Meeting with Bernard Palacios

In the heart of the Vis valley, Saint-Laurent-le-MinierThe region, once prosperous thanks to mining and the paper industry, experienced a new boom in the 1970s with animated film. Indeed, in the former 19th-century Foulquier spinning mill, cellulose reels replaced reels of precious silk thread thanks to the animation and production studio La Fabrique, founded by the directors Jean-François Laguionie, Bernard Palacios and five other friends.
Bernard Palacios, an independent director of animated short films, trained at the Beaux-Arts and began his career with the television series Au bout du Crayon (At the Tip of the Pencil). He continues his work through book creation, painting, teaching at the La Poudrière animation film school, and his involvement in The Factory Association.

Find Bernard in the South Cévennes destination magazine, Wild Encounter issue no. 5

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What is the story of La Fabrique?

La Fabrique was born in 1979 when Jean-François Laguionie assembled a team of independent filmmakers, including Nicole Dufour, Henri Heidsieck, Claude Luyet, Émile Bourget, Patrick Darlot, and myself, to make his first animated feature film, Gwen, the Book of Sand, in a former silk weaving factory that we had purchased. We made this film as a team of five, over five years. Currently in France, it takes at least 400 people to make an animated film. We made it with very specific shooting equipment: a multiplane animation stand, the same one Walt Disney used for Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. At the end of the film, all the directors had to go home. I lived in Annecy, and one of my friends lived in Switzerland… At that time, Jack Lang, then Minister of Culture, initiated a project to decentralize the film industry in France. This plan involved five locations, including the Mediterranean Center for Cinematographic Creation with René Alliot and La Fabrique in Saint-Laurent-le-Minier, as well as other sites, notably in Brittany. The Ministry of Culture therefore helped establish an association that was to create a production company. And we all stayed here!

For several decades, and until about ten years ago, La Fabrique built a rich catalogue of auteur short films, television series, and a few feature films, such as Michel Ocelot's Princes and Princesses and Jean-François Laguionie's Black Mor Island. True to its editorial policy, it devoted itself exclusively to auteur cinema, totaling more than 70 productions.
In this building, we've hosted up to 80 people working on various projects. Initially, we never imagined such expansion. The last film produced using traditional animation methods at La Fabrique was *Le château des singes* (The Monkey Castle), by Jean-François Laguionie, in 1999.
In 2014, a flash flood, known locally as "the wave," destroyed the first floor of the building, the facilities, and all the film equipment. Already financially vulnerable, the production company did not survive despite attempts to revive it. Only the Association, which has remained independent, continues today with a purely cultural focus.

What is the purpose of La Fabrique today?

The association now has a cultural focus: we organize introductory animation workshops for children, in medical settings, and in facilities for people with disabilities. We also organize conferences, screenings, and... Film Festival In the StarsFor the past five years, a new chapter has opened for La Fabrique thanks to the support of the town hall of Saint-Laurent-le-Minier, which has once again become the owner of the buildings.
This partnership allows us to host young directors, former graduates of the Poudrière school in Valence, in residence, who come here to develop their new projects, whether they be films, series or video games.
Offering a privileged setting, both peaceful and enriched by a dynamic network of activities in the neighboring villages, these residences allow them to refine their ideas and obtain subsidies, thus constituting the starting point for their creations.
Furthermore, cultural activity is intensifying in Saint-Laurent, particularly with the theatre offering residencies dedicated to the art of puppetry. True to its mission, the association is committed to bringing its buildings to life through creative initiatives. These projects result in open house days, partnerships with filmmakers, and other events that foster exchange and creativity.

Of all the works produced by La Fabrique, which are the most significant?

That's a difficult question… There are so many! Michel Ocelot easily comes first, with the animated series Ciné Si, which he created using cut-out paper, made in his kitchen! Six episodes of the series were compiled into the feature film Princes and Princesses. I'm also thinking of the series Les Cadeaux, by Henri Heidsiek.

Why did you choose to settle specifically in Saint-Laurent-le-Minier?

It was Jean-François Laguionie's idea, who, having settled in Saint-Bresson, had passed through Saint-Laurent and appreciated the setting which reminded him of Corsica, where he had gone on holiday!