Three French icons will interact in the upcoming movie Astérix & Obélix: The Middle Kingdom, where the two heroes from Gaul and a concept chariot designed by Citroën get to confound the enemy in the ways that made the comic duo superstars.
Citroën and Pathé, Trésor Films and the Editions Albert René is a partnership unlike any other that Citroën has had as it involved the design and creation of a concept chariot by Citroën specifically for the needs of this movie, something unprecedented for the brand.
The Citroën teams designed and built the chariot within three months, whereas the timeline for sketching and manufacturing a concept car is usually a year.
“The encounter between these two legends of the French culture could be nothing short of extraordinary. There has been proximity, sincerity and mutual respect between the Citroën and the Asterix movie teams since the beginning.
“We were presented with this incredible opportunity to create and build a concept chariot from scratch, and we had the most amazing time working on this project! The result is an ode to the 2CV, the legendary car representing Citroën in all its glory”, says Pierre Leclercq, Global Design Director, Citroën.
Indeed, the 2CV silhouette is recognizable globally. The concept chariot has suspensions made of a boar's stomach, a sunroof, headlights taken from Gallic helmets operated by fireflies boosted with the magic potion and wheels made of recycled shields and incorporating Citroën chevrons.
Look out for the sequence where the heroes are about to leave their village to go to China. Cétautomatix presents the chariot to Obelix and shows off the latest convenience innovations.
Further in the movie, when Cesar’s army reaches China, there is the first advertising billboard at the entrance of the country promoting the best car at the time: the 2CV, an incredible chariot made in Gaul, pulled by two horses. A subtle allusion to the Citroën advertising film made on the Great Wall of China.
Finally, to underline the strength of this partnership, the new Citroën logo comes to life and sports the wings of Asterix’s helmet for the occasion.
BEHIND THE SCENES
The ‘behind the scenes’ constitutes a significant component of this partnership. Citroën provided the team with an entirely electric fleet during the movie shoot. The fleet comprised ten vehicles: 3 ë-C4, 3 C5 Aircross PHEV, two ë-Spacetourer, 1 Ami and one ë-Jumpy. Citroën also helped conceal the charging stations for those vehicles on the filming sites of Bry-sur-Marne and Bretigny-Sur-Orge.
Sustainability was a key aspect throughout the shooting of this movie. The electric fleet provided by Citroën was the Asterix team’s effort to contribute to decarbonization. The team worked with an agency which implemented some processes to limit waste as much as possible. For example, the costumes were recycled and reused for other purposes. The cardboard was recycled, resulting in the saving of 2 tons of wood. Two urban farms in the Ile-de-France region received a donation of wooden crates.
“At Pathé, it is the first time that we shot a movie using such an electric fleet. Citroën helped us with the installation of the TOUTELECTRIX charging stations in the colours of the Asterix film. This electric mobility mode was of course an adaptation for many of us, but our team rose brilliantly to this challenge. Building on this successful experience, we are confident to replicate this disposal during our next productions. “ adds Yohann Stoll, Head of Brand Partnerships & Sponsoring, at Pathé Films.
Asterix is a French comic book series created in 1959 by French screenwriter René Goscinny and the French cartoonist Albert Uderzo in the French newspaper Pilote. The rights to manage and own the work belong to Albert René Editions. The company publishes comic books and sources new projects on Asterix, particularly films and cartoons. To this date, there have been 385 million albums sold in 111 languages and dialects globally.
The first adaptation of Asterix for cinema was in 1967 with the movie Asterix the Gaul, directed by Ray Goossens. To this day, the Asterix saga comprises 15 films and cartoons, with more than 25 million viewers in France and 70 million worldwide.
The film will be released on February 1, 2023, in movie theatres in France first, followed by a worldwide release shortly after.
The teaser of the movie Asterix et Obelix: The Middle Kingdom is available on the link here.
