Callicore is a Paris-based studio which specializes in CGI animated music videos. Created by Laurent Mercier in 2000, the studio has produced videos for artists such as John Lee Hooker, Jr., The Buzzcocks, Cake, Marky Ramone, Carbon/Silicon and Arrested Development. The studio was named a 2009 Webby Award honoree for its work on Hooker's video Blues Ain't Nothin' But a Pimp."Bluesman John Lee Hooker, Jr. Continues to Garner Nods for 'All Odds Against Me' CD", African American News, DogonVillage.com. Retrieved: 31 October 2013.

Xavier Semen joined Callicore as a producer and lead animator in 2006. While the studio works primarily in animation, it also engages in music publishing.Read More, Callico official website. Retrieved: 30 October 2013. Semen left the studio in 2014. He has been replaced by Marius Legrand, a CG artist who is now lead animator and a producer at Callicore Studio.

Anaelle Mercier joined Callicore as a producer and production assistant in 2015.

Cedric Bernard joined Callicore as lead animator, after that Marius Legrand left the studio in 2019.

History and style

Born in 1967, Laurent Mercier attended the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts, and spent several years as an independent multimedia artist, organizing collective exhibitions, and analyzing the condition and status of artists in society. He also worked with the publishing firm, Association for the Development of Multimedia Literature."The Story," Callicore official website. Retrieved: 30 October 2013.

Irritated by what he perceived as the "stranglehold" of major media companies on the music industry and other creative industries, Mercier launched Callicore as a "resistance act" against the "cultural dictatorship of the media" by these large-scale companies. Callicore controls all aspects of its projects, from pre-production to post-production, and retains a relatively independent and free nature.

One of the first collaborations between Mercier and Xavier Semens, who joined Callicore in 2006, was the animated video for Phantom Rider, a song from the 2007 album, Hymn for the Hellbound, by the British psychobilly group The Meteors. That same year, Callicore produced an animated video for Sound of a Gun, by the British punk band The Buzzcocks (the initial video was considered too violent for broadcast television, and a second, less violent version was released).

Callicore created the animated video for Blues Ain't Nothin' But a Pimp, a song from John Lee Hooker, Jr.'s Grammy Award-winning album, All Odds Against Me.Tamara Harris, "John Lee Hooker, Jr. Secures Grammy Nomination," Kickmag, 8 December 2008. Retrieved: 3 November 2013. The video portrays Hooker as a comic book character, "Bluesman", who plays in clubs at night and cleans up the streets during the day."About John Lee Hooker, Jr. , Blues Underground Network. Retrieved: 3 November 2013. The video was a Webby Award honoree in the Special FX/Motion Graphics category in 2009.13th Annual Webby Awards Gallery , 2009. Retrieved: 3 November 2013. An image from the video was featured on the album's cover."John Lee Hooker, Jr. Biography ", John Lee Hooker, Jr., official website. Retrieved: 3 November 2013.

In 2008, Callicore produced its first video for Carbon/Silicon, a band founded by Mick Jones, the former guitarist for The Clash, and bass player Tony James. In 2010, the studio produced the video for hip-hop group Arrested Development's Bloody, as well as for When We Were Angels by Marky Ramone's Blitzkrieg, a project of former Ramones drummer, Marky Ramone.

In 2011, Callicore created the video for Cake's Long Time, a track from the band's comeback album, Showroom of Compassion."Cake's 'Long Time' Tells the Story of a Man and his Monkey ," Rolling Stone, 1 April 2011. Retrieved: 3 November 2013. In an interview with Cake singer John McCrea, Mercier said the gloomy mood of the video, which follows the plight of a man and his monkey imprisoned in a dystopian world, was inspired directly by Cake's music, which reminds him of "melancholy things."Laurent Mercier and John McCrea, interview, MTV, 2011. McCrea was impressed by the video's general movement and choreography, which he suggested are often lacking in music videos, and appreciated how Mercier perceived the non-humorous side of Cake's music.

Callicore produced and directed videos for artists such as Brian Setzer, Lee Rocker, Eagle-Eye Cherry and Dr. Feelgood, from 2011 to 2013. The studio has continued its collaboration with John Lee Hooker, Jr., with several videos featuring the "Bluesman" character created for Blues Ain't Nothin' But a Pimp.

Music videography

Year Title Artist2007Sound of a GunThe Buzzcocks2007Phantom RiderThe Meteors2008I'm a Dead Cat2008The NewsCarbon/Silicon2008Mick Jones and Tony James on G-Rock RadioCarbon/Silicon2008Blues Ain't Nothin' But a PimpJohn Lee Hooker, Jr.2009Stressed OutJohn Lee Hooker, Jr.2009People Want a ChangeJohn Lee Hooker, Jr.2009VixenPete & Charlie2009What's Up Doc?Carbon/Silicon2010VenusWe Are the Fury2010Extramarital AffairJohn Lee Hooker, Jr.2010It's a ShameJohn Lee Hooker, Jr.2010BloodyArrested Development2010When We Were AngelsMarky Ramone's Blitzkrieg2010Never Stop the Hate TrainThe Meteors2011Long TimeCake2011Go-Go GodzillaBrian Setzer2012Dear JohnJohn Lee Hooker, Jr.2012He Wants ItClinic Rodeo2012Rockabilly BoogieLee Rocker2013Go Simmer DownEagle-Eye Cherry2013Who Do You Love?Dr. Feelgood2014Wild ChildLee Rocker2014Gooooooo!2015The Story of Reverend John Lee Hooker JrJohn Lee Hooker Jr2015LotteryMarky Ramone2016I Want My BeerMarky Ramone2016La Vie en RoseIggy Pop2016The CatfishPopa Chubby2017That's Alright Mama/Blue MoonLee Rocker2017Don't Blame MeMarky Ramone2018Illustrated ManJohnny Winter2018Chaos Is My LifeThe Exploited2018P*rn* Sl*tThe Exploited2019Cold Hearted MamaPaul Nelson

Video Game

Year Title Artist2019Marky Ramone The GameMarky Ramone

References

External links Callicore (Official website)