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La plante humaine (French)
Location
Main screening room
Date
November 1st, 2024
Duration
78 min
Cycle
Tribute to Claude Beaugrand

"The image is like a musical score that the sound editor must study, practice, cut, and interpret. They modulate, arrange, and orchestrate various soundscapes to achieve the desired emotional effect." This is how sound editor and designer Claude Beaugrand described his craft in a poignant essay published in 24 images magazine in 1992. Both a craftsman and an artist, he would immerse himself in the directors' works he collaborated on, seeking, as he said, the "heart of the film."

Our tribute to Claude Beaugrand, who passed away on October 8, 2023, celebrates his talent and versatility, emphasizing his unique non-naturalistic approach to sound design, from La plante humaine by Pierre Hébert to Maurice Richard by Charles Binamé. The tribute also highlights two of his rarely seen short films, Clichés et ramasse-miettes and Peines perdues, both brilliant reflections on image and sound.

In the presence of the filmmaker, Pierre Hébert
Winner of the Prix AQCC-SODEC for Best Quebec Feature Film in 1996

The Human Plant
Directed by
Pierre Hébert
Language
French
Actors
Michael Lonsdale, Sotigui Kouyaté
Origins
Quebec, France
Year
1996
Duration
78 min
Genre
Animation
Format
35 mm
Synopsis

Mr. Michel, a recently retired widower, lives a quiet life with his dog in an apartment he hardly ever leaves. The tranquility of his daily life is soon disrupted by the turmoil of the contemporary world, the echoes of which he captures on television. Quebec filmmaker Pierre Hébert's first feature, mixing animation and live action.

The Human Plant
Awards

Pierre Hébert

Director of more than forty films, including three features, Pierre Hébert worked at the National Film Board of Canada from 1965 to 1999. Since then, his filmmaking work has taken a multidisciplinary scope (live animation performances with musicians, video installations, collaboration with choreographers, drawing, and actions on the web). In additions to his three feature films, La plante humaine (1996), Bazin’s film (2017) et Mount Fuji seen from a moving train (2021), he wrote several books and articles about cinéma. He received the Albert Tessier Award for his lifetime achievement in 2005, a Cinema Career Grant of the Art Council of Quebec in 2012, and an honorary doctorate by the Emily Carr University of Art and Design of Vancouver in 2018. In 2024, he also received the René Jodoin Award for an exceptionnal contribution to canadian animation, given by the Sommets du cinéma d’animation.

Explore

Pierre Hébert's first feature film delivers a compelling reflection on the power of images through the adventures of Mr. Michel. [...] Building on his signature animation techniques, Pierre Hébert deepens his social commentary in this film shot in Montreal, Paris and Burkina Faso.
NFB
About Pierre Hébert
Filmography

Our blog

L'univers sonore de Claude Beaugrand vu par Olivier Calvert

À titre de monteur sonore, Olivier Calvert a travaillé aux côtés du regretté Claude Beaugrand pour les films Maurice Richard, Soie, Yellowknife et Embrasse-moi comme tu m’aimes, pour ne nommer que ceux-là. Nous l’avons invité à plonger dans ses souvenirs de sa collaboration avec Claude Beaugrand, qui s’est éteint le 8 octobre 2023.

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