Animated VR Anthology ‘Blue Figures’ Brings Jazz Greats to Life
variety.comBen Croll French 2D animation specialist Disnosc will bring Miles Davis, Chet Baker and Fats Waller to a headset near you. A family venture founded by Fabrice and Nathan Otaño – a father-son duo with respective experience in corporate analytics and high-end animation, with credits on films like “The Summit of the Gods” and “Ernest & Celestine: A Trip to Gibberitia” – the Biarritz-based studio launched in 2020 to bring pet-project “Blue Figures” to the small screen.
Co-directed by David Calvert and developed in-house, the hand-drawn anthology series follows a Parisian record store, staffed by jazz aficionados, that opens a wider window onto the world.
Episodes will focus on individuals such as Davis, Baker and Waller, as well as pianist Mary Lou Williams and French author-scenester Boris Vian. “Jazz isn’t just about music,” says producer Fabrice Otaño, evoking Miles Davis’ infamous police assault outside of New York’s Birdland. “It’s also about political and social struggle.
Through conversations in the store, we can explore questions of racism, addiction and female advancement, evoking the jazz greats who dealt with similar concerns in their lives and art.
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