OTTAWA: The National Film Board has put a modern twist on the life of Samuel de Champlain with a 3D project that looks at the famed explorer, and founder of Quebec City, through the eyes of a fictional, modern-day descendant.

Shot using new 3D stereoscopic film, and produced as part of the NFB’s contribution to Quebec’s 400th anniversary celebrations, Facing Champlain, A Work in 3 Dimensions opened May 14 at Musée de la civilisation de Québec in a specially designed theater. Viewers watch the production wearing polarized glasses.

NFB chair Tom Perlmutter says the board anticipates the 22-minute, $1-million-plus short will screen at the museum for at least 10 years, and is looking into a cross-Canada tour of the film.

‘The production is cutting edge; 3D is where cinema is going. In three years, North American cinemas will be projecting in 3D, as that’s where Hollywood is heading,’ he predicts.

Director Jean-François Pouliot (Seducing Dr. Lewis) says filming in 3D was like learning a different film grammar, since the framing had to be completely different. The production, filmed with one camera – a prototype 3D model imported from the U.S. – combines live action with animation.

‘The new filming technique is appropriate because the historic subject matter is told through the eyes of a contemporary painter,’ states Pouliot, who wrote the script last November under the guidance of a museum historian.

The film centers on Melissa, an artist played by Pascale Montpetit (Pure laine), who is commissioned by a large museum to do a portrait of Champlain (Eudore Belzile). In the seclusion of her studio, which overlooks the historic district of Quebec City, where Champlain landed, she tries to grasp the essence of the explorer.

‘It’s 400 years later, but looking out her window she can almost see Champlain. The animation is one of the devices we used to tell the story, which is at times is a very inner story [in the artist’s mind],’ says the director. ‘The animation is also used to show these flashbacks, and as the film evolves, the animation becomes more and more rich.’

The film was shot in January over eight days in Montreal, with some extra footage coming from Quebec City. The NFB’s David Verrall and René Chenier are executive producers. Munro Ferguson was the animation director, Theodore Ushev the head animator and artist, and Pierre Plouffe the digital effects director.

Pouliot notes that no one knows what Champlain looked like, as the drawings in textbooks are actually the face of another man. ‘The title is a metaphor because we go beyond appearances and into the character of who Champlain was,’ he says.

‘Both the artist and Champlain have the vision of an artist, and extreme tenacity,’ he adds. ‘It’s clearly evident from his drawings, maps and writings that Champlain was an artist.’