Stop-motion: Ladislas Starewitch, the First Master
The mischievous moralist, Ladislas Starewitch... Six syllables making up a name that rolls off the tongue like an invitation to enchantment, like a soft magical song heralding a wonderland.
The animation puppet pioneer Ladislas Starewitch (1882-1965) created a bestiary that gave him a reputation as the Aesop of animation; a brilliant and mischievous moralist who made the screen come to life with an impressive gallery of animal figurines.
Starewitch is one of the greats! An inspiration! Numerous are the filmmakers who were influenced by this masterful pioneer.
Restored by the care of Béatrice Martin, the director's granddaughter and relentless ambassador of his film collection, four films have been chosen for the programme. They were made between 1923 and 1932, a prosperously creative period for Starewitch which culminated with his most ambitious film, The Tale of the Fox.
Among his short films: In the Claws of the Spider, where he revisited the use of insect puppets which earned him fame while working in Russia; The Ant and the Grasshopper, an adaptation of the famous fable by La Fontaine; and Love in Black and White, a one-of-a-kind endeavour, in which Starewitch animated dolls that resembled movie stars of the era like Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, etc.
