The director of Amélie, the hit film which became a planetary ode to Paris, says he wouldn't make a sequel because the City of Lights has become "ugly now" due to constant "construction sites everywhere”.

Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s 2001 whimsical urban fairytale about a young girl's quest for love in an idealised depiction of Montmartre is among the biggest international box office successes for a French-language film ever.

In the feel-good tale, a shy waitress, played by Audrey Tautou, strives to change the lives of those around her for the better while struggling with her own isolation.

In an interview with IndieWire, Jeunet said he had repeatedly fended off requests for an Amelie sequel or spin-off series, saying: “In Paris now it’s so difficult to shoot because there are constructions sites everywhere, so Paris is ugly now. So no, I don’t want to make a sequel or even a series.”

Instead, the idiosyncratic director said he planned to shoot a “mockumentary" about the production of his beloved 2001 romantic comedy in anticipation of the movie’s 20th anniversary.