An invention that sets the tribe on fire
At the dawn of time, a tribe of cavemen live peacefully in their cave. Among them is Machine, a brilliant scientist who, with the help of her clumsy friend Raoul, tries to awaken her fellow cavemen by presenting them with revolutionary inventions. When Machine discovers fire, nobody is interested. However, the story takes an unexpected turn when Raoul accidentally invents the very first cigarette. Suddenly, he becomes the darling of the tribe: the first smoker in history is born and with him, a new criterion of popularity.
With this original idea, T’as pas du Feu? uses the comedy of situation to evoke the power of trends and the absurdity of conformism.
An offbeat look at the fad
The film’s directors wanted to humorously address the fascination that certain behaviors exert on a social group. In T’as pas du Feu?, cigarettes become a symbol of integration and social recognition. Raoul, long perceived as an outcast because of his clumsiness and stupidity, finally finds his place within the tribe. His success highlights a universal phenomenon: the desire to be accepted and the influence of imitation on behavior.
Machine, meanwhile, plays the role of the rational spectator. She embodies intelligence and lucidity in the face of the collective blindness of Cro-Magnon man. Implicitly, the film derisively illustrates the irony of progress: while Machine offers humanity a discovery essential to its evolution – fire – the tribe prefers to get excited about a simple stylistic effect.
Un défi artistique et technique relevé avec brio
Graphiquement, l’équipe a opté pour un style semi-réaliste pour les textures de peau et un personnage groom réaliste mais stylisé, inspiré du film Astérix et le secret de la potion magique. L’univers du film alterne entre deux environnements distincts : l’intérieur de la caverne et la steppe à l’extérieur, chacun ayant été soigneusement travaillé avec des textures de dessins animés stylisées.
The animation was a major challenge, particularly in terms of transcribing the energy and expressiveness of the characters while maintaining an effective comic rhythm. The contrasts between the attitudes of the members of the tribe, Raoul’s clumsy gestures and Machine’s determined presence fully contribute to the comic effect of the film.
A collective project accomplished
Making an animated short film is a real marathon, requiring months of hard teamwork. Axelle Chabanier, Cécilia Mérot, Clément Febvre, Enzo Pajau, Flavie Bellin, Martin Turbeaux, Mélina Safti and Paul Moulin have combined their talents to bring this ambitious project to life. Thanks to their creativity and technical mastery, they have brilliantly achieved their goal: to make people laugh without trying to moralize, while offering a subtle reflection on the power of conformism and the birth of trends.