Sylvain Chomet Movies
French filmmaker Sylvain Chomet studied at the Angouleme art school, where he drew comics. His first comic book, Secrets of the Dragonfly, was published in 1986 by Futuropolis. At the school, Chomet met frequent collaborator Nicolas de Crécy, whom he worked with on an illustrated adaptation of the Victor Hugo novel Bug-Jargal. During the rest of the '80s, he worked as an illustrator in London.After seeing Nick Park's short film Creature Comforts, Chomet decided to do an animated film of his own. He relocated to Canada and started his first animation project, The Old Lady and the Pigeons. Finished in 1996, the short film won several awards, festival acclaim, and an Oscar nomination. He and de Crécy then created the comic book Ugly, Poor, and Sick, which was published by Casterman in 1997. After writing some scripts, Chomet was introduced to the French producer Didier Brunner. They developed the old lady character into a story which became The Triplets of Belleville. It took five years and funding from France, Canada, and Belgium in order to make the feature-length film. A nostalgic, humane, and imaginative rescue tale, The Triplets of Belleville earned several Academy Award nominations in 2004. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- 2006
A rare live-action effort from The Triplets of Belleville animator Sylvain Chomet, this short concerns a young boy named Jean-Claude (Dylan Gomond) who reflects on the unusual way that his two parents (Paul Putner) and Yolande Moreau) met. Both were mimes who wound up in the same jail cell. The segment tells the story of their romance in flashback. Tour Eiffel is Chomet's contribution to Paris, Je T'Aime, a collection of short films from such luminaries as the Coen Brothers, Alfonso Cuarón, and Wes Craven. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paul Putner, Yolande Moreau, (more)
Twenty acclaimed filmmakers from around the world look at love in the City of Lights in this omnibus feature. Paris, Je T'Aime features 18 short stories, each set in a different part of Paris and each featuring a different cast and director (two segments were produced by two filmmakers in collaboration). In "Faubourg Saint-Denis," Tom Tykwer directs Natalie Portman as an American actress who is the object of affection for a blind student (Melchior Belson). Christopher Doyle's "Porte de Choisy" follows a salesman (Barbet Schroeder) as he tries to pitch beauty aids in Chinatown. Nick Nolte and Ludivine Sagnier are father and daughter in "Parc Monceau" from Alfonso Cuarón. Animator Sylvain Chomet turns his eye to a pair of living, breathing mimes in "Tour Eiffel." An interracial romance in France is offered by Gurinder Chadha in "Quais de Seine." In "Le Marais" from Gus Van Sant, a man (Gaspard Ulliel) finds himself falling for a handsome gent (Elias McConnell) who works in a print shop. Isabel Coixet tells the tale of a man (Sergio Castellitto) who is making his final choice between his wife (Miranda Richardson) and his lover (Leonor Watling) in "Bastille." Juliette Binoche plays a grieving mother in Nobuhiro Suwa's "Place des Victoires," in which she's greeted by a spectral cowboy (Willem Dafoe). Richard LaGravanese's "Pigalle" finds a long-married man (Bob Hoskins) turning to a prostitute for advice on pleasing his wife (Fanny Ardant). Gérard Depardieu and Frédéric Auburtin direct Gena Rowlands and Ben Gazzara as longtime marrieds meeting for one final pre-divorce encounter in "Quartier Latin." Steve Buscemi learns a lesson about local etiquette in the Paris Metro in "Tuileries" from Joel and Ethan Coen. In "Loin du 16ème" by Walter Salles, a housekeeper (Catalina Sandino Moreno) longs for her own child as she tends to the infant of her wealthy employer. Elijah Wood stars in "Quartier de la Madeleine," a vampire tale from Vincenzo Natali. Wes Craven presents another fantasy in "Père-Lachaise," in which an engaged young man (Rufus Sewell) receives romantic advice from the spirit of Oscar Wilde (Alex Payne). A postal worker from Colorado (Margo Martindale) shares her thoughts on her visit to Paris in mangled French in Alexander Payne's witty "14th Arrondissement." Other segments include "Place des Fêtes" from Oliver Schmitz, Bruno Podalydès' "Montmartre," and "Quartier des Enfants Rouges" by Olivier Assayas, which stars Maggie Gyllenhaal. Paris, Je T'Aime received its world premiere at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
French filmmaker Sylvain Chomet directs the animated feature The Triplets of Belleville. A young boy is raised by his grandmother, Madame Souza, in the French countryside. She buys him a bicycle and encourages his dream of winning the Tour de France. However, he gets kidnapped by a group of Mafia gangsters and taken to the big city of Belleville, where he is used for his bicycling prowess in an elaborate gambling scheme. Along with her faithful companion Bruno, Madame Souza sets out to rescue her grandson. They befriend a trio of aging musicians who were once the '30s jazz trio known as The Triplets of Belleville. Features an original jazz musical score by Benoît Charest. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
