1557, Black Périgord. In the middle of the 16th centurye century, France is on the brink of civil war. The king and the Catholic Church persecute those who convert to the new Protestant religion. Behind the ramparts of the Mespech castle, surrounded by a hostile and intolerant world, the Siorac family strives to build a better world. Thus begins “Fortune de France”, a series of six 52-minute episodes, directed by Christopher Thompson, to be seen on France 2 from Monday, September 16 (1). Nicolas Duvauchelle plays Jean de Siorac, the father, hero of the saga, a man of progress, humanist, doctor, caught in the cruel spiral of the Wars of Religion that set the country on fire and blood.
In the credits of this 100% Périgord series, around Nicolas Duvauchelle and Lucie Debay, Guillaume Gouix, Simon Zampieri, Marcel Thompson, Louis Durant, Grégory Fitoussi, Angelina Woreth, Antoine Gouy, Blandine Bellavoir, David Ayala, Lou Lampros and Isabelle de Hertogh.
© Thibault GRABHERR – France Télévisions – LES FILMS DU CAP – Getty Images
A small army
The inner courtyard of the Château de Biron, during the filming of the series in May 2023, became the square of Sarlat, at the dawn of the Wars of Religion.
Nancy Ladde
Jean de Siorac (Nicolas Duvauchelle), the Protestant, has married for love with Isabelle (Lucie Debay), an ardent Catholic with an iron character.
© LES FILMS DU CAP – FTV
In competition at the La Rochelle Fiction Festival (from September 10 to 15), it was presented as a preview on Tuesday, September 10, at the Rex cinema in Sarlat. On the land where it was born, around the old Sarladaise tobacco factory, the base for the construction of the sets for the series. “Robert Merle had a house in Marquay, near Sarlat. That’s where he looked for the natural settings for his story and invented Mespech. He talked a lot about the gentle Périgord. Naturally, I wanted to find these places that resonated in my imagination with Jean Cottin, the producer,” explains Christopher Thompson.
Christopher Thompson, with Nicolas Duvauchelle, during filming.
© Christophe Mariot
Unusually, the series was filmed 100% in natural settings. An atypical artistic choice. “More complicated, more expensive, but with something extra. A claimed naturalist option, a Périgord ”Downton Abbey””, confirms Jean Cottin, producer. “To anchor itself in a reality and for the immersion of the teams”, supports the director.
It was also the biggest shoot of the year in 2023. Sixty-eight days precisely between March and June, between 200 and 250 technicians mobilized, including around thirty from the region, more than 1,000 local extras. “A whole small army” to which must be added horses, animals, carts… An XXL-sized shoot that was not confidential, unlike the second opus of “Kaamelott” recently filmed in secret in Jumilhac, in the Périgord vert. “With us, it’s almost the opposite. I think we could not have experienced this adventure without arousing the support and even enthusiasm of the actors, the entire technical team, even the extras who believed in it,” adds the director.
Leverage effect
For the department, it is a godsend. The production has already spent more than 2 million euros in Dordogne. And the spin-offs should continue after the episodes are broadcast, particularly around the sites highlighted. In particular the castles of Fénelon, in Sainte-Mondane, transformed into the “intimate castle” of Mespech, lair of the Siorac family, and that of Bories in Antonne-et-Trigonant, chosen for its interior complements. For the “terrible castle” of the enemy baron of Fontenac, it is the impressive building of Beynac, a 12th century fortified castlee century dominating the Dordogne, which was chosen. And, finally, the inner courtyard of the Château de Biron, located on the borders of Périgord and Lot-et-Garonne, was used to reconstruct Sarlat, which was prey to the plague and fanaticism.
“Six months before filming, meeting people who believe in our dreams is fundamental”
The people of Périgord will also recognise the exteriors of the castles of Commarque and Marzac, the troglodyte village of La Madeleine, the chapel of the Pénitents-Bleus, the priory of Merlande, the church of Saint-Léon-sur-Vézère and the cabins of Breuil.
Germinal Peiro (left), president of the Department, welcomed director Christopher Thomson (center) and producer Jean Cottin on Tuesday.
Dordogne Department
From its launch, “Fortune de France” benefited from the aid of the Dordogne Department (100,000 euros), the Nouvelle-Aquitaine Region (180,000 euros) and the Magelis pole in Charente (30,000 euros). A drop in the bucket in the overall budget of 13 million? “No, essential aid that had a leverage effect. Six months before filming, meeting people who believe in our dreams is fundamental,” claims the director.
One of these dreams, and not the least, is to take the series internationally. Because, behind the French and Périgord history of “Fortune de France”, the story echoes our times. “The parallels are legion, starting with people killing each other in the name of faith, the printing revolution versus the digital revolution, the place of women, epidemics, from the plague to Covid”, smiles Jean Cottin. Christopher Thompson, who is currently writing the second season, set in a 16th century Montpelliere century, knows that he will always be welcome in Dordogne in any case.
(1) Preview on the France TV website, francetv.fr
