The Triplets of Belleville 

About the Artists

Sylvain Chomet (Director) was born in 1963 in Maison-Lafitte, France. In 1982, he graduated from high school specializing in art and in 1987 received a diploma from the prestigious comic-strip studio at Angoulême (France). In 1986, he published his first book-length comic, Secrets of the Dragonfly (Futuropolis) and drew an adaptation of a Victor Hugo novel, Bug-Jargal, in collaboration with Nicolas de Crécy. Moving to London to work as an animator at the Richard Purdum studio, in September 1988 he established a London-based freelance practice working on commercials for clients such as Swissair, Principality, Swinton, Renault, etc.

In 1991, Chomet started work on his first animated film project, The Old Lady and the Pigeons, with backgrounds designed by Nicolas de Crécy. In 1992, he wrote the script for a comic entitled The Bridge in Mud (Glénat), a science-fiction and historical saga now in its fourth episode. The following year, he wrote the story Léon-la-Came, drawn by Nicolas de Crécy and serialized in (A SUIVRE) magazine. The book version was published by Casterman in 1995. It won the René Goscinny Prize in January 1996.

Since 1993, Sylvain Chomet has been based in Canada. He spent 1995 and 1996 finishing his short film The Old Lady and the Pigeons. This film won the Cartoon d’Or prize, the Grand Prize at the Annecy Festival, a BAFTA, the Audience Prize and the Jury Prize at the Angers Premiers Plans Festival, and received nominations for both the French César and the Oscars.

In early 1997, Sylvain Chomet published Ugly, poor and sick, again with Nicolas de Crécy. The book version (Casterman) won the Alph-Art Best Comic Prize at the Angoulême Comic Strip Festival in 1997.

Benoît Charest (Composer/Conductor, Guitars), an Oscar nominee composer from Montreal, has written over 30 film scores, including 2004’s Triplets of Belleville, which has earned him many awards.

Charest studied at McGill and Montreal universities before learning his trade touring as a sideman with various bands. A versatile composer and accomplished jazz guitarist regularly performing with some of Montreal’s finest musicians, Charest wrote his first score in 1992 for an NFB documentary.

Charest has composed scores for several movies, including writing a tribute to B-movie car chases. He is currently composing music for several upcoming films as well as touring with the Terrible Orchestre de Belleville in a cine‐concert in which an eight-piece band plays in-sync the score to the Triplets of Belleville movie.

Musicians

Dan Thouin (Keyboard + Accordion) first sat behind the family organ at age seven. Ten years later he was studying classical piano. Soon he started flirting with the jazz scene. Then, he took an interest in electronica and pop music, collaborating with the likes of Mara Tremblay, Yann Perreau, and Marie-Jo Thério and touring with Jason Bajada and Ghislain Poirier. In 2002, Thouin assembled the Large Ensemble, an all-star local group mixing jazz and rock. Informed by Miles Davis’s late-’60s experiments, Thouin used the band to flex their improvisational muscles.

Bryan Head (Drums) is a Los Angeles–based drummer and percussionist. He has performed and recorded with such varying artists as Roger Hodgson of Supertramp, Foreigner, surf legend Dick Dale, Julian Lennon, Shelby Lynne, the Plimsouls, Abandoned Pools, Peter Case, and John Doe of X.

Michael Emeneau (Percussions, Electric Vibraphone) has worked professionally as a vibraphonist, producer, remixer, and arranger for 25 years, playing such diverse genres as jazz, rock, drum and bass, salsa, techno, country, Hindustani, gospel, Baroque, and orchestral music. During this time he has produced 16 albums, recorded on another 150, composed music for eight films, toured internationally, and lived on three continents. As a solo recording artist he has released a series of highly acclaimed solo CDs on the boutique record labels Hearts of Space, Daikini, and Six Degree’s records. Currently he is member of Ben Charest’s Orchestre Terrible de Belleville and Tur Malka featuring Canadian jazz vocal legend Karen Young.

Bruno Lamarche (Saxophone, Flute, Clarinet) is a saxophonist and multi-instrumentalist. Lamarche has been known in Canada and Europe for more than 20 years. He has had the honor of working with luminaries such as Buddha Kick, Félix Stüssi, Ray Anderson, Bernard Primeau, Joel Miller, Ben Monder, Philip Catherine, Christine Duncan, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Don Thompson, and of course, Benoît Charest. His wide-ranging career has seen him perform with Altsys, Dixieband, ONJM, and Jazzlab. A recognized arranger, Lamarche earned a bachelor of Jazz Performance at McGill University, where he also received the Marion Magor Memorial Scholarship and the James McGill Award.

Maxime St-Pierre (Trumpet) became a solid trumpeter as a member of many scholarly music bands, such as Cégep St-Laurent, Montreal University, Vic Vogel, Dems Christianson, and Montreal Jazz Big Band. He has also worked with many popular singers and groups, among them Jean-Pierre Ferland, Daniel Bélanger, Jean Leloup, Michel Legrand, Yannick Rieu, the Temptations, the Four Tops, Michel Cusson Wild Unit, Eva! Manigat, La Bande à Magoo, and Kappa.

Edouard Touchette (Trombone), from Frelighsburg, Canada, picked up the trombone at a young age. He moved to Montreal and went on to collaborate with established bands like Papagroove, Coyote Bill, and the University of Montreal Big Band. At 24, he is already making his way as a freelance trombonist in the city.

Morgan Moore (Double Bass, Bass) has a Juno for his work on Ranee Lee’s album Live at Upstairs and has performed with such notables as Sophie Milman, Oliver Jones, Nikki Yanofsksy, Rob Lutes, Kaba Horo, John Day, Ben Charest, James Gelfand, and Marianne Trudel. Being one of the first-call Montreal bassists has given Moore the opportunity to play with such international artists as Mark Murphy, Phil Dwyer, Jimmy Cobb, Nate Smith, Sheila Jordan, and many others.

Paget Williams (Tour Manager), a native of Montreal, has worked in the music business since the mid-’80s. He has been tour manager for many artists, such as Manu Chao, Amadou and Mariam, Bebel Gilberto, Marilyn Manson, NOFX, Martha Wainwright, Carla Bruni, The Herbaliser, Jain, and many others. He also does production, production management, and stage management on many events: Osheaga Montreal, Owl’s Head Festival, World Ski and Festival Whistler, etc.

Guillaume Briand (Sound & Technical Director) became a musician when he discovered his passion for the art of sound. At age 17, he decided to follow his heart and began his career working as a sound engineer at Production Jeun’Est, Foufounes électriques, le Grand Bambou, Spectra, Cabaret La Tulipe, and Cabaret Juste Pour Rire. He has traveled the world, creating soundscapes and mixing instrumentation in France, Italy, China, the United States, Singapore, and Germany, where he worked with percussionist and hybrid artist Merlin Ettore. On tour with the extreme heavy metal group Unexpect, out of Montreal, he has performed his sonic magic in stadiums throughout Europe. He also performs as a technical director for touring shows, especially the poetic musicalizations of Queen Ka and cine-concert The Triplets of Belleville.

Exclusive Worldwide Touring Management by:
David Lieberman/Artists Representatives
P.O. Box 10368, Newport Beach, CA 92658
info@dlartists.com
dlartists.com

The Triplets of Belleville is a film by Sylvain Chomet
Rated PG-13 by the MPAA

© 2002 LES ARMATEURS, PRODUCTION CHAMPION, VIVI FILM, FRANCE 3 CINEMA, RGP FRANCE AND SYLVAIN CHOMET. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Licensed in the United States/Mexico/Australia through Sony Pictures Classics.

Les Armateurs (Production company), founded by Didier Brunner in 1994, has brought two new writer-directors to the world of cartoon films, Michel Ocelot and Sylvain Chomet. The aim of the company is to discover talent and to produce a range of original and ambitious work aimed at family audiences and young adults.