The Cartoon d’Or evening is
sponsored by:
The Bridge
Directed by: Vincent Bierrewaerts
Belgium / France, 2007, 13’
Original title: “Le Pont”
Puppets
Prod.: La Boîte,… Productions / Les Films du Nord / Vivement Lundi! / CRRAV
A man and his son are living on the top of a mountain. The only access to the outer world is a bridge. Since it fell down, the two characters are completely isolated from the rest of humanity. The father used to overprotect his son from the sad reality of men’s world. One night, the child sees the flashing lights of a remote city.
Vincent Bierrewaerts
Vincent Bierrewaerts was born on 14th November 1973 in Belgium. The clear line, the cord, computer graphics... Vincent Bierrewaerts binds very closely techniques and scripts. Simple and effective, his student films in La Cambre school of animation always mix humour and sobriety: “El Vento”, “Bouf”, “Tij”, “Aaaah” and “Ses mains”. His first professional short “Le Portefeuille” develops the complex science of colours as a tool to play with the destiny of his character. Vincent is now working as director and animator in the Belgian studio Suivez mon regard.
« “The Bridge” is the story of a child and his natural desire for discovery. As he grows up, the boy will have to free himself from his father’s protection and leave this fleeting period of childhood to come across the real world.
It became clear early on that puppet animation was the best choice for the making of my second film. As well as the aesthetic element, a large number of its aspects were very interesting for the settings I was looking for. This technique allows me to create simple, modest images (sometimes even as simplistic as the world that the father would eternally like to keep his child in), where the tailoring of the characters is homogeneous with the making of the scenery. I wanted to present a world where man is made from humble, fragile and tangible materials. By representing the human world in its materialistic form, I strengthen its psychological dimension. Indeed, it is the psychological and symbolic values that really matter to me in order to make of a film which asks questions and carries meaning. »