Interview Adrien Gromelle
What is your opinion on animation in France?
We have the chance to go to some of the best animation schools in the world. Animators often have an extraordinary status ( as ‘intermittent du spectacle’). This makes France the 3rd biggest producer of animated movies (after Japan and the US).
In France we have the chance to make films as good as American features with not even half of their budgets and that's great. Unfortunately, despite that Japanese culture influences a lot of the artists, producers and people still think animation is only for children, so it's difficult to create something if your target is not 4 to 8 years old.
To make an animated series like the extraordinary Bruce Tim's Batman or Legend of Korra is totally impossible in France (because these are violent) and that's a shame because I think French artists have a huge potential and great story to tell, for everyone. Animation is just a way to tell a story any story.
How were you trained as an artist?
My father and my mother are architects and my father did some comic books when he was young, so I can't really tell when it started. I have kind of trained myself since I can hold a pen.
I entered architecture studies at 15, received my diploma of architect assistant at 18 and worked for my father. At the same time I learned and practiced animation for 4 years.
In 2010 I entered ''Gobelins l'école de l'image'' and studied animation in Paris, and there I am.
Can you tell something about the process of designing a character?
Use cliché without actually doing it, try to create not only a shape but put the spirit and the mind of the character into it.
Who is your favourite character from an animated film?
I can't give you only one character, it's just too difficult... I will give you my holy trinity : Bruce Tim's Batman, Disney's Aladdin, Korra.
What do you like best in visual storytelling?
The fact that you can control everything, you can manage everything like you want and create exactly what you have in mind, it's like being a god, you have unlimited power to give life and no limitations except your will and the time you can use it.
Meer animatie: http://www.barbarus.org/blog/tag/Animatie
