The newly Oscar awarded ‘The Artist’ is Michel Hazanavicius’s third film with director of photography Guillaume Schiffman, who shot both of Hazanavicius OSS comedies. “With Guillaume, it’s more than just collaboration,” Hazanavicius remarks. “We’ve done films together, we’ve done ads together, and we know each other very well.

As soon as I had the idea of ‘The Artist’, I talked to him about it. I gave him tons of films to watch and he did a lot of professional research about the techniques, cameras and lenses of the time. The idea was the same for all us, on both sides of the camera: do some research; nourish ourselves; understand the rules thoroughly in order to be able to forget them at the end.”

Hazanavicius had storyboarded the entire screenplay for ‘The Artist’, and during preproduction he and Schiffman spent countless hours looking at these blueprints and discussing their options. In a black and white silent movie, lighting and color scale become critical tools of the storytelling, Schiffman points out.

“Because there’s no dialogue, light has to tell you something, the shadows have to tell you something. Michel told me how he envisaged the story, how he was going to play with the blacks and whites, shadow and light, and a lot of grays. What is fascinating about Michel is that he never loses sight of the story he wants to tell. You can’t produce only beautiful images and lose the audience in the process. The goal isn’t to make the audience go ‘Wow!’ at each shot but to captivate them and, in this case, to move them.”

Schiffman describes the film as a rare creative opportunity. “A black and white movie; 1.33 format; 20s and 30s style: it’s a dream come true for a cinematographer. What a pleasure to revisit this moment of cinema history, particularly today, when we are moving towards digital supremacy.”

As pre-production got underway in Los Angeles, news of ‘The Artist’ spread quickly in the film community. The black and white style and period setting offered interesting and unusual work for all the industry’s trades: set design, costume design, hair and makeup, camera, electric, etc. Hazanavicius was delighted to find himself surrounded by some of best and most experienced professionals in Los Angeles, all of them eager to contribute.

“Everyone got very excited,” the filmmaker smiles. “I think people appreciated the fact that this was a movie about their profession. People from the camera department offered to make special lenses, old projectors were pulled out of closets … it was very special.”

One of the earliest hires was production designer Laurence Bennett, who has worked extensively with writer/director Paul Haggis on films including the Oscar-winning ‘Crash’. Hazanavicius notes that he had very specific elements he wanted to incorporate into the film’s design, responsibilities that Bennett took on.

“The Artist’ is about the fall of an actor, so I was always looking for locations with stairs. I wanted the actors to go down, and down, and down, sequence after sequence,” says Hazanavicius. “It’s the same with mirrors; it’s the idea of representation because George is an actor. There are always many George Valentins in the frame. Larry brought his own sensibility to the production design, while achieving all the very precise effects I asked him to create. He did a great job.”

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Last night was the dream night for the beautiful and unconventional film ‘The Artist’. The 2012 Academy Awards was truly a night for artists as solid craftsmanship was celebrated and history was made. One of the delightful results was the well deserved win by the French actor Jean Dujardin for his portrayal of the fading silent movie star George Valentin — an amazing performance that won the Academy’s hearts and votes. It also makes him the first French actor to ever receive the honor.

Credit: Greg Harbaugh / ©A.M.P.A.S.

Dujardin was tearful as Natalie Portman, last year’s winner in the Leading Actress category, as is tradition, introduced the performances all of the nominees. She noted the exquisite achievement of the French actor and he was visibly moved by the kind words. As his name was announced, the charming smile that moviegoers fell in love with in The Artist spread across his face as he approached the scene to accept the statue

Thank you. Oui! I love your country. Thank you to the Academy. It’s funny because in 1929 it wasn’t Billy Crystal, but Douglas Fairbanks who hosted the first Oscar ceremony. Tickets cost five dollars and it lasted 15 minutes. Times have changed. So thank you Douglas Fairbanks. Yes Melissa, your grandfather’s spirit and joie de vivre inspired me for this role. And so many of you here tonight have inspired me. Thank you Michel, thank you for this incredible gift. Thank you my wonderful partner Bérénice Bejo. Thank you the wonderful cast and crew. My wife, I love you. Kisses Simon, Jules, Chloe. And if George Valentin could speak, he’d say [French]. Merci beaucoup. I love you.

In his excitement, the 39-year-old actor, the youngest of the nominated, was almost unable to contain his joy and looked as if trying to return to the microphone to speak. Backstage, he got the chance.

Q. Sir, with your great success in this silent movie, are you concerned with the effort to make a transition into talkies?

A. (Jean Dujardin) In America? I’m not American actor. I’m a French actor, and I continue in France and but it’s possible. It’s

A. (Interpreter) If he can make another silent movie in America, he’d like to. He knows he’ll always be a French actor in America so he should find roles that, you know, those kinds of roles.

A. (Jean Dujardin) Thank you.

A. (Interpreter) But he has a few ideas that he wants to develop.

Q. At the end of your acceptance speech, did you perhaps drop the French equivalent of the F word?

A. I said it’s amazing. It’s incredible. It’s unbelievable. Thank you. Ah, yes. I’m sorry.

Q. And I’m wondering where your four legged friend is, Uggie, and how you’re going to celebrate with him?

A. (Jean Dujardin) Uggie? Tonight, Uggie is home in Miami, I think. So but, yes.

A. (Interpreter) He went to bed already.

Q. Hello, Jean. I would like to know what was the process of creating this character and was it any different from the way you created other talking characters?

A. It was not really intellectual, and I’m not an intellectual. No, I watch I watched a lot of movies. Douglas Fairbanks movies, Gene Kelly movies. I had fun pretending to be a movie star in 1920s.

Q. Congratulations.

A. Thank you very much. Thank you.

Credit: Greg Harbaugh / ©A.M.P.A.S.

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