Salmo is an 8 minute hand-drawn animated short film embarking you on an adventure into the epic life of a salmon, following its journey from its native river to the confines of the Arctic.
Through an imaginative and immersive story, Salmo hopes to bring visibility to this resilient species which has much to teach us about the many ecosystems they inhabit and on which we depend.
Written & Directed by Paul Pajot
Animated by Paul Pajot, Jenna Lescalier & Rhoda Villegas
Colouring assisted by Charles Esteve
Music composition by Anna Cordonnier
Sound design by Clément Mancheron
Produced by La Méridienne,
It's spring in the highlands, and a bright sun starts to spring new life around a slowly-thawing stream. Beneath its cracked surface, lurking in the shadow of a flourishing bank, a young and intrepid salmon is born: Salmo.
One night, under the glow of an ominous moon, Salmo begins a mysterious transformation that will mark the start of a coming-of-age journey to the glacial confines of the Arctic.
If our marine ecosystems are gradually gaining media attention through often sensational documentaries, these crucial ecosystems are still not particularly well-known or present in our collective imagination. Because of our lack of awareness of what is hidden under the surface, the marine world struggles to get its voice heard by our politicians and receive the protection it deserves.
We believe we need to move away from the anthropocentric perception of the world in order to better understand the complexity of our planet, and reinvent new, more harmonious ways of interacting with it. As humans, we have always relied on storytelling to make sense of the world around us and relate to it; this is why it is vital for us to create new narratives, if we are to protect and preserve the world around us.
Salmo hopes to offer an imaginative experiment into the skin of a salmon and bring visibility to this resilient species by following their entire journey underwater. By shifting the perspective to foster empathy and reflect on our own presence in nature, we hope to bring about change, one story at a time.
Our aim is to complete Salmo by october 2022. We will premiere in London and Paris and pitch Salmo to animation and short movie festivals as well as festivals related to the salmon cause before approaching streaming platforms such as Arte TV, National Geographic, Waterbear and finally releasing it to the public and conservation NGOs to help them raise awareness amongst their audiences.
Thanks to salmon and migratory fish conservation NGOs such as Logrami, Migradour, Bretagne Grand Migrateur, Federation de la peche 64, L'association SOS Loire vivante, L'association AIDSA, L'association Saumon-Rhin, France Nature Environnement 43, Epidor and 43 individuals.
So far, we have managed to raise 21 665€ through our crowdfunding campaigns, which is 90% of our final target. If you want to help us, you can support the making with a donation to our French kickstarter 90% or English kickstarter 4%.
You can also contact us at bonjour@paulpajot.com if you are interested in a partnership or if you have recommendation of contacts which could help us with the making or distribution of Salmo and last but not least, you can keep in touch with our progress on instagram and facebook.
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