As a seasoned film enthusiast with a soft spot for animated masterpieces and a penchant for all things French, I eagerly anticipate the upcoming lineup of productions from Autour de Minuit. Having grown up watching classics like “Les Triplettes de Belleville” and “Persepolis,” it’s exciting to see this studio continue to push the boundaries of animation while catering to a wide range of audiences.
The upcoming 30th installment of Unifrance Rendez-vous in Le Havre is quickly approaching! This renowned French film market will soon welcome a multitude of purchasers, showcasing a wide array of films spanning various genres and formats.
Around Midnight, the Oscar-nominated production company that recently shared credit for producing 2022’s “Unicorn Wars” (which received the Best Distributor Award from Unifrance last year), is set to present a variety of animated projects at this year’s Rendezvous. These include an interesting mix of TV series and specials.
“The Drifting Guitar”
This enchanting 31-minute stop-motion TV special titled “The Weasel’s Tie Shop,” directed by Sophie Roze, is a must-see, having won the Cristal For a TV Production at this year’s Annecy Festival. The film employs a charming blend of cut-outs and puppets to tell a whimsical story about a weasel who runs a tie shop. Due to her pesty nature, she finds herself forced into the forest where she encounters a hedgehog and a capybara, who has been displaced from his home. The production is a joint effort between France’s JPL Films and Switzerland’s Nadasdy Film. The special will be distributed globally except for Switzerland by Autour de Minuit.
“The Impossible Future”
The television series “The Impossible Future,” directed by Antonio Balseiro and Martin Haas, tackles head-on the concerns about humanity’s influence on our environment, which have been paired with animation and ecological alerts for quite some time now. This documentary delves into climate change, but it also explores various paths towards halting and potentially even reversing the global crisis that threatens our existence, a topic of the Anthropocene era.
The show consists of ten episodes, each lasting 13 minutes. It combines traditional 2D hand-drawn animation with live-action footage, making it seem like the animated characters have been rotoscoped and are moving through real-world settings. The creators aim for a more optimistic storytelling approach regarding this topic, believing that “if we want to encourage change, we need to swiftly propagate an optimistic vision of the future that ignites collective imagination.” The vibrant colors of the characters, who appear in harmony with the real world, definitely contribute to this sense of optimism.
“Freaked Out” – Season 2
Collaborating with fellow director Mothy, Theo Grosjean reworks his personal graphic novel, “The Most Anxious Man in Existence,” into a television series. This series revolves around the protagonist’s everyday interactions that are amplified by his anxiety. The initial season, a 20-episode, two-minute long, 2D animated series, is geared towards both teenagers and adults, delving into “the ruthless reality of contemporary life.”
Each rather relatable episode is a window into a different lane of neurosis, as Théo’s anxiety complicates things that should be straightforward, like parties, doctor’s appointments and getting on a plane. It’s drawn in the same style as the book – favoring a simple palette of yellow, black and white colors. The second season is set for another 20×2 episode order. Pre-bought by Canal+ in France (who aired the previous season), the TV series is currently in production, with a release date set for the beginning of 2025.
“Polo Sans Bobo”
At the 2022 edition of the Annecy Festival, Sophie Castaignede’s “Polo Sans Bobo,” a mixed 2D/CG animated film for children aged six to nine, took home the TitraFilm Prize from the MIFA Pitches category. The story follows Polo, a city-dwelling raccoon who must relocate to the countryside with his mother due to her new job at the local hospital. Initially upset by the move, Polo stubbornly refuses to stay. Production is ongoing, with completion scheduled for early 2025.
“Jean-Michel: Super Caribou” – Season 2
The small, sleepy town of Vlalbonvent is safeguarded by an unforeseen guardian: a “Super Caribou” dressed in a cape and tights, reminiscent of Superman over Metropolis. In this French-Belgian collaboration between Autour de Minuit and Panique!, directed by Mathieu Auvray & Pauline Pinson, the second season unfolds the ten-minute escapades of Jean-Michel. This series revolves around a humorous collection of adventures featuring the titular woodland creature and the peculiar, non-human residents of the town.
As a movie critic, I’m excited to share my thoughts on an upcoming animated series that I believe will charm audiences of all ages – “The Animal Town Chronicles,” based on the delightful works of Magali Le Huche. The whimsical premise is as endearingly absurd as it gets, with our animal inhabitants embarking on capers ranging from healthy eating lessons to super-powered mustache antics and investigations into property destruction.
“The Shrimps”
Inspired by classic cartoons like “The Amazing World of Gumball,” “Spongebob Squarepants,” “The Simpsons,” and the live-action sensation “Malcolm in the Middle” from the 2000s, the new animated series titled “The Shrimps” is currently being produced. This 2D animated show for kids, created by Fabrice Ravier and Sébastien Guerout and directed by Celine Gobinet, revolves around Meredith Shrimp, a 9-year-old shrimp living in Bubble City with her family. The antics of Meredith’s family, reminiscent of “Malcolm,” often disrupt her dreams of becoming a chef. Similarly, the visual style of the show mirrors that of “Gumball” with its vibrant and polished designs.
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2024-09-02 13:47