The Adventures of Wee Rob Roy is an animated short which dates back to 1916. Aesthetically, it recalls the films of Emile Cohl (1857-1938), considered the creator of the first animated film. In 1908, filmmakers had already mastered shooting frame by frame, as illustrated by the animated films of Segundo de Chomón (1871-1929) or Georges Méliès (1861-1938). Cohl comes up with the idea of applying this technique to his drawings, which he films one by one, to create the illusion of movement when the completed film is projected. For Phantasmagoria, his first animated film, he uses negative images with white features over a black background. It is certainly the same technique employed several years later for The Adventures of Wee Rob Roy - no doubt with cut out paper, which is moved with each shot.

In Scotland, the name of the main character of this short immediately summons to mind a notorious historic and literary figure: Robert Roy MacGregor (1671-1734), better known as Rob Roy. This outlaw, sometimes called the Scottish Robin Hood, was renowned for his plundering in the Highlands. A popular hero of Celtic culture, he inspired writers and poets alike. Walter Scott (1771-1832) devoted a historical novel to him in 1817. His legend was to equally be brought to the screen: in 1953, British filmmaker Harold French (1897-1997) directed Rob Roy, the Highland Rogue, produced by Disney.

During his adventures, our "wee" Rob Roy encounters many other symbols of Scottish culture. He is dressed in a kilt, the traditional skirt worn by Scottish Highlanders, whose colours represent the clan to which they belong. He plays the bagpipes as he journeys across the hills of the Highlands. He also comes across golfers, who practise a sport that became an institution in Scotland in the 18th century. The thistle, emblem of Scotland, is likewise present in the image, as well as in the name of the pub!

The original music for this film was composed by Fabien Cali in 2011 in the context of the call for proposals launched in partnership with the Sacem (Société des auteurs compositeurs et éditeurs de musique – Society of authors, composers and music editors).