While the story of Beauty and the Beast is quintessentially French and set in "Villeneuve," a fictional village in 18th-century France, the 2017 live-action movie was mostly filmed in the United Kingdom. The vast majority of the production took place at Shepperton Studios in Surrey, where 27 intricate sets were constructed, including the Beast’s castle and the village square. However, the production designers drew heavy inspiration from real French locations. The village of Conques in the Aveyron department and various towns in the Alsace region (like Riquewihr and Ribeauvillé) served as the visual blueprints for the movie's village. The interior of the Beast's castle was modeled after the Palace of Versailles and the Château de Chambord in the Loire Valley. The 1991 animated version was entirely produced in California, while the 1946 classic by Jean Cocteau was actually filmed on location in France, specifically at the Château de la Roche-Courbon in Charente-Maritime. So, while the "spirit" and inspiration are French, the modern blockbuster version is a product of British soundstages and CGI.