What inspired you to get into stop-motion animation and did you have any influential role models (if so, who?)

“As far as I remember, I always had a huge fascination for Disney productions from the 50’s to 90’s but I was also genuinely attracted to darker movies such as ‘The Last Unicorn’ which showcases magical creatures in a gloomy atmosphere. I enjoyed feeling uncomfortable, frightened, out of the comfort zone. In the end that’s what my work is all about : developing a visual design which at first makes you feel at ease, with a storyline that gets serious as the movie progresses and can even make you feel uncomfortable with an unexpected adult content.”

What is your creative process and what are the most important things you keep in mind when beginning a new project? Are there any recurring themes/issues you like to address within your work?

“My creative process is always the same : I sketch a bunch of characters and try to imagine what’s their stories or the way they’re all connected. I always keep in my that in animation everything’s possible, and I don’t put any limits to my imagination or worry about the budget. When I fix my characters design, I search for atmospheres with watercolour and then start to write my script, my characters’ storylines and my statement of intent to apply for funding. Once the funding is granted, I can start producing. Then I sculpt, cast and paint my silicon figurines and work on their costumes., start to build my sets. Then, it’s all about moving the figurines inside the set. You place it, take a picture; move it a little bit and take another picture. You must repeat this process 24 times to get one second of film. At the end, I edit and post-produce, as you would with a traditional movie. It’s a long process that needs to be done step-by-step – and that’s what’s funny about it.”

What do you enjoy most about working as a stop motion filmmaker? Are there any frustrating aspects?

“What is the most satisfying to me with the stop-motion medium, is the fact there are so many different layers during this long process : preparing the artwork with drawings and paintings, writing my own stories, sculpting, working the light on my sets and composing my frame like a painter but in 3D. I never get bored .The most frustrating part for me is the animation, cause you only get between 1 and 5 seconds of film at the end of the day.”

How has COVID affected the way you work and create? Did it give you the space to work on any new projects?

“As you have to be patient and being focus while you animate, you don’t have to be scared to be on your own for months. So you can Imagine I was so prepared for quarantine ! It was such a sweet time for me, I had the opportunity to work at home and shoot an experimental movie with sand and glitters. It was like being in my little laboratory and trying something different.”

What advice would you give to artists starting out or to those artists who are struggling with creative blocks?

“If I have to give any advice to any artist who’s struggling would be …don’t loose yourself by changing your mind all the time. Just stick to a simple idea, stay focused, don’t loose your north and listen your inner voice to make this simple idea your own.”

Any other interesting facts/information we should know about you?

“During quarantine, it was also a moment when I try to learn oil painting. It was such a joy to reconnect with a painting activity that has nothing to do with my animation work. As I’ve always been fascinated by 19th century and Victorian paintings, I painted a very traditional old school portrait, twisted the concept by using a queer model and brought modernity by incorporate modern props like an android.”