Jean-Sébastien Hamel is a Canadian animator and film editor, who works with his partner Alexandra Myotte in the animation studio Sémaphore Films.[1] They are most noted as co-directors of A Crab in the Pool (Un trou dans la poitrine), which won the Prix Iris for Best Animated Short Film at the 26th Quebec Cinema Awards in 2024,[2] and was named to the initial shortlist for the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film in the leadup to the 97th Academy Awards in 2025.[3]
He began his career as an editor, first meeting Myotte when he was brought in to collaborate as an editor on the music video for Karkwa's single "La Façade".[4] Their first animated short film as a duo, La fille aux yeux rouges, was released in 2009; they have since continued to collaborate both on films credited to the duo as co-directors, and on films credited to one of them as a solo director but still featuring supporting technical work by the other, including Myotte's No Title (Pas de titre) and Hamel's The Cloven Sky.
References
- ^ Ramin Zahed, "‘A Crab in the Pool’ Directors Jean-Sébastien Hamel & Alexandra Myotte Dive into Life’s Deep End in Their Award-Winning Short". Animation Magazine, November 22, 2024.
- ^ Charles-Henri Ramond, "Gala Artisans 2024: les lauréats dévoilés". Films du Québec, December 5, 2024.
- ^ Jamie Casemore, "Universal Language makes Oscars shortlist for international feature". Playback, December 18, 2024.
- ^ Sophie Bernard, "« Un trou dans la poitrine » en route vers les Oscars ? Alexandra Myotte et Jean-Sébastien Hamel croisent les doigts". Qui Fait Quoi, January 21, 2025.