On set in Belgium : Reenactment of Heysel 1985

(Credits : Jean Claude Pichon, L'Equipe)

Being passionate about acting, I do not mind traveling around the world if it gives me opportunities to perform. Recently, I had the chance to shoot in Mons, Belgium. I took part in a movie made for the reenactment of a tragic event which occurred at the Heysel stadium, in Brussels on May 29th, 1985.

That day, at the time of the European Cup finals, two football teams were confronting each other : Liverpool (England) and Juventus (Italy). During a friendly match before the real encounter, the overexcited supporters got out of control and the moment, which was supposed to be solely entertainment, turned out to be a general brawl resulting in the deaths of 39 people, leaving 465 people injured.

Through her movie, the director Teodora Mihai wanted to reenact one of Belgium's biggest tragedies of all time. I was on the set. The filming took place at the entrance hall of Hainaut small town's government offices. After checking our outfit with the wardrobe crew then getting hair and make-up done, us, as featured, bit player actors had to act like panicked supporters who, for some, got wounded. I was not a wounded one but had to support somebody who was.

Credits : Olivier Cornil and Thomas Moor

It had been a challenging filming, we had to show terror, panic, turmoil and a deep sorrow during the whole day of shooting. The production team was very respectful and professional, that is something I really appreciate. There was not any rude or inappropriate behavior.

Unfortunately, as for many other filmings, I could not take pictures but I am inserting below pictures of the city of Mons where everything happened.