Marrakech (Morocco) (AFP)

Joel Proust, former stuntman and equestrian choreographer of blockbusters like "Alexandre" by Oliver Stone or "Kundun" by Martin Scorsese, prepares his stallions for the resumption of filming in Morocco after a long crossing of the desert due to the epidemic coronavirus.

The hoof noises of horses on their way to training in the paddock break the calm of the equestrian center located at the entrance to the tourist capital Marrakech, bloodless after fifteen months of borders closed for health reasons.

Play dead, gallop or simply walk in step ... Arab beards, Dutch Frisians and Spanish thoroughbreds follow the instructions of the instructor by voice, your firm, slender figure molded into his T-shirt and his jodphur.

Living in Morocco since the 1980s, the 65-year-old Frenchman choreographs the equestrian action scenes of the greatest films shot there, such as "Kingdom of Heaven" (Ridley Scott, 2005) or the "Mummy" (Stephen Sommers, 1999) "with over 200 horses galloping at full speed".

He learned to edit "to actors like Johnny Depp or Robert Pattinson" - for "Waiting for The Barbarians" by Ciro Guerra.

"We hope that the country will open its borders, otherwise it will be complicated," he worries.

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Joël Proust is preparing three major international productions, including "L'Alchimiste".

Filming of this American production adapted from the eponymous bestseller by Brazilian writer Paulo Coelho is due to begin in mid-July under the direction of Kevin Scott Frakes.

His horses will participate in battle scenes, he also sets up camels brought back from the desert for caravan scenes.

- "Difficult" year -

The year 2020 has been particularly "difficult": "we advertised Moroccan tourism and only one film, whereas we usually do ten a year," he says.

The French host internships, manages the equestrian centers of three holiday villages and organizes tourist hikes in the desert, but everything is at a standstill.

With the maintenance of his animals and personnel costs, he estimates his losses "at around 100,000 euros".

"We are holding on but it should start again," he adds.

The health crisis has affected the global cinema industry and Morocco has not been spared: with only eight international films in 2020 (for a total budget of nearly 60 million dirhams, around 5.5 million euros) the sector recorded a decline of nearly 78%, according to the annual report of the Moroccan Cinematographic Center (CCM).

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The kingdom has been striving for several years to capitalize on the diversity of its natural landscapes, with an active policy of financial incentives, to attract the largest international productions.

After the passages in the 1950s by Pier Paolo Pasolini, Alfred Hitchcock and Orson Welles, the country has seduced super-productions like Scorsese's "Kundun" on the life of the Dalai Lama.

For this film, "I was responsible for teaching 40 Tibetans to ride horses. We took four months of steps for the processions," recalls Joël Proust.

An "interesting" experience for this specialist in action scenes who has not played stuntmen for a few years.

- Collin Farrel and Emilia Clarke -

Of all his shoots, Joël Proust keeps anecdotes.

For "Alexandre", the Irish actor Collin Farrel "was to do a fortnight's military internship in a camp near Marrakech" but "managed to escape one evening to come and have a drink with us", he recalls. , amused.

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The successful series "Game of Thrones" left him with the memory of a thorny scene with the English actress Emilia Clarke, alias Daenerys Targaryen, for the mythical episode on the liberation of the red city Astapor, shot in Ouarzazate, in South.

"The director decided at the last minute that an army of 200 extras should strike the ground with their spears as she passed by on horseback. The impressive noise disoriented the animal and destabilized its rider," he says. .

To complete the scene, he proposed that the Warriors "pretend to knock on the ground", the post-production sound effects did the rest.

Today, the equestrian choreographer is impatiently awaiting the staging instructions for the Alchemist.

With an envelope of around 18 million euros, it is the biggest contract signed in Morocco since the American series "Homeland", according to the local press.

© 2021 AFP