'Franois Lego' stars in Quebec City couple's stop-motion tribute to health-care workers

Like thousands of Quebecers, Evelyne ParandSimon Blanchethave beentrying to find ways to pass the time while in isolation due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Instead of doing puzzles or baking, the Quebec City couple decided to make a stop-motion video, with nearly 5,000 pieces of Lego a tributeto the province's health-careand other essential workers.

The result is afilm that runs just under two minutes,starring QuebecPublic Health Director Horacio Arruda, Health Minister Danielle McCann and Premier Franois Legault, a.k.a.Franois Lego.

"The pun didn't even come to us until later," said Blanchet. "It was perfect."

The couple has a sharedpassion for Lego, whichthey discovered soon after they met. It's taken them to Lego stores all around the world, on their travels.

Par, a hairdresser, and Blanchet, a restaurant manager, have both temporarily losttheir jobs because of the government shutdown of non-essential businesses.

While they had tried "basic and sketchy" video projects with Lego blocksin the past, they'd never done anything quite like this, said Blanchet.

With time on her hands, Par started working on a story line about elderly peopleand health-care workersin seniors' homes.

Glued to their television each day at 1 p.m. to hear the premier'supdate on the COVID-19 situation in Quebec, the duo decided the newsconference would serve "as the cement that ties the different scenes together," said Blanchet.

A voiceover using snippets of speeches by Legault carries the story, as he thanksQuebecers for staying home, and invites people to "call their grandmothers."

Precisely 4,979 lego pieces and 1,835 photos were used to recreate the scenes of a busy family at home, hospital rooms, research labsand restaurant kitchens.

"We wanted to reflect the work being done by researchersin hospitals," Blanchet said.

"We wanted to have fun, but we also wanted to sendout some positivity through all this," said Par.

Look for the sign-language interpreter

It took around 10 days to produce the entire film five to six days to take 1,835 photos of each character and another five days to edit, said Blanchet.

"We wanted people to have to watch it more than once to see all the details," he said. There is eventhe sign language interpreterat the bottom of the screen, relaying Legault's message to people with hearing impairments.

"We really didn't want to neglect any detail," said Par.

About half of their combined Lego collection was used in the making of the movie, said Par, who borrowed from Lego sets saved from her childhood to find figuresportraying the essential workers.

Capturingthis chapter ofthepandemic in a stop-motion filmwill allow them to remember itlong after the Lego blocks have been taken apart, Par said.

"It's going to be a souvenir for us that won't gather dust like the other Lego sets we have in the house!"