“Plus belle la vie”: Behind the scenes of the inauguration of the medical practice – 20 minutes
- This Monday evening, France 3 is broadcasting the 4271st episode of More beautiful life which sees the inauguration of a new decor.
- On the Place du Mistral now stands a medical office and a socio-aesthetic salon.
- 20 minutes went on the set of the first scene of this brand new place in Marseille.
On March 18, it was a day of celebration at studio 1000 of the media center of the Belle de Mai, in Marseille. At the end of the morning, the teams of More beautiful life recorded their first sequence in a new setting: Dr Vidal’s medical practice and Estelle Cantorel’s aesthetic practice. Between the four freshly painted and decorated walls, the technicians hasten to get set up as Elodie Varlet and Simon Ehrlacher arrive, the two stars of the day, to shoot their first scene (broadcast this Monday evening on the small screen ) in this space which will henceforth be their fictional workplace.
A few months ago, there was still an agency specializing in personal services in the same place. Previously, the decor had several lifetimes, going from a grocery store at the very beginning of the series, to a doctor’s office and then to a law firm. After four years without a general practitioner, the authors of the fiction of France 3 have decided to attribute this role to the character of Romain Vidal, who arrived at the beginning of the year.
“We knew that Dr Leserman’s office at the time had worked very well, that it was a character that was missing and that it was a local service that speaks to all”, explains Clémentine Planchon, artistic director of the interior studios. from the Serie. To treat their minor ailments, the inhabitants of the Mistral will no longer necessarily have to turn to the hospital, whose fans of More beautiful life know every corner today.
Two different but complementary professions
Before starting the work, several questions arose. What to install in this emblematic square? Which characters to develop there? And even how many? After having thought of allocating this rather cramped space to three protagonists, the production has resigned itself to making it the workplace of two people. This dual function is also the particularity of this decor, which constitutes the perfect opportunity to tell twice as many stories, both different but complementary. On the one hand, Estelle Cantorel finds a place to practice her profession of esthetician and embarks on socio-esthetics. On the other hand, Romain Vidal, surgery spawner, is refocusing on general medicine for more proximity to his patients.
Just three months ago, fans of More beautiful life discovered Le Marci, a restaurant whose goal was to breathe new life into the fictional neighborhood. For the making of this place, which was meant to be modern and trendy, the teams of the series did some scouting in the streets of Marseille. It goes without saying that they did not have to take the same steps for the doctor’s office. “We have all been to doctors and beauticians plenty of times. We eat a bit of that, ”says Clémentine Planchon.
The making of this new setting was also unlike that of the restaurant and took “three times less time, at least!” The set was already there, almost empty, and there were only a few adjustments to be made. To immerse this place in a notion of well-being, such was the desire of the artistic director of the interior studios of More beautiful life. “For her, we started with something very light, in shades of white, peach and quite soft. For him, we are more modern, in dark brown and black tones, ”explains Clémentine Planchon.
Have its decor, job security?
The installation of a new decor in the series must be accompanied by a vision of the authors, at least in the medium term, to make it profitable. If the characters of the series must be happy to find a general practitioner close to their home, it is therefore also excellent news for Simon Ehrlacher, its interpreter, whose character should probably not suffer a disastrous fate in the next weeks. “Having your own place means a lot of things, that your character will stay in the series, so full of interesting perspectives”, confides the actor when the engine of the cameras is cut.
The actor now has a good chance of seeing the doctor he plays become recurring in the series. A nice surprise for him who had abandoned comedy for several years to devote himself to his passion and open a martial arts school in Ile-de-France. “What was complicated was rather all the diction and remembering the texts,” he says. At the beginning, I took three days for a text to be recorded. Now, if I have it the day before, the brain registers quite quickly. And if ever Simon Ehrlacher has trouble with technical terms, all he has to do is make a phone call to his dad, also a general practitioner.