Cat’s Eyes on TF1: Did they really shoot the first episode on the Eiffel Tower?

After months of waiting, viewers are finally able to discover the first episodes of Cat’s Eyes, the live-action TV series adapted from Tsukasa Hojo’s iconic 80s manga.

Designed as a prequel to the story imagined by the famous mangaka, the series explores the origins of Cat’s Eyes, three sisters who transform into thieves to solve the mystery of the disappearance of their father, who died ten years ago in a fire. Art gallery.

When a piece that belonged to him reappears in a prestigious exhibit at the Eiffel Tower, Tammy (Camille Lou), Alexia (Claire Romain) and Celia (Constance Labe) decide to steal it, hoping to finally find out what happened to it. However, these fledgling thieves quickly find themselves in the hands of Quentin Chappuis, Tami’s ex, who is now a BRB inspector…

It is in the Eiffel Tower that the first episode of Cat’s Eyes opens, and Tam steals a painting before being thrust into the heart of a police chase through every corner of this iconic Parisian monument.

But was this episode really filmed in the Eiffel Tower?

yes and no Indeed, not all scenes were shot on the Eiffel Tower. Alexandre Laurent, the director of the series, explained at a press briefing held at the La Rochelle Festival of Fantasy last September that these sequences were “A mix of natural and studio settings“.

He also added, “To install the projector stand, you need to document each plan, indicating the type of material, weight and the exact location where it will be placed. You should know that the Eiffel Tower is not a place where you can improvise. We need to tame this iron lady and get to know her. There was a lot written about everything related to stunts, VFX, to tell us which method we were going to choose and to calm down the monuments we shot in. At the Louvre, Versailles, the roofs of the Monnaie de Paris or the Eiffel Tower, we simply do nothing.“.

Alexandre Laurent therefore studied every corner of the monument for five months to design this spectacular chase. And the director says:There were many visits. We are coming for the first time as little tourists. We are taking photos, we are not planning yet. The second time we say to ourselves, “How am I going to do this? I can’t remember it all.“. It’s not like a set where you go up and down and see what you want to see in the picture.e.

The Eiffel Tower, when you are on the third and want to go to the first, the whole protocol is respectful. It’s not that simple. So I did it many times from top to bottom – at first with dizziness and then it went away – to sink in and understand the places. When I understood geography, I imagined Tami’s path, the places where he walked on the beam, where he climbed. A billion things are going through my head at that moment. It had to be secured, we had to find the places where the stuntman was going to run the cables…“.

Combining visual effects and real footage in locations depicting Paris, Cat’s Eyes offers viewers a unique immersion into the heart of the city of lights.