It is a highly anticipated film which will be released on the big screen at the end of 2023. The Inventor retraces the last years of Leonardo da Vinci’s life, when the famous painter of La Joconde arrives in France, invited by Francois 1er. A period when the artist can, supported by the king, freely develop his talents as an inventor. Experience amazing flying machines. An adventure that he shares, in this feature film, with the daring Princess Marguerite. The characters are puppets animated using Foliascope techniques.
The Inventor is a stop motion and 2D animated film. The movements of the puppets are filmed one by one. A titanic job. “There are twelve positions per second. We try to do four seconds a day” explains Kim Keukeleire, animation director. The appearance of the characters is carefully chosen according to the characters of the puppets in the scenario. “In fact, the idea is not just to move the dolls but to give them personality. For example, Francis has an extravagant character, we always try to give him expressive poses” says Kim Keukeleire. Much manipulated, it is also sometimes necessary to give a second youth to these fragile actors and actresses. That day, a royal character passed through the hands of the Foliascope costume designer. “So there, I’m with the puppet of Francois 1er. I’m cleaning it, removing the small stains, regluing the buttons so that it can return to the set” says Pauline Valls.
Like the sets and special effects, the drawings are also made on site. A choice of Jim Capobianco, the director of the film, nominated for the Oscars in 2008 for the screenplay of Ratatouille. “We looked everywhere for a partner to make this film in the United States, in Italy and even in Ireland. I thought it would be great to do it in France since this is where the story takes place” he explains. The filming of The Inventor is of course a godsend for the Ardèche studio. “We are on our third feature film. But a film that comes from America with a director as renowned as Jim is a first. We are very proud. We have succeeded in proving that France and our studio were able to do 2D, stop motion, post-production and design everything from A to Z” rejoices Ilan Urroz, CEO of the Foliascope studio and producer.
Once filming is complete, famous voices will bring the puppets to life. In original version, Leonardo da Vinci will be interpreted by Stephen Fry, Princess Marguerite by Daisy Ridley and Louise de Savoie by Marion Cotillard.