Tributes poured in on Sunday for Quebec entrepreneur Daniel Langlois, found dead with his partner in a charred car in Dominica. Several former business partners highlighted the accomplishments of this “great visionary” who revolutionized the film industry.
In a statement sent to The Press On Sunday, the Coulibri Ridge Resort, the self-sufficient luxury hotel founded by the couple in Dominica, confirmed “with deep sadness and a heavy heart” the tragic deaths of Daniel Langlois and Dominique Marchand.
The hotel administration also specifies that their death followed a “devastating incident” that occurred last Thursday, the day before the police discovered the charred car, according to what the media had previously reported. local Dominica News Online.
“Daniel and Dominique were pioneers in many ways, including as founders and operators of Coulibri Ridge Resort. Their commitment to sustainability has set a standard in the tourism industry and their passion for the environment and helping others has touched the lives of many who have experienced the magic of Coulibri Ridge », continues the hotel.
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Pioneer of the special effects industry in the world of cinema, the death of Daniel Langlois sparked reactions on Sunday.
“Daniel was a great visionary as much for cinema as for humanity. He had dreams that he managed to pursue and make come true. He was a good person. To die like this with your partner, it’s horrible,” said producer Roger Frappier, adding that he was “in shock.”
Born in Jonquière in 1957, Daniel Langlois is considered one of the pioneers of new cinema technologies in Quebec.
He acquired international recognition by founding Softimage, where he developed, thanks to computers, a revolutionary method of creating animated films which were until then made by editing thousands of photos, says his former business partner, Pierre Nelis.
“Rather than taking a papier-mâché dinosaur, taking thousands of photos in different positions to recreate a movement, he did it by computer […]. In doing so, he revolutionized the special effects industry. […] You did in minutes what took weeks to do. »
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Quebec entrepreneur and philanthropist Daniel Langlois
It is thanks to this method, later used in Hollywood blockbusters like Jurassic Park And Titanic, that it will revolutionize the 3D animation industry. Softimage will ultimately be purchased by Microsoft, “the largest historical acquisition” of this IT giant at the time, recalls Pierre Nelis.
But Daniel Langlois “was in business by default,” recalls Pierre Nelis. “He was a creative visionary. […] He was an artist at heart,” he remembers, describing him as a “ loner “.
A former manager of Softimage, Marc Petit, says he recently contacted Daniel Langlois to tell him that he had designated him as “grandfather of the metaverse”, a new virtual world technology, as part of an interview that he had granted recently.
“The metaverse is the internet that embraces 3D technology and Daniel contributed so much to the beginnings of 3D technology that I wanted to give him this little wink and he replied: “we’ll see you next time I visit in Montreal,” he describes.
“He’s not just a Quebec entrepreneur, he’s someone who has really made an extraordinary difference in an industry that we don’t know much about, but which is in the process of exploding,” emphasizes Marc Petit.
With Alice Girard-Bossé, The Press