who have not registered on the internet

and prefer to come live. Friday August 5 and Saturday August 6, the center is devoted to these registrations led by the Association of figuration and artistic distribution managers.

Priority to local candidates If casting executives are so concerned with the “natural” physical appearance of suitors, it’s because a decorative tattoo or a side-swept hairdo would look the worst in a movie set in the ’60s.“We favor people who have applied locally explains Agnès Alberny, the casting director for the production company Haut et Court (which itself works for the American production). On the internet, we still got answers from Parisians… ” Filming should last from the end of August to December, the extras must be available, flexible, in order to fit into the filming canvas of this series filmed by Franck Scott, already director of thequeens game

In charge of the casting, Agnès Alberny keeps a photo of each applicant, with some information written on an erasable slate (photo François Desmeures / Objectif Gard) Waist, chest, height, weight, shoe size, the candidates fill in the boxes.“If we call you back, we will have to stop shaving so that we can eventually give you a nice mustache” , slips Lorelei Wisser to a young man. Because all ages can apply.“They are looking for any type of person” , confirms Anthony, a father with his partner and two children. If the four tried their luck, it was above all for Julien that they came from Liouc. “It’s a bit of his dream to participate in a casting, and especially in filming, points out his father. He did 7-8 years of theater. » The teenager confirms. “But among us four, laughs Anthony, it is undoubtedly the dog that has the best chance of being selected. » Affordable, the animal has indeed caught the eye of the casting, which is actually looking for four-legged extras.“Did you take a picture of the dog? »

assures Agnès Alberny.

“I have a parrot, if you will” ” You have a dog ? » asks Lorelei Wisser to a sauvain retiree. “Yes, but he’s boring, replies the tit-for-tat lady. On the other hand, I have a parrot, if you want…” This one will not replace the Maltese falcon for this continuation of the life of Mr. Spade composed by Humphrey Bogart. This time, it will be the boon of the Briton Clive Owen to take over the role of a retired Spade in the south of France, in the aftermath of the Algerian war. A casting also takes place in Pézenas, scenes will also be shot there, as in Pignan, in Hérault, or Bozouls, in Aveyron.“We will probably select seven to eight hundred people, so that we show a lot of extras who could adapt to the different scenes” , continues Agnès Alberny. In the crowd that rushes to the various appointments, the casting director does not yet find the shoe completely for her,“We would particularly like to have more short haircuts for women”

Sam and Lukas hope that their evocation of “Borsalino” will allow them to win the bet (photo François Desmeures / Objectif Gard) Miranda is for her long white hair and her “good cheeks” that it interested those in charge. “I did a lot of stuff in London a long time ago, smiles the one who now lives in the region. My legs have been photographed for a book cover, I have been a model, a dancer and now an osteopath, two and a half days a week. It leaves me time to do some extras. » It is also possible that his “good cheeks” allow him to play a nun, the face remaining striking despite the width of a cornet on the head.

“And then, if I’m a nun, I could also be something else as an extra!” » A Montpellier comedian, Pascal probably had more hope when he applied for a secondary role, without success. “But sometimes there are readjustments, hopes the professional. And then, they must also choose speaking silhouettes, which they trigger as they go. » Lukas and Sam do not necessarily have this ambition. Dressed like Alain Delon and Jean-Paul Belmondo inBorsalino beautiful kids, they obviously do not go unnoticed.

“We both did theatre, especially during our schooling at Saint-Stanislas in Nîmes. We really hope to be taken, smile the two Quissacois who came as a neighbor. And we’re ready to make sacrifices: if we have to dress up as beggars, we’re ready! » If the filming of the series will begin at the end of August, the wild part will not be filmed before mid-October.“We will still stay quite a while in Sauve, especially for market scenes”

, informs Agnès Alberny. The natural spaces around the village will also be exploited. The restaurants in Place du Docteur Jean-Astruc may make the season last, they may have more people in the fall than in the summer…

Francois Desmeures

francois.desmeures@objectivegard.com