The Reggia of Caserta is a location in Bruno Dumont's science fiction film L’Empire. Presented in competition at the 2024 Berlin Film Festival and winner of the Jury Prize, the film is set in a sleepy, picturesque fishing village in Northern France. Here something finally happens: a special child is born, one so unique that his birth triggers a secret war between extra-terrestrial forces...
The village is identified as Audresselles. The idea behind the choice of location was to move away from the stereotype of space stories and invent new forms: linking spaceships with famous monuments and jewels of French architecture (e.g. Sainte-Chapelle and the Reggia di Caserta, built on the model of Versailles). This is blended with the landscape of the Pas-De-Calais region: sea, forests, wild horses, WWII bunkers, the military remains of the Atlantic Wall.
In accordance with this intention, the architectural jewel of Sainte-Chapelle became a spaceship control room. Its landing pad on Earth is a WWII bunker in a cornfield, example of the contrast between the ideal and the ordinary.
The grandiose 18th century palace designed by Luigi Vanvitelli appears, for the first time, as a space ship. In addition to the facade, the Palatine Chapel, throne room and vast park provided backdrops.
The Reggia of Caserta is a location in Bruno Dumont's science fiction film L’Empire. Presented in competition at the 2024 Berlin Film Festival and winner of the Jury Prize, the film is set in a sleepy, picturesque fishing village in Northern France. Here something finally happens: a special child is born, one so unique that his birth triggers a secret war between extra-terrestrial forces...
The village is identified as Audresselles. The idea behind the choice of location was to move away from the stereotype of space stories and invent new forms: linking spaceships with famous monuments and jewels of French architecture (e.g. Sainte-Chapelle and the Reggia di Caserta, built on the model of Versailles). This is blended with the landscape of the Pas-De-Calais region: sea, forests, wild horses, WWII bunkers, the military remains of the Atlantic Wall.
In accordance with this intention, the architectural jewel of Sainte-Chapelle became a spaceship control room. Its landing pad on Earth is a WWII bunker in a cornfield, example of the contrast between the ideal and the ordinary.
The grandiose 18th century palace designed by Luigi Vanvitelli appears, for the first time, as a space ship. In addition to the facade, the Palatine Chapel, throne room and vast park provided backdrops.
Tessalit Productions, Red Balloon Film, Ascent Film, Novak, Rosa Filmes, Furyo Films
Côte d'Opale, Northern France. In a sleepy, picturesque fishing village, something finally happens: a special child is born. A child so unique and unusual that his birth unleashes a secret war between the extra-terrestrial forces of good and evil.
