Harpya (1979)

" When "Harpya" is shown on screen, most of those who had known Servais are shocked. A salutary shock, as it delivers him the Palme d'Or in Cannes. No more nice poetic stories, no more transparent parables that clearly reveal a message: "Harpya" is a "punch in the face." Two characters run into each other: a Belle Epoque middle-class man, wearing mustache, straw hat and striped suit; and a chimera, a harpy that steals the bread from his mouth before eating him partly and turning him into a creature without legs. Servais invents an entirely personal technique and style, choosing for a personal version of the front-projection and 'scotch lite' techniques. The characters are shot with a 35mm camera, in color. In a space draped in black velvet, all is masked, except that which is intended to be exposed to film. The result is projected in color on the multiplane. With this new technique, he succeeds in creating an entirely personal new style, which at the same time applies photographic shots of the characters as well as of parts of the backgrounds and a jolting movement, which gives the ensemble an unreal impression. At the same time he realizes that he will not be able to continue using this technique, as it is slow and fastidious. He already has another technique in mind: shoot the characters and print them on cellophane sheets that are colored on the back side, marked and placed, and can be filmed on backgrounds - an entirely new process, registered as "Servaisgraphy." "