French Actress Catherine Deneuve Taking Part in Filming in Takasaki, Japan

The Yomiuri Shimbun

11:21 JST, January 10, 2024

French screen legend Catherine Deneuve, 80, is taking part in the shooting of the film “Spirit World” in Takasaki, Gunma Prefecture, according to the city’s municipal government.

Filming started on Saturday and is expected to continue for about 10 days.

The feature film directed by Singaporean filmmaker Eric Khoo is set to premier at multiple international film festivals and scheduled to be released in theaters in 2025 or later. The film with an original script is coproduced by Japan, France and Singapore.

Deneuve plays the role of a singer who suddenly dies while touring in Japan, but her spirit lives on and she sets off on a journey to find humanity in the afterworld.

Deneuve is a leading French actress who starred in films such as “Les Parapluies de Cherbourg” (“The Umbrellas of Cherbourg”). Khoo is the director of the 2019 movie “Kazoku no Recipe” (“Ramen Teh”) which was also filmed in Takasaki.

“I’m happy that a movie starring Deneuve is filmed in Takasaki. I’d like to cooperate in the filming,” Takasaki Mayor Kenji Tomioka said.