In the middle of the Briard countryside, the Coulommiers aerodrome, now dedicated to light aviation, has had its hours of aeronautical glory. Created in the 1930s, it hosted a hunting group in 1940. Then, the Germans built two intersecting tracks and numerous car parks there. After the war, the land was attached to Aéroports de Paris and dedicated to light aviation (ULM, glider, airplane). But the German infrastructure on the ground remains, in particular two large “daisies”, these parking lots in flower petals which made it possible to park the planes immediately ready to take off in the event of an alert.
This is where TSF, the French specialist in technical cinema resources, will set up and create, on 50 hectares, twelve large film studios and outdoor sets. The first groundbreaking is scheduled for the end of this month of June, for delivery on September 20 of the first workshops generating sets. The objective is to first create 2 hectares of urban decor, reconstructions of Parisian districts – contemporary or historical. In particular, there is a strong demand from film producers for sets in the 17th arrondissement.
These sets are indeed eagerly awaited in Coulommiers, less than 50 kilometers from the capital. This distance is important from a social point of view, because, written into the collective agreements with the technicians, it does not trigger the allowances. The artists, moreover, appreciate being able to play in the evening at the theater in Paris. This situation “in the middle of nowhere” becomes an asset when it allows, with the ambient silence, the filming of sequences in live sound. The sound environment measured is 48 dB in Coulommiers, better than studios in Berlin, Prague, London or Paris (Bry).
In the mind of Thierry de Segonzac, the boss of TSF, himself a pilot and plane owner, it is out of the question to exclude aviation. On the contrary, the 1,600 meter paved runway and the old German runway will allow filming of aerial stunts, arrivals and departures of airliners. Business planes will also be able to drop off artists and technicians from France, and even from abroad, and thus chain shootings.
TSF has already set up an airplane decor at the Coulommiers aerodrome with a long-haul Airbus A300 airframe and a functional A320 cockpit. In the cabin was shot, in particular, a scene from Life for Real (by and with Dany Boon, in 2023) where we see a teenager sitting next to Dany Boon – who is none other than his daughter from 13 years old Sarah. It was not his maiden flight but that of the camera!
The establishment in the countryside, within two years, of twelve studios of 1,000 to 3,500 square meters with ancillary buildings (workshops, stocks, accessories, etc.) will be accompanied by extensive use of biomass to be, according to Thierry de Segonzac, “the most exemplary site from an environmental point of view”. In addition to green roofs, earthen walls will provide soundproofing and thermal insulation; the crushed corn harvested from 12 hectares of crops will be dried and burned for heating, the water retention basin will be dedicated to the filming of aquatic sequences. The objective to be achieved is a zero carbon footprint by combining Canadian wells and photovoltaic panels for the cold.
