Jacques Drouin
Encyclopedia
Jacques Drouin is a Canadian
animator
and director
most known for his pinscreen animation
s.
province, Canada
. He studied at the École des Beaux-Arts de Montréal
for several years before leaving to study filmmaking at the UCLA in California
.
He first encountered the pinscreen
at an animation exhibition in 1967. By the early 1970s, he was an apprentice at the National Film Board of Canada
and experimenting with this unique form of animation
. His first film, Three Exercises on Alexeieff's Pinscreen, was released in 1974.
To this day, Jacques Drouin is making pinscreen animation
films for the National Film Board of Canada
, one of the only animators in the world to still use this difficult but rewarding process. Some of his short films are available on NFB
DVD
collections, and a few are available online. His film, A Hunting Lesson, was included in the Animation Show of Shows
.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
animator
Animator
An animator is an artist who creates multiple images that give an illusion of movement called animation when displayed in rapid sequence; the images are called frames and key frames. Animators can work in a variety of fields including film, television, video games, and the internet. Usually, an...
and director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
most known for his pinscreen animation
Pinscreen animation
Pinscreen animation makes use of a screen filled with movable pins, which can be moved in or out by pressing an object onto the screen. The screen is lit from the side so that the pins cast shadows...
s.
Biography
Jacques Drouin was born in Mont-Joli, QuebecQuebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
province, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. He studied at the École des Beaux-Arts de Montréal
École des Beaux-Arts de Montréal
École des Beaux-Arts de Montréal was an educational institution founded in Quebec in 1922. The Saint-Jean-Baptiste Society was instrumental in its creation....
for several years before leaving to study filmmaking at the UCLA in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
He first encountered the pinscreen
Pinscreen animation
Pinscreen animation makes use of a screen filled with movable pins, which can be moved in or out by pressing an object onto the screen. The screen is lit from the side so that the pins cast shadows...
at an animation exhibition in 1967. By the early 1970s, he was an apprentice at the National Film Board of Canada
National Film Board of Canada
The National Film Board of Canada is Canada's twelve-time Academy Award-winning public film producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary, animation, alternative drama and digital media productions...
and experimenting with this unique form of animation
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
. His first film, Three Exercises on Alexeieff's Pinscreen, was released in 1974.
To this day, Jacques Drouin is making pinscreen animation
Pinscreen animation
Pinscreen animation makes use of a screen filled with movable pins, which can be moved in or out by pressing an object onto the screen. The screen is lit from the side so that the pins cast shadows...
films for the National Film Board of Canada
National Film Board of Canada
The National Film Board of Canada is Canada's twelve-time Academy Award-winning public film producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary, animation, alternative drama and digital media productions...
, one of the only animators in the world to still use this difficult but rewarding process. Some of his short films are available on NFB
NFB
The acronym NFB may refer to:* National Federation of the Blind, organization representing blind people in the United States* National Film Board of Canada, Canada's public film producer and distributor...
DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
collections, and a few are available online. His film, A Hunting Lesson, was included in the Animation Show of Shows
Animation show of shows
The Animation Show of Shows is a traveling selection of the year's best animated short films, curated and presented by Acme Filmworks founder, Ron Diamond. It began in 1998 with the aim of showing the most original, funny, intelligent short animated films from all over the world and presenting them...
.
Filmography
- 1974 - Three Exercises on Alexeieff's Pinscreen (Trois exercices sur l'écran d'épingles d'Alexeieff)
- 1976 - Mindscape (Le Paysagiste)
- 1986 - Nightangel (fr: L'Heure des anges, cz: Romance z temnot) - a collaboration with Bretislav PojarBretislav PojarBřetislav Pojar is a puppeteer, animator and director of short and feature films.Born in Sušice, Czechoslovakia, Pojar started his career in the late 1940s with his work on The Story of the Bass Cello based on the story by Anton Chekhov and directed by master Czech puppet animator Jiří Trnka...
. - 1988 - A Sun Between Two Clouds (Un soleil entre deux nuages) - participated as an animator.
- 1990 - Nathaël and the Seal Hunt (Nathaël et la chasse aux phoques)
- 1991 - The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (Les Quatre cavaliers de l'apocalypse)http://www.nfb.ca/trouverunfilm/fichefilm.php?id=5102&v=h&lg=fr&exp= - participated as an animator
- 1993 - MTVMTVMTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
Push Pins - 1994 - Ex-Child (Ex-enfant)
- 1996 - A Life Like a River (Une vie comme rivière) - participated as an animator.
- 2001 - A Hunting Lesson (Une leçon de chasse) - adaptation of tale by Jacques GodboutJacques GodboutJacques Godbout, CQ is a Canadian novelist, essayist, children's writer, journalist, filmmaker and poet. By his own admission a bit of a dabbler , Godbout has become one of the most important writers of his generation, with a major influence on post-1960 Quebec intellectual life.-Biography:Born in...
. - 2003 - Winter DaysWinter Daysis a 2003 animated film, directed by Kihachirō Kawamoto. It is based on one of the renku in the 1684 collection of the same name by the 17th-century Japanese poet Bashō....
(冬の日) - collaboration with many other famous animators - 2004 - Imprints/Empreintes
Awards
- 1976 - Ottawa International Animation FestivalOttawa International Animation Festival-History:In 1976, the Canadian Film Institute founded the biennial Ottawa International Animation Festival . First held August 10 to 15, 1976, the OIAF created a gathering place for North American animation professionals and enthusiasts to ponder the craft and business of animation...
Special Jury Prize for MindscapeMindscapeMindscape is an international software publishing company, previously part of The Learning Company. They are now affiliated with EA . As of 2004, the group has offices in Europe, Asia, Australia and South America. It has an annual turnover of €38 million and employs 150 people. Mindscape...