What would be your top of mind associations with Paris: Eiffel Tower, Louvre, Champs-Élysées, Arc de Triomphe, Tour de France, …? What about the movies that were set in Paris. Which ones do you keep in mind: Amelie, Intouchables, Midnight in Paris, Before Sunset, …?

I was in Paris only once and that was before Brands&Films. During that time I visited Saint-Sulpice church, mainly because it had appeared in The DaVinci’s Code book and movie.

It’s fair to say that movies have certain appeal that can results in increased popularity of some destinations.

St. Sulpice
The plaque at the southern end of the meridian at Saint-Sulpice (photo by Erik R.)

Paris based filmmaker Paco Zamora shot a video in collaboration with Expedia called FilmTripping which shows us movie locations from Paris in a slightly different way. Zamora said “FilmTripping was for me a chance to use the beauty of Paris and its cinematic background to tell a story. During the film making process I felt it was the city itself that made the job”.

The idea was to choose 7 of the best films set in Paris and show the locations where some of the scenes have taken place, from the perspective of someone who explores Paris for the first time.

Nina Cangdon who worked on the film told Brands&Films that they wanted to create a video that showcases Paris as the city where anything is possible. FilmTripping follows a girl transported into a dream sequence as she visits famous film locations across the city that come to life. The video aims to inspire creativity and show that dreams can come true in Paris.

Au Marche de la Butte (at 56 rue des Trois Freres) - the store from the Amelie movie
Au Marche de la Butte (at 56 rue des Trois Freres) – the store from the Amelie movie (photo by Erik R.)

Nina added: “First of all we chose Paris as setting because we believe that to walk around the French capital is to review the history of cinema and its genres. To make it really clear which film is being shown, an object or scene synonymous is included in the shot, such as the pictures from Amelie or the 1920s style flapper girl from Midnight in Paris.”

Nina also explained the filmmaking process on FilmTripping:

“The first location is the famous English-language bookshop in Paris, Shakespeare & Co. We wanted the story to starts there because it’s one of the most famous cultural institutions in the French capital.

We filmed the seven locations as well as the establishing shots in 2 days (June 2014) and we worked with actors from France, Italy and South America.

The video also included very different types of films: on the one hand, spectators can see scenes from “Les Amants du Pont Neuf” (cinema français) and Amélie and on the other hand, we have covered English speaking films such as The Bourne Identity, Midnight in Paris and Before Sunset. We also wanted to include a compilation of short films, so that’s why we chose Paris Je T’aime.”

FilmTripping Paris

My last year’s trip to California included several stops at famous movie locations and I think I’ll have to visit Paris soon and at least check locations from Before Sunset.

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