How did you choose a clip from a Tex Avery cartoon to be in Micmacs?
JPJ: I wrote a book about Tex Avery a long time ago in France. We sent the book to him, but he passed away one week before receiving it. DS: How did your love of Tex Avery influence your movies? JPJ: It’s not just Tex Avery but animation itself, especially Pixar’s movies. I started my career with animation because it was easier to create it alone in your kitchen than to make a live-action film withan actor. So I started like Tim Burton, using stop-motion puppets, but a lot less talented than him, believe me! DS: Do you think that also makes you have a lot in common with Terry Gilliam, who started animating with collages for Monty Python? JPJ: Yes, exactly. And when we speak together, we say the same thing because we like to control everything ourselves. I really loved his last film because we started to make everything ourselves. I loved his last one, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. The story is not easy to follow, but the film is beautiful. DS: In addition to being hilarious, Mic
