Isabelle Duval

Could you tell us how you came to work in the world of animation and the stop-motion format?

I watched a lot of television when I was young, and I really liked animated films, especially the absurdity of them. But I didn’t have any specific training in the field. I started working quite early on, and at the same time I took evening classes in comics and modeling. In addition, I bought myself a small 16mm camera to which I added a flexible trigger to make animated films. That’s how I started doing my first tests with modeling clay. As it was with a vintage camera, you had to wait until the film was developed to see what it looked like, so you were often disappointed. But those were the early days! Then, as time went by, I practiced, improved my technique and took part in short film festivals, including one created by my brother Florian. And at a festival in Brussels, I met someone from Arte: I gave him the tape of my demo, and some time later, the person called me back and gave me my very first order.

Your Atelier is an opportunity to discover your work, but also that of other artists. Is there a process involved in choosing these artists?

They’re mostly people I already know, my sister Claire for example(exhibition in progress at the time of this interview). And a lot of them are local artists, which makes it easier for us to talk to each other and ease the logistics. The same goes for concerts. I also try to offer a variety of styles, with at least one concert a month. The program is published on the Atelier’s Facebook page, and there’s a YouTube channel that allows me to share concerts and events with audiences who weren’t able to come along. It’s also a way of leaving a trace. What’s more, as the venue is small, the capacity is limited to 30 people, which allows the audience present to create a bond with the artist: it creates a rather intimate atmosphere.

Let’s get back to the subject of animation. Not everyone may be familiar with the stop-motion technique. Could you explain it in a little more detail?

Stop-motion ” is frame-by-frame animation: movement is broken down into a series of photos. The subject is photographed, either in 2D or in volume, then its posture is altered very slightly and it is photographed again. Normally, 24 images per second are required for a fluid rendering, but in stop-motion, 12 images are enough: we therefore break down one second of movement into 12 photos, which are then doubled. These photos are then integrated into an editing program to create the illusion of movement. It’s a slightly longer technique, and you have to do all the steps by hand, “the old-fashioned way”, but that’s what I like about it. And there are things you can’t always master, especially when you’re working by hand. There can be “accidents” sometimes, and that’s what I like too: it’s not perfect, but it’s alive. Sometimes you get things that you hadn’t planned for at the outset, but which open you up to other ideas.

You’re part of the program for the unusual “Saveurs et Créateurs” tour. Is there a particular restaurant you’d like to recommend to our readers?

I really like the restaurant “Le P’tit Fourbi”, on rue Couraye, because of the atmosphere there. But I also go very often to “La Table de Louis”, they’re lovely and very reasonable value for money. “Picorette” and “Dame gourmande” are two restaurants I also recommend!