4 things about Hothouse animator Greg Labute

This post is part of a series of interviews with this year’s Hothouse participants. Created in 2003, Hothouse is a 12-week paid apprenticeship program for emerging filmmakers that takes place in the NFB’s Montreal Animation Studio. This spring, the 6 participants were given 3 months to produce a short animation film, but with a twist: all films had to be in stereoscopic-3D.

I had high hope of meeting up with Greg Labute during his last week at the NFB, but in the end there was just no time. It’s a little intense, I hear, making 3D animation films from scratch! To ensure Greg didn’t get robbed out of his own “4 things about me” interview, I sent him the questions by email. These are the answers he sent back, with admirable promptness.

1) One thing about myself: “I’m an animator turned computer programmer, turned animator once again. But really, I’m a frustrated musician.”

2) One thing about my film: “A key objective of mine was to use stereoscopy in an essential way, to convey meaning. There are two possible readings of this film: one that you get when you watch while wearing the [3D] stereo glasses, and another different but cogent reading that you get when you watch the stereo image without the glasses. It worked.”

3) One thing about working with the NFB: “I love this place. The history, the spirit of helpfulness, the creativity, dedication, and sheer intelligence of the people here are inspiring. Being a part of it was a fabulous experience. I used to think that creation was a solitary activity. It’s not true.”

4) One thing I’d like to share with other emerging filmmakers: “You’re not alone. Use the resources that are available around you and never to let go of your vision.”