Le Carré 150 | Salle Les-frères-Lemaire

Hommage Pierre Hébert

Curator: Karl Lemieux

Program 1 | 16 may | 11 a.m.

Loïc Darses « Graver l’homme : arrêt sur Pierre Hébert »

2024, 1 h 17 min, Documentary

Structured like a master class in film engraving, Scratches of Life: The Art of Pierre Hébert is a tribute to the pioneering animator, whose scratch-on-film technique has long served as a vessel for his restless artistic exploration. Director Loïc Darses traces Hébert’s journey from his early abstract works at the NFB to his later documentary-animation hybrids, revealing an artist who has never ceased to question, experiment, and reflect on the world around him. The film captures both the man and his body of work, peeling back the layers of his process to uncover his thoughts on history, identity, and mortality. As Hébert candidly reflects on his artistic and personal journey, Scratches of Life becomes a testament to the enduring power of creative reinvention.

Programme 2 | 17 may | 11 a.m.

Films de Pierre Hébert

Pierre Hébert « Opus-1 »

1964, 5 min, Experimental

Abstract film originally made in 1964 and remastered in 2006.

Pierre Hébert « Op Hop – Hop Op »

1966, 3 min, Experimental

Animated film made using a series of twenty-four positive and negative images presented in a chaotic manner or according to a methodical composition. A visual experiment, it subjects the eye to a continuous and violent stream of images; also an experiment in terms of the individual’s participation, it attempts to polarize their mental and perceptive activity and then throw them into a state of meditation.

Pierre Hébert « Souvenirs de guerre »

1982, 16 min, Animation

Short animated film about war. A climate of latent violence and insecurity is increasingly weighing on the world. In high places, people are daring to speak publicly about the possibility of a world war. This beautiful animated film expresses concern about what the future holds for our children… and for ourselves. How can we get used to the idea of war, to its apparent necessity? Will we go and kill our fellow human beings in other countries, or will we have an atomic bomb dropped on our heads? A lullaby to scare children.

Pierre Hébert « Mais un oiseau ne chantait pas »

2018, 6 min, Experimental

This film, part of the Scratch project, is a visual interpretation of Malcolm Goldstein’s musical piece for solo violin based on a folk song from Bosnia and Herzegovina. The composer describes it as a gesture of hope for peace in this region devastated by war in the 1990s.

Pierre Hébert « Scratch-3=1 »

2026, 31 min, Experimental

Film shot on celluloid, edited and directed by Pierre Hébert. This version of the Scratch series is a simulation of a performance using two desynchronized 16mm projectors, accompanied by improvisations by Malcolm Goldstein (violin) and John Heward (drums), recorded separately while they watched a copy of a performance at the Cinémathèque québécoise. The instruction was not to try to be synchronized with the image and to progress from an initial state of very short interventions, separated by long silences, to a more intense and continuous performance.