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Selection committee / Feature films Director / France
Would you like to introduce yourself?
My name is Jean-Luc François.
I'm a cartoon director.
I've made a feature film, "Tchoupi";
a series adapted from the feature film, also "Tchoupi";
"Allez Raconte", which I co-directed;
an adaptation of a video game which is called "Adibou"
and two series of "Grabouillon", in 3D.
At the moment I am working on a series which is called "Ovni".
It's in Flash, and it is adapted from a comic of Trondheim and Parme.
I am also developing projects with Blue Spirit.
I'm developing adaptations and original projects,
"Les Petites Poules", "Agathe Saugrenue"
and perhaps a sequel to "The Mysterious Cities of Gold".
What trends are you seeing in the films entered for Annecy 2009, in terms of themes and techniques?
What is interesting is that
we are seeing more and more different techniques,
contrary to certain years when it was really all about classic 2D.
Now we have classic 2D and also computerised 2D,
made using software such as After Effects or Flash.
And you have the third technique, which is 3D,
and stop motion too.
There are many different techniques, which is interesting.
The trend is that there are a lot of films,
including a lot I think aimed at going straight to video,
or being shown on TV.
I differentiate between films made to go straight to video
and real feature films,
because there is not the same level of quality in the narrative,
the pictures,
the rendering, etc.
There are quite a lot of films this year which are feature films,
but which lack what I would call "the feature film dimension"
in terms of narrative,
music or being a real film that takes you away with it.
What sort of things are you looking for in particular?
The main thing that really stands out is:
is this film going to interest me;
am I going to stay until the end;
is it going to take me away with it or not?
After that, whether it's 2D, 3D, for children, for adults...
it's a kind of curiosity as to whether
you will stick with the film or not.
So after,
I try, (in quotation marks) “to intellectualise” all that,
asking myself if the animation is good;
if the mixing is good; if the directing is good.
But the main thing is if I like it or not.
In any case,
a jury is like that.
You can be swept away or not swept away.
After, you can put in (in inverted commas) “professional” criteria:
choice of framing, direction, the script...
Above all, the film must sweep you away, entertain you,
and from there you can ask yourself
whether it would be worth showing or not.