Saturday, May 17, 2008

More from the Croisette. . .



Pleuvoir sur le croisette-quel horreur! It's umbrellas & plastic macs this weekend as the festival has been drenched & queuing in line ain't so pleasant. The cafés are more packed than usual so it's hard to find a spot to draw but I did this one from the ever popular Caffé Roma. Caught a couple movies yesterday-my reviews can be read on film critic Mark Salisbury's blog. Here's one animation related:


WALTZ WITH BASHIR

It's encouraging to see another mature themed animated project in competition after last years' PERSEPOLIS. Contrary to Marjan Satrapi's autobiographical memoir of being raised amid Middle Eastern conflict, it's an account of Ari Folman's quest to remember what happened to him during his days in the Israeli army.
Folman has said he chose animation as his medium because he had no other option-it would have been just talking heads if in live action & there is little video footage of the Lebanon war from this period. Instead he illustrates the war-time experiences of his comrades as they relate their memories in voice-over. Stylistically the artwork is just as bold & graphic as Persepolis but more realistic, similar to Linklater's WAKING LIFE or A SCANNER DARKLY but not rotoscoped.
A talented team of artists evoke the surreal horror of war expertly & often poetically.
It's a moving & gripping account of one man's desire to understand how he came to be part of one of the worst massacres of the Lebanon conflict.

Folman plans to use animation for his next project-an adaptation of Stanislaw Lem's 1971 sci-fi novel 'The Futurological Congress'.


11 comments:

bannister said...

hello Matt, that's a nice blog you got there ! Quite great art ! :-)

If you plan to wander around the Annecy Animation Festival this year, be sure to join us on thursday afternoon for the sketchcrawl !
More infos here : http://bannman.livejournal.com

:-D

libra bear said...

I saw the trailer for this on Catsuka I think. Another brilliant idea. Also read your thoughts on Kung Fu Panda. I'm really intrigued. I really hope they have authentic martial arts styles in there, a bit like the Avatar. Great drawings as usual.

Matt Jones said...

Bannister-can't make it to Annecy this year, have agreat sketchcrawl.

Libra- Rodolphe Guenedon was head of story on KUNG FU PANDA & 'fight supervisor'-he's something of a martial arts expert I believe & all the action sequences are impressive-of course the characters can pull moves that would be impossible in reality.

bannister said...

Ah, too bad. Well, next year then ! :-)

Ohh, Rodolphe head of story and fight Supervisor ?! I'm gonna go see this movie !

bannister said...

Oh ! I forgot to tell you I'll be signing my books at the Nice Book Fair in the end of June. I you want to caome by say hello, I'll be honored ! :-)

Matt Jones said...

Oh cool-I'll see you there Bannister.

Kristian said...

the Ari Folman flick looks very exciting. Do you think it will get worldwide release?

Kristian said...

I've just read up a little about it on Cold hard Flash. Looks great http://waltzwithbashir.com/

Matt Jones said...

Waltz with Bashir had great buzz at Cannes & was picked up for distribution by most territories so you'll doubtless see it in the UK in the New Year.

Douglas Ferreira said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Douglas Ferreira said...

I just saw your sketcbook on flickr!beatifull and inspiring stuff!
best wishes!