Les Chevaliers du Ciel is the largest ‘photoreal’ visual effects movie ever made in France. All images © Mandarin Films — Outsider Productions.

Ask any Frenchman who Tanguy and Laverdure are, and he will surely answer that they are the title characters of one of the most enduring series of graphic novels ever, covering more than 39 albums published over a period of 45 years. Telling the adventures of two French Air Force pilots, the series proved so popular that it was adapted into a now-cult television series in 1967 under the evocative title of Les Chevaliers du Ciel (Knights of the Sky). Thirty-eight years later, the series has now become a feature film helmed by Gérard Pirès, director of the original Taxi. In order to emphasize the difference between both series and the movie, the name of the characters has been changed to Marchelli and Valois.

The movie opens with a new mission for the two pilots: retrieve a Mirage 2000 — the French equivalent to the F-16 — that went missing during an air show. When they ultimately locate it, the rogue pilot engage combat and is finally shot down. Marchelli and Valois investigate this dramatic incident and draw a shocking conclusion: their unit has been infiltrated by a terrorist organization that wants to use one of the Mirages to strike the President during the traditional air parade of July 14th (France National Day). However, the conspiracy theory is deemed too extravagant by the authorities. With July 14th approaching, Marchelli and Valois only have a few days to prove that their theory is right…

Vfx powerhouse La Maison from Paris produced about 700 shots representing some 50 minutes of screen footage. Vfx producer Annie Dautane (left) and vfx supervisor Eve Ramboz oversaw the project.

Seeking the Ultimate Aerial Footage
Having piloted the most diverse types of aircrafts himself, including the legendary Sukhoi SU-27 jet fighter, Pirès was an ideal candidate to direct the ambitious movie. Knowing his work would inevitably be compared to Tony Scott’s on Top Gun, the director elected to capture the most realistic depiction of jet fighters in action ever. This included refusing to use computer-generated animation for the aircrafts themselves. Pirès had noted that Top Gun‘s 20-year old aerial sequences still had more impact than the CGI-based scenes of many recent movies. Thus, in Les Chevaliers du Ciel, the Mirages are always the real aircrafts. The approach led to the development of a brand new technology to capture the necessary footage.

Requirements of the system comprised being able to shoot steady footage in temperatures ranging from -45° Celsius to +50° Celsius and in extreme G-force conditions, including when the aircrafts broke the sound barrier. The film crew collaborated with Dassault Aviation, manufacturer of the Mirage aircrafts, to design and build a modified external fuel tank that was capable of holding five cameras aimed at different directions. The cameras were controlled by aerial footage director Eric Magnan from the co-pilot seat of the Mirage. Using video monitors to review the shots in progress, Magnan could ask each pilot to modify his position as to obtain the best possible footage. Each shot had been prepared in rough storyboard form and extensively analyzed during briefings with the pilots. Needless to say, the movie couldn’t have existed without complete cooperation from the French Air Force. Obtaining technical support and clearances was not a problem though, as the military had seen what Top Gun had done for the U.S. Air Force!