Development While the film is adapted from a novel by
Marcel Pagnol, the novel was itself adapted from a film directed in 1952 by Pagnol,
Manon des Sources. That two-part film told the story of Jean's daughter Manon while Jean, already dead, only appeared in brief flashbacks. The complete film was four hours long, and subsequently cut by its distributor. Pagnol was dissatisfied with the cuts and also felt the need to expand the story. He then decided to retell it as a novel, which was eventually published in 1962. Pagnol's book was also in two volumes, though its story was structured differently. The first part of the novel, titled
Jean de Florette, was an exploration of the background for the original 1952 film, a prequel of sorts, which told the story of Jean. Together the two volumes made up the work Pagnol called
The Water of the Hills (''L'Eau des collines''). Berri contacted
Jacqueline Pagnol, Marcel Pagnol's widow, who managed her husband's legacy and had also starred as Manon in the 1952 film. She proved reluctant to sell the adaptation rights and asked Berri to first present her with a viable project. It took Berri several years to secure her approval; in 1983, after completing his film
So Long, Stooge, he contacted Pagnol again and managed to convince her. Berri initially sought to continue his successful association with Coluche by casting him as Ugolin. However, Coluche, who was from the Paris area, was uncomfortable with the idea of doing a fake Provençal accent. Also, his first screen tests proved unconvincing. After Coluche left the project, Berri considered casting
Jacques Villeret as Ugolin but Montand vetoed that choice. So far, Auteuil had been mostly known by French audiences for his roles in comedies, and saw an occasion to give a performance of greater depth. Upon meeting Auteuil, Berri initially found him "too handsome". Auteuil, who was eager to win the role, requested a second interview with the director, for which he changed his appearance by shaving his head.
Filming Jean de Florette was filmed in and around the
Vaucluse department of
Provence, where a number of different places have been mentioned as filming locations.
La Treille, east of Marseille, in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, was the village where Pagnol had shot the original film. The village is now within the city limits of
Marseille and had undergone extensive development since the 1950s, so Berri had to find alternatives. For the village of the story he settled on
Mirabeau (65 km to the north), while Jean de Florette's house is located in
Vaugines, where the church from the film can also be found. The market scenes were filmed in
Sommières in the
Gard, and the story's Les Romarins was in reality
Riboux in the
Var. Extensive work was put into creating a genuine and historically correct atmosphere for the film. The facades of the houses of Mirabeau had to be replaced with painted
polystyrene, to make them look older, and all electric wires were put underground. Meanwhile, in Vaugines, Berri planted a dozen
olive trees twelve months before filming started, and watered them throughout the waiting period, and for the second installment planted 10,000
carnations on the farm. Actor Fransined, whom Pagnol had considered casting as Ugolin in
the 1952 version of Manon of the Spring, was given a supporting role in both films as the flower vendor. When he saw the first
dailies, Auteuil found his own performance lackluster and considered giving up the role. He then found a way to approach his character, by making Ugolin likeable.
Jean de Florette and
Manon des Sources were filmed together, over a period of thirty weeks, from May to December 1985. This allowed Berri to show the dramatic seasonal changes of the Provençal landscape. At 120 million French francs ($17 million), it was at the time the most expensive film project in French history. The long filming period and the constantly increasing cost put a great burden on the actors, many of whom frequently had to return to Paris for television or theatre work. Once completed, the release of the film was a great national event. A special promotional screening before the film's official release 27 August 1986, was attended by then
Minister of Culture Jack Lang. The musical score is based around the aria Invano Alvaro from
Giuseppe Verdi's 1862 opera
La forza del destino. ==Reception==