The French capital has long been an attractive location for film makers from around the world. Though film shootings were brutally interrupted in 2020 due to Covid-19, last year saw a number of film makers return to Paris that registered a record high in terms of cumulative number of days of shootings.

After a break of over two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic, film shootings return to Paris, especially those for streaming platforms or Over The Top (OTT). In 2021, shootings for 110 feature films took place in the French capital, up from 93 in 2020. Besides, 64 OTT series also took place last year, says Paris municipality in a press communiquer.

Though the number of film shootings is not a record, the total number of days of shooting does constitute a record as Paris saw 7000 days of shooting last year, which the Paris City authorities say is a ‘record of attractivity’ of Paris.

The record is mainly due to the duration of the OTT series, especially Netflix, Apple, Amazon and HBO, that last for months, rather than weeks or days, says Michel Gomez, the city official in charge of Mission Cinema, which is mandated with promoting the city as a film location. The large volume of shooting days also reflects the impact of the two lockdowns imposed in Paris 2020, on films and advertisements, says Gomez.

Some of the highlights of the series shot in Paris include Lupin Season 3 and Emily in Paris (Season 2), which were both Netflix productions. The city officials say that Netflix helped Paris significantly in rediscovering growth in terms of film production in 2021. The city also spoke of Disney which shot a mini-series on Malik Oussekine, a student killed by police in Paris in 1986.

Domestic producers like France Televisions, Canal+, TF1, Arte, M6 and OCS also began shooting in Paris last year, says the city official.