Presented at the last festival de Cannes in the un certain regard section, The famous invasion of bears in Sicily , the first animated film of the great illustrator and comic book author Lorenzo Mattotti has conquered the Croisette. Freely inspired from the book of Dino Buzzatti, the film is a wonder of graphics, that the designer took six years to achieve.
» READ ALSO – The famous invasion of bears in Sicily ,a fairyland of colors, to laugh and reflect.
A film full of poetry, in flamboyant colours, coloured by the one who introduced the painting in the comic strip, contributing to the erect to the rank of ninth item The film portrays jean-baptiste, the king of the bears, driven to despair by the abduction of his son Tonio by hunters. Living with his people in the mountains of sicily, he decides to invade the plain on which live humans, to find it.
Accustomed to working in solitary, Lorenzo Mattotti has left his comfort zone to make a beautiful tribute to Dino Buzzati. Written with Jean-Luc Fromental and Thomas Bidegain, The famous invasion of bears in Sicily, immerses the viewer in the fantasy of the wonderful storyteller, was the Italian writer. A story out of time, rich and moving and deals with brio and lightness of the subjects as serious as death, betrayal, or the difficult relationship between father-son. All backed by the wonderful music of René Aubry. In his parisian workshop, Lorenzo Mattotti tells Le Figaro his first steps in the realization of a feature film.
LE FIGARO – Why have you wanted to adapt Dino Buzzati?
LORENZO MATTOTTI – I know him since a very long time. Buzzati is an author who I was greatly influenced in my work by his imagination, his way of telling stories, of creating the mystery, to handle the metaphor. I loved his books, especially The famous invasion of bears .
A book that he has illustrated…
Yes. His designs to me were much appreciated, I am based on them for the movie. I’ve drawn a lot of ideas for graphics. After the discovery of the book, I glimpsed the possibility of making an animated film. It trotted me in the head for years. I was wondering why nobody ever thought of it before. This is the film that small, I would have loved to see. Fifteen years ago, I made a first attempt to acquire the rights to the book, that I was denied. Meantime, I’ve acquired a reputation in the illustration, I worked on the Pinocchio Enzo of Aló, and when one of my great friends who follows all the laws of Buzzati made me meet his widow. I was able to show him my drawings, my shorts, prove to him my love for Buzzati, and I have finished to convince her. And I was able to acquire the rights. It was six years ago. Then, the project remained a few years in the cartons.
How have you combined your graphic universe to his will?
As Buzzati, I’ve always loved the symbolism in my work. His landscapes are metaphysical in particular stuck wonderfully to my imaginary world. I was inspired by paintings of the Renaissance, including Giotto and Fra Angelico to stylize the backgrounds, and the characters. Only Gedeone and Almerina that we invented with Thomas and Jean-Luc are realistic.
For what reason?
In a first time, to re-create this dialogue between the narrator and the reader expensive to Buzzati by using the voice-over. Then to ensure a thread, we’d need someone who tells the story. I was charmed by the idea of «cantastorie», these acrobats storytellers of legends, to which Buzzati was a reference in her drawings. And then, the comments of the small Almerina bring lightness and whimsy to the about more serious tale.
You are designer and more used to working alone. How did the team work?
Wonderfully well, though in the beginning I was not really reassured. My aesthetic approach is enriched with the talent of my collaborators, thanks to whom I have been able to achieve extraordinary sceneries. We were in unison. Work with talented people that embody your imagination, your requirements sometimes, is a tremendous experience.
What were your requirements?
I wanted to play with the depth, the big screen, the magic of the space, the viewer can lose themselves in the images. I kept saying all the time «more depth».
there is a huge amount of work on the color too….
The creators are always afraid of colors. Most of the animation movies, Disney for example, are full of cold colors, metal. I wanted to do the opposite, use the red, yellow, warm colors. I wanted the light and cheerfulness.
After this long investment in the creation, to what do you aspire now?
to return To the quiet of my workshop. I want to go back to the painting and explore new ways of doing things.
