We recently had the chance to catch up with Marc du Pontavice, founder of French animation studio Xilam (founded in 1999) and producer of the Oscar-nominated feature I Lost My Body and popular shows such as Oggie and the Cockroaches, Mr Magoo, Zig and Sharko and Chip ‘N’ Dale: Park Life. His new project Lucy Lost, an animated feature based on award-winning author Michael Morpurgo’s Listen to the Moon, which will be showcased at next month’s Cartoon Movie event in France.
The period pic centers on Lucy, lively child with extraordinary faculties, which makes her look out of place amongst the fishermen of the Isles of Scilly. But all the care and affection she gets from Alfie and his family can’t shelter her from the rumors and superstitions that she unknowingly stirs up. When Lucy meets Milly, a mysterious girl, she embarks on an incredible race in pursuit of her true origins.
Here is what the veteran French animation figure shared with us about his new movie:
Animag: Can you tell us a bit about how Xilam became involved in Lucy Lost?
Marc du Pontavice: I first read Michael Morpurgo’s (War Horse) best-selling mystery novel Listen to the Moon – which Lucy Lost is adapted from – back in 2017 and instantly fell in love with the story. It’s a captivating novel that weaves together themes of family, love and memory against a backdrop of vivid landscapes, which I knew would translate beautifully to the screen.
From there, we picked up the rights and got going on development. Initially, we were adapting the book into a TV miniseries but then in 2022 I met the director, Olivier Clert, whose vision for the project convinced me to pivot to making it into a theatrical movie.
What do you love about the original book and why did you believe it would make a great animated movie?
This is a story of mystery and resilience. This is about dealing with a wounded memory and finding your place as a stranger in a suspicious community. In other words, it’s a very rich story thematic-wise, led by a fragile yet courageous child in a world that is constantly moving between colorful fantasy and harsh reality.
What were your biggest challenges as you set out to realize this project?
Proving that when it comes to family movies, the western animation industry is not just about comedy — animation is a medium through which heartfelt, dramatic and captivating stories can be explored and brought to a large international audience.
Where is the animation being produced? Can you tell us more about visual style?
At our animation studio in France – it will be fully animated in a mix of 2D and 3D. We’d like to propose a clear style that is rich and visually pleasing. Our aim is to find a balance between the efficiency that is found within Japanese animation (such as Myazaki, Hosoda and Shinkai), and a slightly graphic and pictorial approach that is specific to illustration and painting, which can be seen in movies like Cartoon Saloon’s Song of the Sea.
What do you hope audiences will take away from the movie?
A desire to reach out and connect with others, and to consider our differences with understanding and kindness. I also hope it will offer audiences a sense of optimism and give them the self-confidence to overcome difficulties and traumas.
What is your take on the state of global feature animation scene in 2024?
There is a growing demand for storytelling and a visual approach that is less formulaic and offers something unexpected. Yet to meet this demand, there needs to be significant investment and commitment to exploring animation projects beyond the traditional and expected CGI comedy genre. We can only hope that the precedent created by Myazaki with The Boy and the Heron, and the remarkable success this film has had on the global stage, will inspire the decision makers.
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For more info, visit xilam.com.
