Exhibition - Val d'Europe Studios: cinema takes center stage in visitors' daily lives

By Mulder, Serris, Centre commercial Val d'Europe, 04 july 2025

Since June 27, 2025, the Val d'Europe shopping center, just minutes from Disneyland Paris, has been transformed into a veritable sanctuary of the seventh art thanks to the immersive Val d'Europe Studios event, a free experience that is as ambitious as it is surprising. Until August 31, this temple of consumerism will become a temple of cinema, where every corner has been redesigned to immerse the public in the world of film, as if they were behind the camera themselves. Upon entering the scenographic journey, visitors become actors, costume designers, cameramen, screenwriters, or sound engineers for the duration of a fun, educational, and eminently cinephile exploration. This initiative reveals a true love of cinema and remarkable expertise, thanks in particular to the collaboration with the Starfix Museum, whose cult pieces punctuate this spectacular immersion.

The tone is set from the outset with a space dedicated to the script and storyboard, often considered a mysterious part of the creative process. Here, visitors are invited to become apprentice screenwriters and imagine the pitch for their own film: choosing characters, locations, genres... guided by a mediator, they discover that the basis of any cinematographic work lies in an idea, a tone, an intention. Among the items on display, the original pages of the script for Super-héros malgré lui, co-written by Philippe Lacheau, Julien Arruti, Pierre Lacheau, and Pierre Dudan, reveal the collective energy, staging notes, and comic timing imagined from the moment the script was written. Nearby, the spectacular storyboards for the suspension bridge scene in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, drawn by Michael Lloyd and Stanley Fleming, illustrate the crucial importance of technical editing. Documents like these help us understand how much thought goes into each image long before filming, in a fusion of storytelling and visual anticipation. Also on display are the storyboards of storyboard artist Éric Gandois, whose impressive career includes collaborations with Luc Besson (Lucy, Valérian and the City of a Thousand Planets), Hugo Gélin, and Philippe Lacheau.

The tour continues in an immersive dressing room, where you can feel the heart of the transformation beating. Visitors can create their own costume mood board, choose fabrics, draw sketches, and think about a character's silhouette. A special effects makeup workshop is offered every Saturday, where you can learn how to create wounds or metamorphoses in the style of fantasy films. One of the most popular moments is undoubtedly the discovery of original costumes from cult films. Visitors can admire the black vinyl outfit worn by Carrie-Anne Moss in Matrix Reloaded, designed by Kym Barrett, which has become a visual icon of cyberpunk and 2000s fashion, as well as the opera costume worn by Michael Danek as Klingo Kahless and the space suit worn by Judy Robinson, aka Taylor Russell, in Lost in Space. Another major piece is the replica of Indiana Jones' costume, originally designed by George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, and costume designer Deborah Nadoolman, whose every detail—hat, kangaroo leather whip, Western Leathers jacket—testifies to the obsession with realism in the visual construction of a mythical hero.

The third space takes visitors right into the heart of a film set. A miniature set allows them to place their phones on rails to simulate tracking shots and dolly shots, or even try their hand at stop motion. Lights, camera, action! This section offers a real insight into the technical richness of the language of cinema. Visitors discover the roles of the director, the director of photography, the lighting technicians, and more. This experience is made even more powerful by the fact that visitors can try acting out a scene in front of the camera themselves, reproducing a specific emotion to step into the shoes of an actor. This feature, which is particularly popular with children, encourages interaction and demystifies the roles on set. The idea is that everyone, young and old alike, can imagine themselves as a filmmaker.

The post-production stage brings this adventure to a close in a way that is as intelligent as it is fun. Thanks to a digital table, curious visitors can learn about editing, dubbing, sound effects, and mixing. How can a scene change tone depending on how it is edited? How does music accentuate an emotion? How do you synchronize a voice? Each tool is accessible, educational, and encourages fascinating reflection on what we never see: the final stages of filmmaking. For many, this last step is a revelation, as it illustrates how magic is also written in the invisible.

But Val d'Europe Studios doesn't stop at this narrative journey. The shopping center also hosts a genuine exhibition of objects from the history of cinema, including a licensed replica of R2-D2, the faithful droid created by George Lucas, a Guinon costume worn by Whoopi Goldberg, a Starfleet jumpsuit worn by Nichelle Nichols in the role of Lieutenant Uhura, and an original poster of E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial designed by John Alvin and inspired by Michelangelo. These objects from the Starfix Museum, often seen in convention display cases, are given true artistic value here, becoming vehicles for collective memory. Special mention goes to the impressive model of the Minimoys village created by Hugues Tissandier and his team, a masterpiece of miniaturization that took a year to build and three months to photograph to give the illusion of depth. A gem of design, born from the universe of Luc Besson, it fascinates young and old alike.

The event also stands out for its ability to combine culture and accessibility. By reinvesting in an everyday living space, the shopping center proves that culture can be found everywhere and even enrich the shopping experience. This is not a first for Val d'Europe, which has already hosted innovative events such as “A tête-à-tête with art icons” in 2023 and “Revisit your classics!” in 2024. This year, under the impetus of Anissa Chegwin, the center's deputy director, the management has chosen to highlight the film industry, with the clear aim of creating a link between visitors and the world of cinema: "The world behind the scenes of films fascinates young and old alike. We are more than enthusiastic about exhibiting legendary objects from the history of cinema and offering workshops on careers in the film industry," she says proudly.

Val d'Europe Studios, open Wednesday to Sunday from 2pm to 7pm until August 31, 2025, is an original way of bringing the public closer to filmmaking. It is an ode to creators, technicians, and inventors of worlds, a helping hand to the next generation of dreamers. Whether you are with family, friends, or simply curious, this journey behind the scenes of the seventh art is one of the most beautiful cultural getaways of the summer in the Île-de-France region.

You can discover our photos in our Flickr page

Photos and video : Boris Colletier / Mulderville