Canadian indie animator Janet Perlman is best known for her 1981 Oscar-nominated short The Tender Tale of Cinderella Penguin, as well as My Favorite Things That I Love, Sorry Film Not Ready and Dinner for Two. Her latest short The Girl with the Red Beret is one of the official selections at the Ottawa International Animation Festival in September. We were very excited when the talented artist agreed to share some moments in her daily life with us. (You can find out more at janetperlman.com)
Animation can be very demanding, especially when there’s a tight deadline. That means that sometimes I have to grow extra limbs in order to complete the work on schedule. Photo: Judith Gruber-Stitzer
My collection of therapy toys atop my classic NFB animation drawing desk.
I’m working on the telephone man scene, from Tiny Screens. This independent film combines animation with archival educational footage. The software I am using for this is TVPaint.
Dropping in at the French animation studio at the National Film Board. This is the wall of “current productions”, which includes, The Girl with the Red Beret / La fille au béret rouge, my most recent film. I am required to wear a red beret when on the premises. Photo: Rose Mercier-Marcotte
A scene from The Girl with the Red Beret.
I am with the brilliant animator Claude Cloutier as we examine the strange harlequin romance painting that our dearly departed friend and legendary supporter of animation, Hélène Tanguay, gave to me. She really understood my aesthetic. Photo: Rose Mercier-Marcotte
A visit with technical animation specialist Yannick Grandmont. I explain to him that this is “some kind of motion control perspective camera contraption”. Yannick is not impressed. Photo: Rose Mercier-Marcotte
Taking our dog Dandelion (Dandy) for a walk, we narrowly escaped being carried off in the talons of an enormous predatory bird. Photo: Judith Gruber-Stitzer
Relaxing with Dandy and watermelon after a lovely day. Photo: Judith Gruber-Stitzer
