How was the Alain Chabat asterix mini-series born

The crazy story behind the unexpected return of Alain Chabat to the world of Asterix. The director tells us everything!

There are projects that are born a little by chance, such as the magic potion. The new Netflix series Asterix: the fight of chefs – Line since April 30 – is a good example. Who would have believed that a simple confidence during a masterclass would give birth to one of the most anticipated events of the year?

It all starts in 2017. Alain Chabat, During a masterclass at the Cinémathèque, almost distracted a personal habit: “In my spare time, when I want to do exercises, I write small treatments around Asterix albums.” An innocent confidence, filmed and shared on Youtube. “I wanted to write something, but I had no ideas that were enough to get started” explains Chabat at first.

“So, as if to make ranges, to build my writing a little, I had fun adapting The fight of the chiefs. “

What Chabat was unaware of is that Celeste SurugueManaging Director ofAlbert Renéwas on the lookout. “When I hear that, I copy the video link and I immediately share it with Isabelle Magnac,” he says. The latter, general manager ofIllustrated hatchet and long -established in the world ofAsterixknew Chabat well. She contacts him without delay. “Very quickly, she gives us a treatment that Chabat sent her. About fifteen pages,” continues Surugue. “And it’s … great.”

The treatment in question? An adaptation of the comic strip of The fight of the chiefs (published in 1966) “Both very faithful and at the same time very modern.” The reaction is immediate: something must be done. But Chabat hesitates. After all, Asterix and Obelix: Cleopatra mission It remains engraved in collective memory as a huge success. Passing behind his own work involves risks.

It was then thatIsabelle Magnac suggests the animation rather than a new film in real shots. The idea is making its way, but the project is struggling to materialize. Until Netflix enters the scene. “At the beginning, in our head everyone, it was a film,” specifies Surugue. But after listening to Chabat’s ambitions, it is Dominique Bazaythe patron of Netflix, which offers another direction: “Couldn’t we decline this in series?” And the project was launched.

From the start, two evidences are essential: it takes the best, and the series must be produced in France. “Netflix granted a budget to test three or four studios, with a small three -minute sequence,” explain Krystof Serrandthen director of animation at Netflix. It is ultimately Tat Productions which wins the bet. “On the tests, we were not necessarily better than the others technically,” entrust Jean-François Tostifounder of the studio, “But we were obviously the only ones to have offered something with touches of humor.”

Chance wants one of the first projects carried out at the start of the Studio Tat was linked to … Chabat. “It was a short film called The wish“ recalls Tosti.

“It lasted 5 minutes. It was in 2001, and at the same time, Alain Chabat was going to release his Cleopatra mission. The production of the film was looking for an animation short to put in preview, as it was still done at the time. We had sent a VHS of Wish Not finished, without believe it too much. And a few weeks later, phone call: Chabat had chosen our film! We had to finish it in an emergency and suddenly found ourselves projected in half of the rooms in France. Do you imagine the honor and the boost for our little box at the time?

In addition to the Toulouse studio, Netflix and Chabat called on animation cadors. First of all Fabrice Joubert to corealization. Aurélien Prédalwho worked on Vice versa 2 And Spider-man: across the spider-verseis the artistic director. And to coordinate all of this, Krystof Serrandtherefore, former DreamWorks, who began his career with … Asterix. “I learned to read with Asterix albums. I learned to draw with Asterix! And I learned animation in Asterix, because my first professional job was on Gaumont films, in the early 80s, Asterix and Caesar’s surprise. “

There remains a question that everyone is asking: why Alain Chabat he comes back to Asterix more than twenty years later Cleopatra mission ?

“It’s quite simple in fact: I find these characters super funny and endearing,” answers Chabat. “The characters that Uderzo And Goscinny have imagined are ultra well built. “

An admiration that borders on obsession: “I do not know how it is possible that these characters, created 60 years ago, are still as relevant to me. You do not read the same album at 10 years old, 16 years old or 40 years. Each time you say to yourself: ‘Ah … But in fact that’s what it says!'”

This series is also a tribute to the “Genius of this duo” who has it “Always impressed” :: “Their fantasy, their word games, sometimes pushed to delirium … It remains an essential source of inspiration for me.” Faced with such monuments, Chabat remains humble: “Some creators are in space. And therefore unattainable. The minimum is to do everything to be at our humble level, at the height of this material.”

The Gauls have not finished surprising us.