The extraordinary collaboration between Citroën and producers Pathé, Trésor Films, and Editions Albert René resulted in the creation of the first "concept tank" made in Gaul and inspired by the legendary 2CV. A first for a French blockbuster, Citroën provided a fleet of 10 electric cars during filming. This partnership resulted in a unique evolution of the new Citroën logo: the famous chevrons inserted into an oval, adorned with the wings of Asterix's helmet. The meeting of two legends of French culture in the film " Asterix and Obelix: The Middle Kingdom ».
A unique partnership has just been announced between Citroën, Pathé, Trésor Films and Editions Albert René on the occasion of the film Asterix & Obelix: The Middle KingdomThe feature film, produced by Pathé, Trésor Films and Les Enfants Terribles and directed by Guillaume Canet, will be released in France on 1er February 2023, then shortly after it will be an international release.
This collaboration is a major innovation for Citroën, which created and built a "concept tank" specifically for the film. An unprecedented challenge! Involved in the project from the outset, the Citroën design team created this masterpiece in three months, compared to the usual year it takes to sketch and then build a concept car.
With its world-famous silhouette, the 2CV is part of French cultural and popular heritage. In the film Asterix & Obelix: The Middle Kingdom, the "Concept Car" reinterprets the 2 CV with explicit references to the world of Gallic heroes. Citroën's design team thus interpreted the brand's core values – comfort, technology and bold style – in the manner of Asterix. The result... an instantly recognizable character line, a boar's belly suspension, a sunroof, headlights inspired by Gallic helmets, controlled by fireflies boosted with magic potion, and wheels in the shape of recycled shields with the famous chevrons.
The "Concept Tank" is featured in several scenes throughout the film. One, where the heroes are preparing to leave their village for China, depicts a close-knit team at the start of a great adventure. Cetautomatix then presents the tank to Obelix, showing him the latest innovations he has made to the tank to make the journey as smooth as possible. Later, when Caesar's armies arrive in China, a billboard at the border advertises the best means of transportation at the time: the 2CV, a powerful Gallic-made tank pulled by two horses. A tribute to the famous Citroën advertisement filmed on the Great Wall of China.
Finally, to underline the collusive nature of this partnership, the new Citroën logo comes to life and reveals the wings of Asterix's helmet for the occasion.
Behind the scenes intervention
This collaboration also took place off-camera. Citroën supplied the Asterix team with 10 all-electric vehicles during filming: three ë-C100s, three C4 Aircross plug-in hybrids, two ë-SpaceTourers, one Ami, and one ë-Jumpy. Citroën also helped decorate the charging stations for these vehicles at the filming locations in Bry-sur-Marne and Brétigny-sur-Orge.
Sustainability was a key aspect throughout the filming process. The electric fleet provided by Citroën is part of the film crew's decarbonization approach. At the same time, they hired an agency to implement certain measures to minimize waste. For example, the costumes were reused and all the cardboard boxes were recycled, saving two tons of wood. In addition, all the wooden crates were donated to two urban farms in the Île-de-France region.
Unique partnership
The names Citroën and Asterix are an integral part of French culture. The car manufacturer was founded in 1919 by André Citroën, who made his mark on automotive history, from the Traction, through the 2CV, to the CX. Today, Citroën is paving the way for tomorrow's mobility with the atypical object AMI or its latest concept car, oilsAsterix is a comic book series created by writer René Goscinny and cartoonist Albert Uderzo in 1959 for the newspaper Pilote. Éditions Albert René owns and manages all rights to the adventures of this little Gallic warrior. The company publishes comic books and is behind new Asterix projects, particularly films and cartoons. To date, 385 million albums have been sold worldwide in 111 languages and dialects.
These adventures were first adapted for the big screen in 1967 with Ray Goossens' feature film Asterix the Gaul. With 15 films and cartoons to date, the Asterix saga has attracted over 25 million viewers in France and over 70 million internationally. It shares Citroën's ability to bring all audiences together with its unbridled sense of humor, and the manufacturer is one of the few car brands to use offbeat humor to get its message across.
Finally, Asterix and Obelix's long journey to China is reminiscent of Citroën's Central Asian mission, also known as Yellow Cruise, which took place from April 4, 1931 to February 12, 1932, linking Beirut to Beijing. It was the third automobile expedition of this kind by Citroën, after the crossing the Sahara desert and Black Cruise.
The film Asterix & Obelix: The Middle Kingdom will be released in French cinemas on the 1ster February 2023, with an international release to follow shortly thereafter.
André Tirlet
Photos: Citroën
