The Adventures of Tintin

The Adventures of Tintin is a Canadian/French animated TV show co-produced, written and animated in France by Ellipse Programmé and in Canada by Nelvana Limited, based on The Adventures of Tintin by Belgian comic artist Georges Prosper Remi, more commonly known by his pen name Hergé (French pronunciation: ​[ɛʁʒe]). 39 half-hour episodes were produced over the course of its three seasons. It aired from 1991 to 1992.The television series was directed by French director Stephen Bernasconi, with Peter Hudecki as the Canadian unit director. Hudecki was the primary director, but could not be credited as such due to co-production restrictions. It was produced by Ellipse (France) and Nelvana (Canada) on behalf of the Hergé Foundation. It was the first television adaptation of Hergé’s books since the Belgian animation company Belvision was responsible for Hergé’s Adventures of Tintin twenty years earlier. Philippe Goddin, an expert on Hergé and Tintin, acted as a consultant to the producers. The series’ writers included: Toby Mullally, Eric Rondeaux, Martin Brossolet, Amelie Aubert, Dennise Fordham, and Alex Boon. The Adventures of Tintin Season 1-3 Download

The series used traditional animation techniques and adhered closely to the original books, going so far as to transpose some frames from the original books directly to screen. In the episodes “Destination Moon” and “Explorers on the Moon”, 3D animation was used for the moon rocket—an unusual step in 1989. Each frame of the animation was then printed and recopied onto celluloid, hand painted in gouache, and then laid onto a painted background. The rocket seen in the title sequence is animated using the same 3D techniques.

Artistically, the series chose a constant style, unlike in the books. In the books, the images had been drawn over the course of 47 years, during which Hergé’s style developed considerably. However, later televised episodes, such as the “Moon” story and “Tintin in America”, clearly demonstrated the artists’ development during the course of the production of the television series. The series’ original production language was English, but all visuals (road signs, posters, and settings) remained in French.