Martin Villeneuve (Photo by Bob Bouchard)

TED2013 speaker Martin Villeneuve studied film at Concordia University and graphic design at Université du Québec à Montréal. In 2002, he received a grant from the happening local advertising agency Sid Lee for the quality of his portfolio. In the years that followed, he worked as an artistic director with this agency, especially for Cirque du Soleil. In this capacity, he helped create award-winning advertising campaigns for shows like Zumanity, KÀ and Corteo.

He also directed the TV spots for the Cirque du Soleil shows DELIRIUM and Saltimbanco, as well as the website for the MGM Mirage’s CityCenter real-estate project in Las Vegas. As an author, Martin Villeneuve has written and created the comic book La voix du tonnerre (Les 400 coups, 2004), as well as the two graphic novels Mars et Avril (Sid Lee & la Pastèque, 2002-2006), which received enthusiastic acclaim and won many awards.

In 2012, he completed his first feature film as writer-director-producer, Mars et Avril, based on the graphic novels of the same name. This science fiction film, starring Jacques Languirand, Caroline Dhavernas, Paul Ahmarani and Robert Lepage, premiered at the 47th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, Czech Republic. Mars et Avril was released in Canada in Fall 2012 and continues its tour of international festivals. Martin Villeneuve was nominated for best adapted screenplay at the 2013 Canadian Screen Awards for Mars et Avril.¹⁾

Martin Villeneuve is currently working with European comic book masters Benoît Sokal and François Schuiten on the script of Aquarica, an animated fantasy feature film.²⁾

Filmmaker Martin Villeneuve talked at TED2013³⁾ about Mars et Avril, the Canadian sci-fi spectacular he made with virtually no money. In a charming talk, he explains the various ways he overcame financial and logistical constraints to produce his unique and inventive vision of the future.⁴⁾

Prior to his talk, the opening sequence of the film was shown, as well as a three minutes overview of the steps leading from the green screen to the final images:⁵⁾⁶⁾

Martin Villeneuve's talk, “How I made an impossible film,” was released on TED.com on June 7, 2013, and a month later was added to TED's prestigious movie magic list, featuring famed directors such as James Cameron and J.J. Abrams!⁷⁾

• French wikipedia
• English wikipedia
• IMDB
• LinkedIn

30 is the name of the auction by Artcurial in Paris of thirty original drawings of François Schuiten. The auction took place at October 24, 2013¹⁾.

”This is a unique event, long overdue” said Artcurial. The author of the famous series “The Obscure Cities” have always refused to sell, except for rare exceptions. François Schuiten and Benoît Peeters even gave away their original pages of the books to maintain the possibility to reprint the books in best quality available in the future ²⁾

These thirty illustrations sweep the period from 1984 to 2012. These thirty illustrations sweep the period from 1984 to 2012. We find the first image created in 1993 to decorate the metro station Arts et Métiers in Paris (estimate 25,000 to 35,000 euros), the cover of the book by Jules Verne “Paris in the Twentieth Century” in 1994 (25,000 to 35,000 euros ) and a set of illustrations dated 1997 for the World Expo 2000 in Hanover.

It will also be offered a portrait of the artist at work (25,000 to 35,000 euros), conducted as part of the Angoulême Festival in 2003, or a tribute to David by Michelangelo in 2004, Larousse (20,000 to 25,000 euros) ³⁾.

Artcurial published a catalogue of this action. The digital version can be downloaded: artcurial-schuiten.pdf

The thirty drawings that have gone for sale:

Coffe en tram is a television program by Jean-Pierre Coffe at RTL Belgium. In this program Jean-Pierre Coffe arrives by tram to visit an interesting building in Brussels with a guest.

In the episode of March 3rd, 2014 about the Marolles neighborhood the guest was François Schuiten. Schuiten and Coffe visited together the Palace of Justice in Brussels.

Le Passage / De Doorgang is a mural by François Schuiten. It is made in August 1995 and can be found at Rue Marché au Charbon - Kolenmarkt in Brussels.

• Passage Fatal (Le)
• Passage (Le)
• Passage, 3e fragment (Le)

La Frontière invisible is the third session in 2014 of “Textes en Musique”, created for radio by France Culture. The session will be recorded on March 9, 2014 at 17hrs in Théâtre de Bouffes du Nord in Paris. France Culture will air the episode on April 12, 2014 at 21hrs during the program: “La fiction du samedi soir”.

La Frontière invisible is based on the Obscure Cities stories about Roland de Cremer.

Roland is a new recruit of the Center for Cartography of Sodrovno-Voldachie. He quickly understands that this administration serves the expansionist Marshal Radisic. Soon fear sets in the Centre. We speak of attacks, destroyed archives, rebellion quelled in blood …

Shkodra, the young woman who fell in love with Roland also seems interested in the highest degree of the authorities. The couple flees through deserts, mountains and marshes … Hunted, Roland and Shkodra have only one chance to get away: crossing the border. But how to manage to navigate these landscapes at full scale, which are nothing like the cards that Roland are familiar with?

The story is adapted by Benoît Peeters with music by Bruno Letort. Céline Geoffroy was the literary consultant and the session was produced by Laure Egoroff.

For this session an announcement document was made in French. You can download it here: announcement document.

Some invitations were sent out to invite people to attend the show.

Some images of the evening by Benoît Peeters.

On May 20, 2013Steve Smith of Alaxis Press started a Kickstarter campaign to promote and fund the release of the English translation of L'Enfant Penchée. The campaign ran for 45 days until July 6th, 2013. The goal of the campaign is to raise $30.000.

Check the Kickstarter campaign page: The Leaning Girl Translated Graphic Novel Project

Steve Smith explains why he started the kickstarter campaign: ”I have been a fan of Benoît Peeters and François Schuiten's French graphic novel series The Obscure Cities since the late 1980s. Five books in the series were translated into English but stopped after 2002 with three graphic novels and at least five other books left in the series. The Obscure Cities is an internationally acclaimed graphic novel series, having won major awards in Europe and Japan including the Grand Prize Manga in the 2013 Japan Arts Festival. It was the first time that a foreign author or series won this award. The translated The Obscure Cities album was chosen over 457 other entries. I have translated The Leaning Girl (L'enfant Penchée) into English and have licensed the rights to the entire series with the hope of reintroducing these great stories to the United States and English-speaking countries. This Kickstarter campaign is to help cover the production costs on the first book, The Leaning Girl. I have the blessings of the author and artist, and the licensing rights from their publisher, Casterman, in Belgium. This series is a passion of mine and I want to be able to share it with other European comic and art lovers in English speaking countries. Part of my desire to use Kickstarter is that this series should be seen by a larger audience that has proven time and again it is supportive of unique artistic projects. I have spent the past three months translating The Leaning Girl in to English. The story is very personal and real to me.The art is some of the most delicate and beautiful I have ever seen in comics.”

One of the first pages without the French texts.

For the kickstarter campaign a short video was made to introduce the campaign. Benoît Peeters and François Schuiten explains why they back this project.

Everybody can help to make a Kickstarter campaign a success. You can do this by backing the project and donating money to the project. The money will only be really donated when the goal of $30.000 is reached. Based on the amount of money you donate you will get a reward:

You will get a thank you of Steve Smith and your name on the backers page of www.theobscurecities.com

Level 1 plus a thank you greeting card with the cover art send to you.

Level 2 rewards plus limited edition fold out store promotional poster.

Level 3 rewards plus a limited edition Leaning Girl t-shirt.

Level 3 rewards plus a copy of the trade edition of the book (retail value $29,99)

Level 3 rewards plus a copy of the trade edition of the book (retail value $29,99) and a limited edition Leaning Girl t-shirt.

Level 4 rewards plus a limited (#350) edition hard cover version of the album signed by François Schuiten and Benoît Peeters featuring 8 additional pages of rare and never seen before sketches.

Level 7 rewards plus a limited (#100) edition art print of “The Gazebo” signed by François Schuiten and Benoît Peeters.

Associate Publisher level. You will get your name on the copyright page of all editions. One copy of the limited hard cover edition, 5 copies of the soft cover trade edition, the limited art print, two t-shirts and all level 3 rewards.

During the campaign updates will be posted on progress.

The Leaning Girl graphic novel project has been officially funding since about 8:15pm CST last night and I was thrilled to wake up to some great overnight activity. As of noon, we have passed the $1700 mark. There is a long way to go to reach the $30,000 funding goal but I am so encouraged. Thank you. Tonight I am going to post several pages of art here as a thank you. Also, I will be producing a The Leaning Girl bookmark for BookExpo, the upcoming publishing industry trade show. As a thank you to the Kickstarter staff for naming this a staff pick and to my early backers, you will all receive one with your level rewards.

Please tell your friends who might be interested about this project. I would be so happy to close the day today at 10% funded.

Thanks, Steve

We have just passed the $5,000 mark and I am very encouraged. Unlike many of the graphic novels that have original art to offer, my rewards are primarily the book in one format or another, a t-shirt, and an art print. Yet we are closing in on 20% funding in under two days. Thank you all so much for being early supporters of this project.

I want to share some more sample pages with you. I also want to invite you to visit the project website at www.theobscurecities.com and sign up for the mailing list. In addition, if you are new to this series, I encourage you to visit www.altaplana.be This is by far the most exhaustive and complete fan site for the series and is constantly updated in English even though it is a Belgian site. I have personally been a member of this site for many years and I look to the site's founder and archivist, Joseph le Perdriel for his wisdom and input.

Thanks again for your support. - Steve

I believe in this project so much. But to see clearly that the Kickstarter community is embracing it is a bit overwhelming. Thank you so much. Tonight as we are approaching $10,000 (one-third of the goal) in just three days, I want to share a page from later in the book. It is a scene involving a chance meeting with a key character, Professor Axel Wappendorf, and Jules Verne himself.

Thank you all so much for your support! We are one third of the way to the stretch goals and EVERY investor benefits at that point! - Steve

Today was a bit less “exciting” than yesterday. I had hoped to reach at least $13,000 by the end of the day so that my personal goal of making it halfway to the actual $30,000 goal by the end of Sunday night would be reached easily. But something amazing DID happen today. One of my dearest friends, Ashley Laurence (Kirsty from the Hellraiser films) tweeted a link to all of her fans, and this afternoon, one of my favorite illustrators, Terese Nielsen, posted the link on Facebook to her followers. My best friend and longtime business associate, painter Dave Dorman, did a similar post earlier in the week. I am confident we will reach the goal with plenty of time to spare. But thank you to all the supporters who have joined me thus far.

This is a photo I took in February of this year when i visited Benoît Peeters and François Schuiten in Schuiten's studio. It was a rare treat to be able to touch and hold the original art from The Leaning Girl.

This is a photo I will treasure forever. From left to right, François Schuiten me (Steve Smith), and on ther right, Benoît Peeters, posing for a picture in La Grande-Place de Bruxelles in the afternoon of the day our contract was negotiated.

Thank you so much for supporting this project.

Steve

This morning, I wanted to share with you the art for the serigraph bookplate that will be signed and inserted into The Leaning Girl hardcover limited edition book. This serigraph plate is one of my favorite standalone images of young Mary von Rathen.

Tonight at 8pm marks the end of week one of the campaign. Right now I am only $1700 away from being 50% funded. If you have friends you think might be interested, please suggest they take a look. If you want to increase your investment to the next level, please, feel free. I am so grateful for the support so far.

This week I am being interviewed by www.fictionalfrontiers.com, a Philedelphia based AM radio show. And I will be attending BookExpo in New York Thursday thru Saturday.

More updates to come.

For our American friends and supporters, have a meaningful Memorial Day!

Steve

It would be very unfair to tease the faithful supporters of my Kickstarter camapign, but I wanted to share with you a photo of a lifesize statue of Mary von Rathen, the Leaning Girl, created by François Schuiten for the 2003 Angouleme Comics Festival. I was fortunate enough to see this for myself when I visited Brussels a few months ago.

I'm not going to say that this or a reasonable facsimile has anything to do with the stretch goals, but I'm not going to say that it doesn't!

Just enjoy looking the picture and as always, thanks for the support.

Steve

Dear supporters and friends,

I returned home from Book Expo America in New York City last night after several days. I work in another facet of the publishing world so I was there on business, but was able to take in a few meetings of my own. I was particularly pleased that other, much larger, publishing companies were not only aware of my plans for this series but also that more than one of these publishers asked of my interest to package the book and let them publish it.

I am truly honored to announce that Karen Green, Graphic Novels Librarian at Columbia University in New York, and regular columnist at the Comixology website,, has agreed to contribute a foreword to The Leaning Girl. Karen has been an enthusiastic supporter of this project since I first shared it with her last year. She loves François Schuiten's art as you can tell in the quote by her that I use in my Kickstarter video. But I had the opportunity to have dinner with Karen on Wednesday evening and asked her then if she would consider writing the foreword. She said she needed to read the book and think about it. I gave her a proof copy that evening. The next morning I received the most enthusiastic “YES!” email.

Most comic fans may still be unfamiliar with Karen, but she is and will continue to rise as a key figure in the appreciation of comics as a legitimate literary and art form in America. As a collections librarian at one of the most prestigious Ivy League universities in the country, Karen is working to preserve publisher and artist archives. In my opinion, her willingness to participate in this project elevates its importance even more.

I want to share with you a page from later in the book where Mary meets the Parisian artist, Augustin Desombres for the first time. Desombres and Mary are both subjects of other books in The Obscure Cities canon. But their fateful meeting is significant in the “big picture” of this series.

We are roughly 48 hours away from the end of week two of this campaign and we are under $900 away from being 60% funded. If you have friends you feel might be interested in this project, please encourage them to support this project.

Have a great weekend.

Steve

Dear friends and backers.

Thank you so much for your help in making this campaign a success so far. I am really pleased.

This weekend I will post additional artwork. But in the meantime, I want to offer you this video in which François Schuiten and Benoît Peeters discuss the story as François creates his art. This is a page from the next book I will publish, Shadow of a Man. It is in French and I hope to subtitle it soon, once The Leaning Girl is sent to the printer.

Enjoy!

Dear friends and backers, Thank you again for support of my project. This week I am going to be adding some new art and video to the site for you to enjoy. We are a little over $500 shy of 2/3 funding. Things have obviously stalled in the last week and a half, but I still believe this project is worth it.

Over the weekend, I received a message from a new backer saying, “Thank you for bringing these artists/writers to our attention. If it was not for the Kickstarter campaign, I might never have been aware of their work. I am greatly looking forward to the book.” THIS IS WHY KICKSTARTER IS SO IMPORTANT!!! Not just for my project but for so many great art projects.

Check back for new art and video this week. Please tell your friends about the campaign. I would love to close today hitting the 2/3 mark. If you have been considering upping your pledge, why not do it now. If you have friends who you feel might enjoy this book and the potential this series has, please alert them.

Steve

This morning, the campaign was at $19,200 after a couple of weeks of stalled activity. This afternoon I mentioned we were just $500 from reaching the 2/3 mark of $20,000. Tonight, the campaign surpassed the $20,000 mark by over $100. I'm thrilled. We raised close to $1000 in 12 hours. Now we are less than $900 away from 70% funding and we have 17 days to go.

I want to thank my artist friends, best friend Dave Dorman and his wife, publlcist, Denise Dorman, Joe Jusko, my friend and long ago college professor, comic artist Mark A. Nelson, Jeff Preston, Doug Klauba, My young pal and brilliant designer Adam Baker, Andy McKluskey from Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, and one of my closest friends, Ashley Laurence, for pushing this Kickstarter campaign to their fans.

I want to share a very brief film clip with everyone. This is a tiny scene from Le Dernier Plan (2000, France) directed by The Obscure Cities author, Benoît Peeters. This scene features French actors Pierre Arditi as Ludovic, and Valerie van Nitsen as Judith.

If you are looking for reasons to invest in this project, take a look at this clip. It epitomizes the mysteries of The Obscure Cities. Funding The Leaning Girl is just the beginning of what I can share with the English-speaking market. There are other graphic novels, journals, maps, but there are also films to share.

Thanks so much for hearing my appeal today. Please continue to share this project with your friends. With your help, I would love to see the campaign reach 70 to 75% funing by Sunday evening. - Steve

Obviously I am a huge fan of this series, and that is why I have chosen to publish it in English, beginning with The Leaning Girl. The series is internationally known but I wanted to share this great news about the series from Japan, a country that is very nationalistic when it comes to their comics and manga art style. This news item should further validate the importance of bringing this series to an American audience. Have a great weekend. We are less than $400 from reaching 70% of our funding and we have 13 days to go. Thank you all who have supported or are considering supporting this project. - Steve

François Schuiten and Benoît Peeters have won the prestigieus Grand Prize in the Manga category of the Japan Art Festival with their translated version of Les Cités Obscures. It is the first time that a foreign author wins this award. The translated Obscure Cities album was chosen over 457 other submissions.

The Jury:

ITO Go / Manga Critic and Associate Professor, Tokyo Polytechnic University] MINAMOTO Taro / Manga Artist and Manga Researcher SAITO Nobuhiko / Editor and Manga Researcher TAKEMIYA Keiko / Manga Artist and Professor, Kyoto Seika University YAMADA Tomoko / Manga Researcher

The jury report says: “Les Cités Obscures is a series by two men who graduated from the same middle school in Brussels; Schuiten is in charge of the artwork and Peeters handles the script. Though human protagonists appear in the stories, the lead role belongs to the alternate world they populate - its environment, architecture, background. Issued in the bande dessinée format of French-language comics, the series earns praise for the intricacy of its artwork wherever it appears. Now it is finally being translated and published in Japan, where readers may at last savor the sublimity of Peeters' story in tandem with Schuiten's illustrations. The first volume in the series was published nearly 30 years ago, but the story is timeless. Before we start making claims about Japanese manga’s pride of place in the world of comics, we had best acquaint ourselves with the level of comics in the rest of the world. This is one work well worth knowing about. It is one of those rare creations that yields both the pleasure of encountering a foreign culture and the joy of sharing something that transcends cultural differences.”

A “counter-Earth,” almost but not quite like ours, is populated by a mysterious group of city-states: les cités obscures. These serve as the backdrop to the strange events depicted in this popular Franco-Belgian comic-book series, which has been translated into ten languages and has won numerous awards. To date there have been 12 volumes published in the “official” series, with another 12 “spin-offs” for a total of 24 works. Three stories are included in the volume that earned this prize, the first to be published in Japanese, under the title Yami no Kuniguni (Countries of Darkness). They are La fiévre d'Urbicande (The Fever of Urbicande), which depicts people confounded by a strange cube that suddenly starts reproducing itself; La Tour (The Tower), which follows the vicissitudes of a man caught up in an adventure that involves secrets related to a huge tower; and L'enfant penchée (The Leaning Girl), about a young girl whose body leans at an angle due to an unknown astronomical phenomenon. Rooted in a profound knowledge of all manner of creative arts, these intense stories are illustrated with meticulously and exquisitely drawn images - which were produced, it is said, at a pace of one week per page. Plans call for a total of four volumes to be published in Japanese through 2013.

Benoît Peeters and François Schuiten attended the ceremony on February 12, 2013 to receive the award and inaugurate an exhibition at the Roppongi Arts Center. The award consists of a certificate from the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, a trophy and 600,000 Japanese Yen.

Hello friends and backers (backers, I consider you friends too, thank you!). We are one week away from the end of the campaign. I have had repeated requests for a backing level for just the Hardcover limited edition book, so I heard you. You can now select an $80 level which will get you the limited edition hardcover book without the t-shirt. In addition, the shipping cost for international backers has been reduced.

I have also added a retailer level for bookstores wishing to participate by purchasing multiple copies.

I have had so many questions about international shipping costs so I have explored a less expensive, international first class shipping price. Because I cannot simply go into the levels and make changes to the shipping costs, on Sunday, after I receive final calculations, I am going list new levels which will be identical to existing ones, but with lower first class airmail rates instead of international priority. Those of you wishing to change your pledges can cancel and pledge again in the lower priced level.

Just to clarify, domestic US shipping is included in the pledge prices.

Thank you all for your support. I have received some truly inspiring messages. I believe this campaign is worthwhile and I appreciate your support. If you know any “big spenders” who would like to become larger backers, I still have the three $5,000 publisher pledges available. If you are interested in some type of pledge in between, please feel free to contact me.

All the best, Steve

Today was an awesome day. Thank you to all those who pledged or modified their pledge. It is time for assertiveness. If we can reach $25,000 by Sunday night, I am positive we can fund this campaign.

I am heading to The American Library Association convention in Chicago tomorrow. I will report back anything relevant that happens. It is a great show for meeting library collections buyers from across the country.

Thanks again so much for your participation.

Steve

I just checked the new backers today and found we are under $600 away from 80% funded. Thank you so much.

I just had the opportunity to meet with Terry from NBM, the original American publisher of the first five of The Obscure Cities books in English in the late 1980s. The books were identified as Stories of the Fantastic in the NBM editions. Terry was pleased that the series is goimg to continue and even offered to make introductions for me into some of the specialty distributors.

I am so encouraged by the support of you, the backers, and by people like Terry Nantier at NBM.

If we reach our final goal of $30,000 before the deadline next saturday, I will produce a premium for all level 2 and higher investors for each day between the goal being reached and the end of the campaign!

Have a great weekend! Steve

Dear friends and backers,

I promised I would add some first class shipping options today and I will do that shortly, but quite frankly, I needed to take a moment to pick myself up off the floor. I was warned early on not to watch the page every second of every day because it would drive me mad, so I have tried to not do that.

I logged on a few minutes ago and found that the campaign is now 88% funded. It is only $338 away from 90% funding and $3,338 away from fully funding. I could not be more encourage. The campaign has increased by $5,000 since Friday morning.

I am grateful to all my backers for your support. I would love to end this night at 90% and that would literally take each current backer upping their pledge by $1.00. But I would prefer to appeal to your friends who share a common interest to back the campaign. If only 12 new backers choose the $30 level, it will take the campaign over the 90% mark and to start the last five days of the campaign at that level would be very exciting.

Regardless, I am so thankful to all of you for your support.

Today I am sharing an image of the French language 1996 limited edition of The Leaning Girl with a striking image on the cover.

Again thank you for your support.

Steve

Backer friends, Thank you so much for bearing with me throughout this campaign. I feel like I write updates. But today I want to announce that in response to so many international backers, I am investigating lower first class air mail shipping options. I apologize for being so slow with this but I have been at American Library Association's convention in Chicago for the last several days so when I get home at night I spend my time looking at allthe pledges that have come it.

There were five levels where the products fell under the required maximum weight for first class to Canada. So I have added those options. I'm sorry the pricing can't be even better. On the levels where I did not add a Canadian price it is because the products weighed in at over the maximum weight of 4 lbs. So the Priority option is the best I can do on those.

For all other international backers, I will add options tomorrow if it is possible to lower the rates.

We are only $2400 away from funding this project. Thank you so much for your support.

Best, Steve

This afternoon I added two reduced shipping options for international backers. The $100 package and the $250 package now have a reduced shipping option. All of the others are actually slightly below post office cost.

Dear backers and friends, The Leaning Girl campaign is a few days away from the end, and as of right now, it is only $103 away from being fully funded.

I wanted to share one of my favorite Schuiten illustrations of Mary. This is Mary during her high wire act in the Robertson Circus. This piece is actually the cover illustration to a children's book version of The Leaning Girl, called Leaning Mary (Mary la Penchée). What is so fitting is as Mary walks this wire I have felt like I have shared this walk with her, as I have been both nervous and encouraged throughout this Kickstarter process.

It is relatively safe to say this campaign is a success and I want to thank all of you for supporting this. I am proud to be a part of this project and I am honored that so many have stepped up to participate.

Have a great evening. I know I will.

Best, Steve

Dear friends, and believe me, you are my friends. I cannot express to you how excited I am that The Leaning Girl graphic novel project is funded. I am grateful to all of the backers in this campaign. The other day, as I sat watching the funding increase and my emotions turned from apprehension to excitement, I made a promise that if the project was funded before the deadline, I would create a unique The Leaning Girl premium for each day I was not forced to worry over whether or not the campaign would succeed. Last night at 5pm CST, the campaign crossed the $30,000 threshold.

So my brain has been busy. I want to give my supporters some truly unique pieces. As of today, I have thought of two out of three premiums and I promise I will keep thinking about the third. I have some ideas.

The first item will be a very nice bookmark. I created a promotional bookmark for the Kickstarter campaign but I will do a new one without the Kickstarter promo copy on the back.

The second item is the mystery item for now, but the series writer, Benoît Peeters, is helping me track down one of Mary von Rathen's (The Leaning Girl herself) letters to produce a frameable replica. That is one idea.

The third item I am very excited about.

If you have watched the little vignette video on this campaign page, featuring art from the book, the music is by an incredible French composer and musician, Bruno Letort. Bruno has written and recorded numerous pieces based on The Obscure Cities series since 1999. Bruno has agreed to allow me to create a three track CD featuring some selections related to The Leaning Girl and other Obscure Cities stories.

Here is the cover art for Le Musee A. Desombres, a rare, long out-of-print collectible book in The Obscure Cities canon. I will most likely use this image as the cover to the CD. The image features Mary von Rathen, Prof. Wappendorf, and others as they attempt to communicate with our dimension. I have always loved this art and I love the music.

Everyone who has pledged $15 or more will receive these items.

Again, thank you so much for your support. Happy 4th of July to everyone in the USA, and to all of the international supporters, have a wonderful week.

Best, Steve

Hello all,

Not to sound like a broken record, but THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR SUPPORT! I have been able to sleep at night this week so I owe all the backers of this campaign a debt of gratitude.

This is an illustration of Mary taken from the children's picture book, Mary La Penchée (literally, Mary the Leaner). How could you resist this little girl's charm? Look, she is pleading with you to tell all of your friends about the campaign.

I wanted to share another related image.

This is a table at a Japanese bookstore. In Japan, The Obscure Cities series is being collected in four multi-story volumes by ShoPro. Japan has embraced the artists and their series. When I made the decision to pursue this series it was because I believed America was ready for it. The rest of the world already knows the importance of the series. I am looking forward to displays like this at booksellers in the US, featuring the Alaxis Press editions of each of the books.

and…

This image was produced as a multi-color art print in Belgium upon the initial release of the book in 1996. I have started working on the final layout of the book while Benoît Peeters does his proofreading of the translation. I assure you this book is going to contain wonderful bonus features including a new foreword by Benoît, large reproductions of images like this, and more.

There are 21 hours remaining in the campaign. I hope I don't sound greedy but I am hopeful we can continue to grow right up to the end. There have been numerous backers who have cancelled their pledges and well, I can't help but think we aren't out of the danger zone until the campaign actually funds tomorrow morning.

Thank you for confirming my beliefs that this is a viable project. I feel as though I have almost 500 new friends.

gratefully,

Steve

Dear friends,

Thank you so much for making The Leaning Girl campaign a success. We are just 40 minutes away from the end of the campaign. If you have friends you think might be interested, please let them know that it is not too late to back this project.

It is way WAY to late in the campaign to announce any type of stretch goal, but I would love to see this hit $36,000. So here's the deal, if it does, ALL investors at the $15.00 level and higher will receive an official THE OBSCURE CITIES passport. This has been an idea of mine for as long as I have followed the series. I have plans for the passport in future projects.

So if by chance we get there, you get a bonus premium.

Thanks again so much for your support.

Best, Steve

Hello friends,

I haven't posted an update since the project funded on July 6th but I wanted to take this opportunity to reach out today and let you know the translation to the book is completed and has been approved by Benoît Peeters, the series author. I am now working on the production of the book. I will post some “in-progress” photos this weekend.

Thanks again so much for your support.

Steve

In addition to the great font created by François Schuiten for the project, I am excited to share that Timothy Botts, perhaps the biggest name is American fine art calligraphy, has agreed to create Mary's translated journal entries. The following samples were submitted and I asked author Benoît Peeters and artist François Schuiten to select the style they preferred. You can see there are four numbered samples. The third option was chosen and Tim Botts is working to complete the translated journal pages. There are four journal entry pages at the beginning of the book which, along with stunning color images, allow Mary to set up the story which then unfolds in the following black and white pages.

Once the book files are completed and sent to the printer in Italy, I will begin the surveying for t-shirt sizes and begin production on the support items. As it stands currently, we should be on track to deliver everything by the original target of the end of October. Once all of the backers have had their rewards shipped, I will begin working on the next book and the audio book project. I will also be releasing composer/musician Bruno Letort's MUSIC FROM THE OBSCURE CITIES full-length CD in the US and other English-speaking countries in time for the holidays.

Please make sure you visit my facebook page at www.facebook.com/alaxispress and “like” it. Also visit www.theobscurecities.com, the official American website of the series. But I want to encourage you also http://www.altaplana.be, the English-language Belgian website run by Les Cités Obscures archivist, Joseph le Perdriel, and his associate, Eilko Bronsema.

Finally, I want to invite you to continue sending messages if you have questions. I will make sure I keep you all informed via updates as the the progress.

All the best,

Steve

When I first approached Benoît Peeters, author of the Obscure Cities series, about publishing the series in English, he warned me that there were legitimate mysteries surrounding it. Apparently, in 2003, a small number of people were given copies of a journal purported to be by Mary von Rathen, the “fictitious” young character in my upcoming release, THE LEANING GIRL. In this volume, of which approximately 10 copies are know to exist, the writer, claiming to be the real Mary, confirmed and revised many of the situations Benoît had written about and François had illustrated in the original French language edition, L'ENFANT PENCHEE in 1996. A couple of other events have convinced both Peeters and Schuiten that their work was the result of real but otherworldly inspiration.

When I met with Benoît and François last February in Brussels, François eluded to the possibility that Mary, as a young girl, had actually visited my own home city of Chicago during the 1893 Columbian Exposition.

Apparently, Mary has chosen, after years of silence, to share another clue validating her existence, and more importantly, that she is still alive and well.

During the second broadcast of the radio documentary “Traveling and discovering the Obscure Cities” by Radio France's “France Culture” on September 15th, 2013, a young lady delivered a letter to the show's producer. Discovering it was a new letter by Mary von Rathen, the producer, Laurent Védrine, contacted Benoît Peeters. Obviously, I will print the contents of the letter as soon as I receive it, but here is a photo of the letter as it was delivered.

Stay tuned, Steve

Dear backers, friends, all,

I am honestly filled with price to announce that the English translation of THE LEANING CHILD, the project you all enthusiastically supported, is at the printer. Yes it is true this took longer than expected. Yes it is true the book will be late for delivery. But as soon as I have an estimated date from the printer in Italy, I will notify everyone regarding the shipments.

I have to tell everyone, I don't believe I have ever felt more satisfied with a book as I do with THE LEANING GIRL. Author Benoît Peeters and artist François Schuiten have been involved with the process every step of the way. In fact, they permitted me a significant amount of editorial flexibility.

I promise to now jump into the other premiums and get them ready while we await the arrival of the books.

For those of you who want to know more about the changes I made to the book, you really should visit:

http://www.altaplana.be/albums/leaning_girl

But be warned, there may be spoilers.

In fact, I encourage everyone who backed my project to visit this website and become a member. If you want to learn everything about The Obscure Cities, this is the best site anywhere AND it is presented in English. A good friend, Eilko Bronsema, keeps the site running for Joseph Le Perdriel, an archivist living in the world of The Obscure Cities.

So anyway, to get back on track, the book is at the printer in Italy and as soon as I get an estimated ship date, I will let you all know. Thank you so much for believing in this project.

I welcome emails. I welcome questions and comments.

All the best, Steve

Hey everyone. I wanted to check in with you all to let you know that I am waiting to hear from the printer as to an ETA for the trade editions to be shipped. This morning I received the art files for the hardcover “boards” which is the artwork under the dust jacket. That will be configured with the new English language title and spine copy and printed and attached to boards that will make up the hardcover “case-binding.”

In the meantime, I am getting the t-shirt art prepared, having the sleeve made up for the 3-track CD featuring music from the Obscure Cities composed and performed by Bruno Letort, getting the thank you cards and the store poster printed. So even though the book is out of my hands for the time being, the project is not.

I want to acknowledge one of the project backers, Frans Boukas. I was talking to one of my favorite comic artists, Geof Darrow, at New York Comic Con just a couple of weeks ago and showing him the review copy of THE LEANING GIRL when Frans interjected that he had backed the project on Kickstarter. I told him it was my project and we had a great conversation. I loved meeting him.

Anytime anyone sends me a message, I try to personally respond right away. Please feel free to keep in touch.

And keep an eye out for the surveys which will start coming in a couple of weeks. This is how I secure your shipping information for fulfilling your rewards.

Have an awesome week.

Steve

The Leaning Girl hardcover boards

Dear backers, followers and friends,

Every morning I open my email hoping for an update from the printing company as to the status of THE LEANING GIRL. I promise you, as soon as I know it is on its way, and as soon as I have an anticipated release date, I will let you know. I am definitely hoping to at least have the trade editions to you all before Christmas.

In the meantime, I wanted to share with you what the art boards for the case binding will look like. This is for the hardcover edition and this is what you will see if you remove the dustjacket. Other than the translated text, the front cover is identical to the original French language edition first released in 1996. But the back cover is new and features young Mary atop the mysterious sphere so important to this story.

Thank you all for your patience. I will be sending out my official surveys very soon to get your current mailing addresses.

All the best, Steve

Dear backers,

I have an update to share. It is one I am not particularly pleased about but it is progress nonetheless. On Tuesday I received an international express package containing the press proofs for my approval. I spent Tuesday night going through the proofs page by page to make sure everything was correct and sent the proofs back to Belgium to the production coordinator at Casterman (the publisher of the French editions and the go-between for me and the Italian printer). There was one minor error in the hardcover art boards making the ISBN number barcode smaller than it should be. That was corrected and the book is in production.

Sadly, I have been given a date of January 10th for the completion of the project. I will have all Kickstarter copies shipped over via air so I can expedite delivery and I am arranging for a Belgian agent to do the European fulfillment so that copies don't need to be imported to the US then reshipped back.

Interior Proof

Covers and board proofs

The official release date for the book in the US is February 11th in time for Valentine's Day. All my backers will have their copies in January.

I know several of you have contacted me saying you backed the project with plans to give this book as a Christmas gift. Anyone with this dilemma, would you please send me a message and I will send you a “gift” card announcing that the book was ordered for them and that it was delayed at the printer and will be shipped shortly.

Also, because I feel really bad about this, and don't want any of my backers to have to wait to read the story, I will make available a .pdf digital copy of the book to anyone who backer that requests a copy. It is a 25 MB file and I will send it via Hightail, a dropbox type online service. Send send me a message and I will send you a link.

Part of me needs to offer you my sincere apologies for the scheduling delays. I am truly sorry. This has been a learning experience and will allow me to be more deliberate in scheduling decisions on future editions. But the other part knows this is going to be a breathtaking book, is going to attract a great deal of attention, and will be worth the wait. Publishers Weekly magazine ran an article on me and Alaxis Press and a brief review of the book in November.

Article:http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/comics/article/59982-alaxis-press-to-publish-obscure-cities-graphic-novels-in-english.html

Review: http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-62847-227-1

Thank you so much for your support and your patience. The printer is trying to trim some time off the schedule. I will keep everyone posted as I hear anything.

All the best, Steve

I have been waiting three months to announce this but could not until now. The creators of THE LEANING GIRL and the entire Obscure Cities series, Benoît Peeters and François Schuiten, have been invited to be the international guests of honor at the 2014 San Diego Comic Con this coming July.

http://www.comic-con.org/cci/2014/special-guests

I have had to keep this to myself since the Comic Con folks first shared with us their intentions. Both Benoît and François are very excited about this. I will be updating more as we get closer but suffice it to say, this will be an unforgettable experience for American and other fans, and… me!!!

Now, I want to wish all of the backers of THE LEANING GIRL, and all of our supporters and friends, the most joyful and memorable Christmas ever.

All the best the season offers!

Steve

Hello backers! If all goes according to plan, the books will be shipped from the printer in Italy to Chicago this week. The transport time is about 21 days. At that point we will fill all Kickstarter backers' orders.

I want to invite all backers, especially those near Chicago, to the US release party of The Leaning Girl on Saturday, March 1, 7:00pm, at the International School of Comics. More details to follow!!!

Thanks again for supporting this very personal and amazing project!

Best, Steve

Dear backers and friends,

Yesterday I got word from Belgium that the Brussels office of Casterman, the publisher I licensed THE LEANING GIRL from, had received a couple of sample copies of the book. Benoît Peeters, the author, emailed me to tell me François Schuiten (the artist) had seen the book and was very excited. This morning Benoît emailed me again from his home in Paris to tell me he has received a copy as well and that he is very pleased. A little later, I got a wonderful email from Willy Fadeur, the gentleman who officially retired from Casterman last April but who committed to stay involved to see my project through. He told me he was thrilled with the outcome and he assured me I would be too.

Needless to say, I feel like climbing out of my skin. I am dying to see the book. The January 14th ship date came and went without word, but I have now been told the books will likely be ready for pick up and shipment tomorrow.

I want to thank all of you for your patience. This labor of love has turned out to be a much more complex undertaking than I ever imagined. That being said, we are close. Once I have a firm delivery date I will inform you all. I will also be sending out the surveys next week to get your accurate addresses, and other details pertinent to your backer level.

One thing I will tell you is that I am at work translating the next book, THE THEORY OF THE GRAIN OF SAND in hopes of having it printed in time for San Diego Comic Con. I have finished translating LEANING MARY, the children's book retelling of THE LEANING GIRL. I want to share with you the cover comps for the next couple of books.

For those of you planning to attend San Diego Comic Con, Alaxis Press will be in the booth next to my longtime friend and business associate, Dave Dorman.

Please, as always, feel free to email or IM me any questions you might have.

All the best, Steve

Dear backers,

It is with a tremendous sigh of relief that I can finally announce that the books were picked up from the printer this morning and are en route to the shipyards. They set sail on February 12th aboard the New Orleans Express for Chicago, with an estimated arrival date of March 4th. Because of some administrative delays, the shipment did not get picked up in time to make the original ship last week. But you have all been so patient thus far. Please know, the book is on its' way. Below is a photo of the actual ship. See all those train car-looking containers? Well, my shipment takes up approximately 1/12 of one of those containers!

But because the anticipation is no doubt high (as it was for me), I want to also share with you that I received an advance copy of the hardcover edition and the trade edition last Thursday and I want to tell you, I am a proud papa. So last night, I shot a quick video for you. Understand, my normal special effects crew, make-up crew, lighting and sound crew, etc, were all unavailable, so instead this was shot on my iPhone. Now, be forgiving because the camera is not. They do say that a camera puts 15 pounds on you. Apparently this was shot with six cameras or iPhones have wide angle lenses!

But take a look, and thank you again so much for being supportive of this project. We are gearing up for the arrival of the books and the week they arrive we will be shipping all of the Kickstarter and pre-orders out.

Steve

Dear friends, colleagues, and Kickstarter backers,

Well, “She's here!”Last Friday, my friend Tom and I unloaded ten pallets from a truck into his warehouse just outside of Chicago. After months of nail-biting, and after a year of work which followed nearly a year of negotiations, THE LEANING GIRL books have arrived safe and sound on American soil.

We will begin packing up and mailing out rewards immediately, but we are still waiting for the Bruno Letort CD Sampler and the T-Shirts to arrive which we anticipate happening this week. Our shipping supplies have all been ordered and it is our goal to have at least half of the rewards shipped out by Monday, March 17th and everything else shipped out during the course of that week.

Thank you all for your support and your patience. Honestly, the book is stunning and I am so proud to have been part of it.

If any of you will be attending PLA (Public Library Association's convention) in Indianapolis this week, please shoot me an email at stevesmithbooks@gmail.com. I will be there Wednesday and Thursday!

For those of you in the Chicago area, please pay close attention to the next update.

All the best, Steve

For those of you living in or around the Chicago area, or those living anywhere but willing to travel to the most beautiful city in the world, PLEASE join Alaxis Press for the official THE LEANING GIRL book release party on Saturday night, March 15th, from 7pm - 10pm, at the Scuola Internazionale di Comics (International school of Comics) at 1651 W. Hubbard (at Paulina) in Chicago.

You will have an opportunity to see the new book, plus examples of François Schuiten's artwork, videos, and more. Plus you will have an opportunity to see the school itself, and meet some of the faculty and staff. Publisher and translator Stephen D. Smith and co-publisher Christine Smith will be on hand all evening. Refreshments will be served.

Books will be available for purchase throughout the evening.

If you have any questions about directions, visit the school website at www.schoolofcomics.us, or email: info@schoolofcomics.us

Souvenirs de l'éternel présent was presented on Friday March 7th 2014 at the Salon du Livre jeunesse in Saint-Germain lès Arpajon. Souvenirs de l'éternel présent: a story in pictures and music by François Schuiten, Benoît Peeters and Bruno Letort.

Some pictures by Benoît Peeters:

• Souvenirs de l'Éternel Présent

Je vous écris de Bruxelles is an episode of the radio program Carnet nomade by Colette Fellous on France Culture. This episode was broadcasted on March 8, 2014.

I am writing from Brussels, where I spent much of the day with François Schuiten in his neighborhood of Schaerbeek. François Schuiten is one of the greatest comic artists, with his cult series Obscure Cities, a series of twelve albums he created with his great accomplice Benoît Peeters. La Fièvre d'Urbicande, L'Archiviste, Brüsel, L'Ombre D'un Homme ….

Everywhere in his work, circulate singular characters, crazy inventors, fantastic landscapes and cities from worlds where dreams combines poetry and utopia.

At the Biblioteca Wittockiana, an exhibition shows a collection of all documents and drawings François Schuiten made during the thirty years of the series obscure cities. These are all spent with him in Brussels that I'd like to share with you in this letter.

Arriving this morning at his door, a dog greeted us and showed us the path leading to the workshop, the workshop of this master at the top of the house. The dog asked the newspaper near the chair and he moved closer to us, until the time of the walk at noon. Large libraries, large windows, gray sky, shining roofs of rain, perfect light to draw, said François. And the conversation unfolded before pencils, colors, brushes, inks and charcoal …

Listen to the one hour interview:

Musée des Ombres [Museum of the Shadows] is located in the Obscure Porrentruy. It re-opened in 719 AT after having been closed for several years, following strange events ³⁴⁾.

Quite amazingly, a travelling exhibit on Cartooning had the very same name, and some of its elements apparently came from the Obscure World. No doubt a rare case of mobile point of Passage, it has been seen in Angoulême (1990), Sierre, Brussels and Paris.

• Libraries
• Angoulême
• Scenography

François Schuiten, l'Horloger du rêve (François Schuiten, the Watchmaker of Dreams) is a book about François Schuiten. L'Horloger du rêve has 400 pages, with many illustrations from comic books, movies and exhibitions. The text is written by Thierry Bellefroid.

In L'Horloger du rêve, Thierry Bellefroid stands on a 400-page inventory of different creative paths followed by François Schuiten over a period of forty years.

Best known for the comic book series The Obscure Cities that he created with his friend Benoît Peeters since the late 80s for Casterman, François Schuiten is more than a gifted designer. Born in the mid-50s, he was only sixteen years old when he published his first comic in the Franco-Belgian comics magazine Pilote. He began his first film collaboration while studying illustration and comic arts at the Saint-Luc Institute. Soon he would also work as a scenographer, designing large exhibitions, live performances, urban interventions, set designs and World's Fair pavilions.

This book naturally begins with an exploration of his childhood in order to understand the roots of his passions. Then it crosses both the universe of The Obscure Cities and his work as a production designer with such filmmakers as Just Jaeckin, Jaco Van Dormael, Martin Villeneuve and others.

Three whole chapters are devoted to Schuiten's most notorious scenic achievements. Generously illustrated — largely with exclusive new images — they tell how the artist creates the dream on stage, whether it is opera, operetta or cirque shows, through his vision and pencils.

Also an architect of international events, he knows how to develop strong images, as he has a deep understanding of the human anatomy, body movement, and of our relationship with time. Schuiten is well aware that both emotional and mechanical precision is required in order to immerse the viewers in a world of dreams.

His qualities led him to often make some urban interventions, as he was able to do so in Brussels with the Metro Porte de Hal, in Paris with the Arts et Metiers station, in Amiens with the Jules Verne House, and in many other cities, from Lyon to Lille. Wherever he goes, his footprint — which transforms the urban landscape in a meaningful way — seeks to exploit some strong symbols and to connect the past and future.

Finally, how can we not talk about his World's Fair pavilions? From Seville and Aichi through Hanover, François Schuiten is recognized for his bold imagination and rigorous creative process. Readers will discover how these modern architectures are built, step by step with determination, with a strong will to push the limits of what we think is possible.

The book has eight chapters:

1. Apprentissage de l’horlogerie (Learning Clockmaking)
From childhood to the Saint-Luc Institute.

Interlude: Le Talent des autres (The Talent of Others)
Schuiten pays tribute to his great masters and shares his admiration for some of his colleagues.

2. Le doigt dans l’engrenage (The Slippery Slope)
From Saint-Luc to The Great Walls of Samaris.

3. Le Temps des Cités (Time of Cities)
Enlighting thirty years of creation on The Obscure Cities series.

4. Dans le mouvement du balancier (In the movement of the balance)
Ephemeral scenography. Living Arts and exhibitions.

5. Mécaniques urbaines (Urban mechanical)
Urban scenography. Intervention in the city.

6. Au coeur du temps universel (At the Heart of Universal Time)
The work of François Schuiten on World's Fair pavilions.

7. Dans les rouages du mouvement (The Wheels of Motion)
From Gwendoline to Mars et Avril, the work of François Schuiten as production designer.

8. Cadrans du futur (Windows on the Future)
Visions of an exceptional artist.

Bibliography

At first glance, the book appears as both massive and fantastic. A deluxe black cover is offered in addition to the standard edition.

Examples of some interior pages. There is a great dialogue in between texts and images.

There are two versions of L'Horloger du rêve. A standard version (59 euros) and a deluxe version (150 euros). Both versions have 400 pages in color. 500 illustrations including many original, never-before-seen drawings. The dimensions of both editions are 29.5 x 29.5 cm and 5.5 cm thick.

The deluxe edition has an additional 32 pages booklet, including 30 pages of comics and entirely new designs. The deluxe version is published in 500 copies, all numbered and signed. The deluxe version is offered in a luxury cardboard box with metallized paper and laser cutouts.

Born in April 1966, Thierry Bellefroid is a journalist on the Belgian television where he hosts a weekly literary program called Livrés à Domicile.

Regular contributor to the world of comics on radio for over fifteen years, he has published several books on the ninth art, including Les éditeurs de la bande dessinée (Niffle, 2005) and Le Roman d’Aire Libre (Dupuis, 2008 ). Author of novels and short stories, one of which has been adapted as a comic book by Catel (Quartet Casterman, 2008), Thierry Bellefroid also published in 2010 a graphic novel with Joe G. Pinelli (Féroces Tropiques, Dupuis). He teaches television journalism at the University of Louvain.

L'Horloger du rêve has been released by Casterman on November 8, 2013.

Comic shop Brüsel organized a meeting with François Schuiten with the release of the book.

Interview by Jacques De Decker with Thierry Bellefroid, author of François Schuiten, l'Horloger du rêve.

• Horloger du Rêve (Explorations sonores dans les Cités Obscures)
• François Schuiten, l'Horloger du Rêve (serigraphy)

Thierry Bellefroid

François Schuiten, l'horloger du rêve

ISBN 220306305X

EUR 114,25

Thierry Bellefroid

François Schuiten, l'horloger du rêve : Dans l'atelier secret du joaillier

ISBN 2203083069

EUR 284,98

There is also a version on Amazon.fr with ISBN 220307888X, do not use this version.

Revoir Paris is the new album by François Schuiten and Benoît Peeters that will be published end 2014¹⁾. Although it is a joined project by Schuiten and Peeters it will not be one in the Obscure Cities series. The story will be a history of science fiction around Paris.

According to François Schuiten ”It will be a tribute to those that have marked the history of this city. But the end will be very futuristic…” ²⁾.

The album will have two volumes, with a total of about 110 pages. The first 41 pages are ready and delivered to Casterman. Schuiten and Peeters hope that first volume the album will be released a few weeks before the start of the exhibition in La Cité de l'Architecture & du Patrimoine in Paris that will open at November 18, 2014. The second volume will be released early 2016.

Some of the artwork was shown in the interview with François Schuiten and ARTE ³⁾ and in the video interview with RTBF ⁴⁾.

Some related artwork is published during the presentation by Guy Amsellem of la Cité de l'architecture et du patrimoine. ⁵⁾

On February 12, 2014 François Schuiten and Benoît Peeters brought the first 41 finished pages of Revoir Paris to Casterman. Benoît Mouchart took a picture of this event.

Revoir Paris will also be published in the Japanese Big Comic Original in 4 episodes of about 20 pages.

• Revoir Paris (Exhibition)
• Exclusive first peak at Revoir Paris

Revoir Paris is an exposition in La Cité de l'Architecture & du Patrimoine in Paris that will open at November 18, 2014. It will give a view on the architectural history of Paris seen through the prism of François Schuiten and Benoît Peeters.

According to François Schuiten ”It will be a tribute to those that have marked the history of this city. But the end will be very futuristic…” ²⁹⁾.

The exhibition Revoir Paris will show original creations of François Schuiten and Benoît Peeters, curators and designers of the exhibition. It will interact with drawings of Violet-le-Duc and Robida. Fans of new technologies will be lucky as augmented reality experiences will be integrated into the scenery! ³⁰⁾

End 2014, François Schuiten and Benoît Peeters will also release a new album with the same title ³¹⁾. Although it is a joined project by Schuiten and Peeters it will not be one in the Obscure Cities series.

Mars et Avril is a Canadian science fiction film starring Jacques Languirand, Caroline Dhavernas, Paul Ahmarani and Robert Lepage.²⁾ The feature film, based on the graphic novels of the same name published by Sid Lee & la Pastèque, is written, produced and directed by Martin Villeneuve.³⁾

Almost entirely shot on green screen, this independent film has a significant amount of visual effects. The project is being financed by Telefilm Canada, SODEC, Les Productions du 8e Art and the Harold Greenberg Fund, and is distributed in Canada by Alliance Vivafilm⁴⁾ and in the United States by Gaiam.⁵⁾

Mars et Avril was selected at the 47th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, in the section “Another View” (films displaying a unique artistic approach in both form and content). The World premiere took place on July 2nd, 2012 in Czech Republic.⁶⁾ The film opened in theaters in Canada on October 12th, 2012.⁷⁾

In 2007 AD, Villeneuve contacted Belgian comic book artist François Schuiten— best known for drawing the series Les Cités Obscures published by Casterman— who agreed to create the visual design of the film.⁸⁾ Working together, Villeneuve and Schuiten conceptualized a futuristic Montreal, shot mostly on green screen.⁹⁾ Here’s a matte painting depicting Montreal in the future, designed by Schuiten for the movie.¹⁰⁾

See more matte paintings and read the full interview with François Schuiten on Mars et Avril’s official website, in the FUTURISTIC MONTREAL section (available in French & English). You can also read a short interview with Martin Villeneuve in the INTERVIEW section (in French & English). In-depth interviews with the director are available in French on Z-télé, Cinephilia and Fantastic Movies. You can also watch this interview on SciFi Universe. English interviews are available on Quiet Earth and eFilmCritic, and here's his first podcast appearance on Producer’s Pal.

These pictures were taken when Schuiten first came to Montreal in September 2008 AD.¹¹⁾

Martin Villeneuve visited Brussels on several occasions between 2007 and 2011 to work with François Schuiten. Here are a few pictures taken in Schuiten’s beautiful workshop.¹²⁾ From December 7th to 11th, 2011, the famous illustrator came to Montreal once again to approve the 550 VFX shots involved in the film, work on the poster and give a few interviews.¹³⁾

Upon his return to Brussels, Mr. Schuiten sent a message to the Montreal crew: ”Thanks again for your hospitality. This was a real pleasure to share this moment and see the quality of your work.” Thanks to Vision Globale’s VFX supervisor Carlos Monzon for this beautiful picture, taken during Mr. Schuiten’s memorable visit. – From left to right: lead actor Jacques Languirand, production designer François Schuiten and director Martin Villeneuve.¹⁴⁾

Here are the costumes of the cosmologists inspired by the comic book Fever in Urbicand by Schuiten & Peeters (Casterman, 1985). But who exactly are the cosmologists? A powerful brotherhood of illuminati? Cybernetic Templars? Or just some passionate celestial (or divine) scientists? For now, they remain a mystery.¹⁵⁾

The costume of the Marsonautes, from François Schuiten’s first sketch and Mariane Carter’s design to the final model! The costume is made out of a fabric with a tan semi-gloss finish and a textured patina. There is a front light on the torso, and small reflectors inside the collar and helmet. The shell and antenna on the back act as solar energy (or brain waves) panels! An electromagnetic field has also been added to the helmet in post-production.¹⁶⁾

A setting of Fever in Urbicand, cult album in The Obscure Cities series, appears in the movie Mars et Avril! As a matter of fact, François Schuiten kindly agreed to have a 3D model made out of his futuristic auditorium, for a scene taking place inside the Temple of Cosmologists. It is on this impressive set that Eugene Spaak (the character portrayed by Robert Lepage) gives his conference! For the record, the author of Mars et Avril had this image in mind when writing his books, a few years before Schuiten joined the team.¹⁷⁾

On December 9th, 2011, a brainstorming was held concerning the film poster, involving production designer François Schuiten, artistic director Jonathan Nicol (from the Sid Lee Agency), conceptual artist D. Jeevan and director Martin Villeneuve. About 40 concepts were outlined during this working session, and 3 were selected to proceed to more advanced illustrations.¹⁸⁾

Here are 2 poster designs that were considered, but ultimately rejected.¹⁹⁾

And here’s the final concept, approved by the Canadian distributor, Alliance Vivafilm, that was revealed on Mars et Avril’s official Facebook page on March 11th, 2012!²⁰⁾

Art direction: François Schuiten, Dhamindra Jeevan, Martin Villeneuve, Jonathan Nicol (Sid Lee) / Graphic design: Dhamindra Jeevan / Prepress: Graphiques M&H — MARS ET AVRIL INC. & ALLIANCE VIVAFILM © 2012.

Thanks to Quiet Earth for the subtitles.

A series by Renaud Plante & Bruno Pucella unveiling the creation of the film.

Official “making of” (22 minutes, English subtitled)

Teaser “making of” (5 minutes, English subtitled)

Interview with François Schuiten (2 minutes, French)

Filmmaker Martin Villeneuve talked at TED2013²¹⁾ about Mars et Avril, the Canadian sci-fi spectacular he made with virtually no money. In a charming talk, he explains the various ways he overcame financial and logistical constraints to produce his unique and inventive vision of the future.²²⁾²³⁾

Prior to his talk, the opening sequence of the film was shown, as well as a three minutes overview of the steps leading from the green screen to the final images:²⁴⁾²⁵⁾

Martin Villeneuve's talk, “How I made an impossible film,” was released on TED.com on June 7, 2013, and a month later was added to TED's prestigious movie magic list, featuring famed directors such as James Cameron and J.J. Abrams!²⁶⁾ Since then, Mars et Avril is being referred to as the “Impossible Film”, has been sold to the U.S. and is now available on GaiamTV.²⁷⁾ The film is also available on iTunes in Canada, Francophone Europe and the UK, and other major digital platforms will follow, starting in January 2014.²⁸⁾

• French Wikipedia
• English Wikipedia
• IMDb
• TED
• Facebook
• Official website
• BULB

The Mars et Avril DVD was released on March 19th, 2013 and contains tons of bonus material! Here's an overview of what you'll find:

• Brainstorming with François Schuiten: As an audio commentary, an exclusive recording of a work session that took place in Brussels in spring 2008. Duration: 90 minutes.
• The Mars et Avril Experience: Official “making of” directed by Renaud Plante and Bruno Pucella for ARTV. Duration: 22 minutes.
• Web Featurettes: Interviews with Jacques Languirand, Caroline Dhavernas, Paul Ahmarani, Robert Lepage, François Schuiten and Benoît Charest. Duration: 12 minutes.
• Creating the Visual Effects: An overview of the steps leading from the green screen to the final images, created by Vision Globale. Duration: 3 minutes.
• Visions of the Future: A 42 images gallery, featuring François Schuiten's original sketches, the final “matte paintings” and a few storyboards.

Thanks to Martin Villeneuve we can show you some of the artwork on the DVD:

Gallery Pages: 1234

The DVD is distributed through selected Canadian shops and Amazon. You can also find Mars et Avril on several streaming video sites, like Amazon and iTunes.

Martin Villeneuve

Mars et Avril (Version française)

91 minutes

CDN$ 19.19

https://itunes.apple.com/ca/movie/mars-et-avril-english-subtitles/id595759783

L'Atelier de François Schuiten is an episode from the radio program L'Atelier by Vincent Josse on France Inter ³⁾. The episode of March 23, 2014 was dedicated to François Schuiten.

La Tour [The Tower] is the fourth volume of the chronicles. Started in A Suivre in January 1986 and published as an album by Casterman in 1987.

Giovanni Battista is a third class maintainer of the Tower. His section is getting worse by the day and as he has not been in contact with any of his inspectors or colleague maintainers he decided to go to the Base to complain. While using a chute his end up somewhere higher as his level. He meets Ellias Aureolus Palingenius and Milena. Together with Milena he tries to figure out the purpose of the Tower. He finally decides to climb to the top.

Some interior pages of La Tour.

A special edition of La Tour was made for the exhibition Rêves de pierres in Musée Fesch, Ajaccio. The exhibition was about the connections between Piranèse and the world of Schuiten and Peeters. The exhibition ran from 24 October 2000 till 28 January 2001.

See also: Donjon des rêves (Le) - Piranesi by Schuiten.

Benoît Peeters and François Schuiten gave many interviews over the years. Several of these interviews are saved in these archives. You can read them in PDF format by clicking the Read-link.

Valéry. Tenter de vivre is an essay written by Benoît Peeters about Paul Valéry.

Paul Valéry was a French poet, essayist, and philosopher. His interests were sufficiently broad that he can be classified as a polymath. In addition to his poetry and fiction (drama and dialogues), his interests included aphorisms on art, history, letters, music, and current events ¹⁾.

“Valéry is much more than the posterity has made ​​of him. This is one of the most fascinating writers ever existed.” says Benoît Peeters. “He is a man who had a dazzling debut when he was very young; friend of Pierre Louÿs and André Gide, favorite disciple of Mallarmé, he published his first poems in the best journals, and then he wrote two dazzling texts: L’Introduction à la méthode de Léonard de Vinci and the La soirée avec Monsieur Teste.. 25 years ago, he turned his back on literature and during the next twenty years he didn't publish anything, although he kept working in the early mornings in his mysterious notebooks. To the young André Breton, he is a new Rimbaud.”

“At the age of 45, Valéry returns to the literature, and he publish La Jeune Parque, and countless charming essays. Very soon the glory seizes his name, a great glory we can hardly represent today. His revival is not only in literary, it is also in vitality. Love, long repressed, takes a seat on the later. In 1920 Valéry meets Catherine Pozzi. He has a tormented link with her for eight years. His relations with Renée Vautier and Jeanne Loviton (called Jean Voilier) are equally important. The traces they have left reveal a fragile, burning, sensitive and endearing Paul Valéry.”

Some images of Paul Valéry.

Benoît Peeters: “This book is not a biography as I have written about Derrida and Hergé. This is a synthetic picture, a story where the work and life ceasing to interlace. Far from speaking only to specialists, I want to propose new gateways into the world of Paul Valéry and new reasons to venture. I also examines the posthumous fate of his work and how reinvent the eve of its entry into the public domain. ”

The book (356 pages, 135 x 220 mm) will be published by Editions Flammarion and will be released at April 2, 2014