The new series Shoresfilmed in difficult conditions, returns for a final evening this Monday January 20, 2025 on France 2. Carried in particular by Fleur Geffrier – who intervened on another shoot after the unhealthy behavior of a man – but also Thierry Godard, Guillaume Labbé and Jean -Marc Barr, this series was largely filmed in Fécamp in Normandy. During this last evening, you will finally discover the mysterious sea creature whose secrets director David Hourrègue revealed to Tele-Leisure.
Shores : “Quite quickly, the manta ray imposed itself on us“, the director discusses the design of the creature
Tele-Leisure : What sources of inspiration did you have in mind for the series Shores ? We can particularly think of the film Abyss…
David Hourrègue : I have always been very sensitive to different cinematographic approaches to the world of the sea, whether Jaws for the personification of danger, The big blue for the absolute relationship between this freediver and the depths, and Abyss Also. These films have in common this fascination linked to the mystery of everything that is far from us. The fact that we do not know 70% of the oceans is extremely conducive to fantasy and the craziest inspirations. Jules Verne also went through there, I remember in my head when I read 20,000 leagues under the sea with the attack on the Nautilus.
In episode 4, we can see the sea creature's baby, how was this scene shot?
We decided to create a third of the upper body of the baby creature, with the head and membranes. We placed the structure in an underwater cave filled with jellyfish in Corsica in the middle of December in water at 16 degrees. The structure lit up with beats that eventually died down.
How did you come up with the design of the creature?
Quite quickly, the manta ray became obvious to us. In my life, I had the chance to swim with one of them and I remember seeing her coming towards me and being completely captivated by her magnificence and grace. We drew a lot of inspiration from legends, including the Kraken, and we crossed them with the theory of abyssal gigantism, which states that anyone living in the abyss develops pressure resistance abilities which often go hand in hand with a very large size. important. I definitely didn't want a creature that appeared too aggressive. The idea of a gigantic shark was immediately dismissed. As for the idea of a large octopus, it was too reminiscent of 20,000 leagues under the sea.
Shores : The director reveals behind the scenes of the meeting scene between Abi and the creature
And this pink light?
Very quickly, we agreed on the bioluminescence of this creature. Already because it exists on the seabed, in the great depths where it is so dark that certain creatures generate their own light to find their way there. We started with a colorimetry very close to the natural environment.
Are the sounds the creature makes based on real animal sounds?
My sound team did a lot of research, we knew that we wanted to get closer to the ultra-sounds of whales, killer whales and porpoises, to which we would give a darker and vibratory sound. In the sound mix, you have a lot of orca, sperm whale, very high tones of dolphins and very varied vibrations of land animals.
How was the meeting scene between Abi and the creature shot?
For the scene on the surface, we are in the heart of the English Channel, it is zero degrees. The sun is setting and we have this wonderful kiss between Fleur and Guillaume in very cold conditions. Then, when Abi is supposed to be 10 meters deep, Fleur is filming in a studio completely covered in black underwater. For an entire day, she played out that first look from a distance, then taking off her gloves and moving closer and making contact. She doesn't actually touch anything. There was a gigantic spotlight underwater that represented the pulsing light from the creature's heart.
