I few nights ago I was walking my beloved dog Shinga round the block before bed. There was a message ping on my ‘phone. Before I could check it, another ping. Then another. For the next 10 minutes or so it barely stopped. The reason transpired that crime drama “Piste Noire” had just aired at peak time on French TV channel France 2, and the luxury chalet prominently featured in the show was our recent project Chalet Joux Plane!
Piste Noire is a six part crime drama starring Constance Labbé and Thibault de Montalembert. The plot is as follows: After the death of a seasonal worker in a caravan fire, Emilie Karras (a dynamic young gendarme from Lyon) returns to the alpine resort of Les Clairies, where she grew up, and is forced to collaborate with Major Servoz, a disillusioned local gendarme. Together, they unearth a dastardly plot afoot in the resort which is itself embroiled in a bitter feud over a luxury real estate development that divides people as much as it stares down upon the village from the top of the mountain.
Morzine was used to depict the fictional resort of Les Claires, and was used for the majority of the filming. Nearly 500 locals were involved as extras during the production which was shot between October 2021 and January 2022. The glamorous ski chalet starring in the show is Chalet Joux Plane, operated by The Boutique Chalet Company. Multiple rooms were used for key scenes – including the main salon and the 23 metre outdoor-indoor-outdoor swimming pool, visible from the salon above, through the glass staircase (obviously it is not me with the pink flamingo in the pool!)
If you are desperate to find out the killer (and see some lovely Morzine footage) there are 6 episodes in total, broadcast on Mondays at 9pm on France 2 (episode 1 has had rave reviews!). It will also be available online at France 2.
Don’t forget the popcorn!
