The Belgian animation sector has been going from strength to strength and heightening its industrial and artistic capabilities for some years now, as demonstrated by this 114th funding session held by Wallimage. Out of the 7 projects supported, 4 are animations, whether feature films or series.

Stealing focus among these is Les Inséparables [+lee también:
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entrevista: Jérémie Degruson y Matthie…
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entrevista: Ben Stassen
ficha de la película]. Les Inséparables also signals a new era for Belgium’s nWave studios, founded by Ben Stassen who has very recently retired. nWave is picking up where he left off, hiring American screenwriters (notably the authors of Toy Story) for the purposes of this brand-new adventure. It revolves around two diametrically opposed heroes who are united by a common goal: saving three adorable racoons from danger. Where one of the pair looks twice before he leaps, the other relies on a fool-proof plan: improvisation. Belgium’s 3D-specialist studios will be lending gleeful life to these two characters inspired by Don Quixote and Sancho Panza, the film’s two levels of storytelling resulting in two types of animation. This ambitious project is expected for the end of the year.

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Another animated feature film on the agenda is Les Légendaires by Guillaume Ivernel, adapted from the comic book series devised by Patrick Sobral and steered by Pan Animation (a subsidy of Pan Européenne) alongside Belvision. A series will also receive support: Billy le Hamster Cowboy (an adaptation of the adventures of the tiny hero created by Catarina Valckx), produced by NextFrames Media, as will a medium-length work called La petite souris, produced by Stacka.

Three live action projects will likewise receive a helping hand, starting with the second season of the Pandore series, devised by Anne Coesens, Savina Dellicour and Vania Leturcq, which was wonderfully received by critics and audiences alike on RTBF and is produced by Artemis Production.

On the cinema side, Wallimage is supporting the Liege-based firm Frakas Productions with a large-scale international co-production, Saint Ex, by Argentina’s Pablo Agüero, on which filming kicked off in March (read our news). The French author and aviator will be played by actor Louis Garrel and the film will follow his epic quest to find his best friend, an airmail pilot (played by Vincent Cassel) who has disappeared in the Andes Cordillera. Produced by Cheyenne Fédération (France) in co-production with A Single Man Productions (France) and Frakas, the movie also stars German actress Diane Kruger.

The final project to receive support is Christmas Carole by Jeanne Gottesdiener. This will be the first feature film put forth by the director trained in short films and TV, a (Christmas) comedy involving the likes of Didier Bourdon, Noémie Lvovsky and Christophe Montenez. The project is steered by Belga Studios in Belgium and by Polaris Film Production in France.