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- Adam Bessa was born in 1991 in Grasse, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. He is an actor, known for Harka (2022), Mosul (2019) and Extraction (2020).
- Director
- Writer
- Actor
Emmanuel Mouret was born on 30 June 1970 in Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. He is a director and writer, known for The Things We Say, the Things We Do (2020), Lady J (2018) and The Art of Love (2011).- Actress
- Soundtrack
Of Italian and French ancestry, famed operatic soprano Lily Pons was born Alice Josephine Pons near Cannes, France in 1898. She studied the piano as a child and entered the Paris Conservatoire at age 13. At the onset of World War I in 1914, which interrupted her education, Lili moved to Cannes with her mother and younger sister where she played piano and sang for French troops at special events.
In 1925, Lili's singing skills began to eclipse her piano talents. Encouraged by soprano Dyna Beumer, she also met and later married August Mesritz, a successful publisher, who agreed to fund her singing career. Studying in Paris, she took up intently with opera singer and entrepreneur Alberto de Gorostiaga and French soprano Alice Zeppilli.
Ms. Pons made her professional debut in the difficult title role of "Lakme" in 1928. She continued to sing at Paris opera houses, building up her repertoire with roles as Gilda in "Rigoletto," Violetta in "La Traviata," Olympia in "The Tales of Hoffmann," and Rosina in "The Barber of Seville" would be included in her repertoire. She debuted at the Met in 1931 and was instantly revered for her critically-lauded performance as "Lucia de Lammermoor." She exuded beauty, charm, range and glamour, making her one of the most popular prima donnas of her time. Specializing in French and Italian coloratura parts, she later became a durable figure at the Met, remaining with the company for nearly three decades. She was the first soprano who could reach the high "F", composer Delibes wrote in his opera "Lakme." "The Bell Song" from the aforementioned opera, became her signature piece. Though she possessed a rather small voice, it is rightly stated that Pons could hold a high "D" for nearly a minute.
Lily's international success eventually crossed over into Hollywood movies where plush operettas were all the rage. Pons would star in three vehicle films, the least number compared to her warbling rivals at the time, Jeanette MacDonald, Gladys Swarthout and Grace Moore. After filming her trio of romantic musical comedies -- I Dream Too Much (1935) opposite Henry Fonda; That Girl from Paris (1936) co-starring Jack Oakie and MacDonald's husband Gene Raymond; and Hitting a New High (1937) with Oakie again and John Howard -- she quietly retired from the screen. Lily would be seen once more, in a special guest cameo, with the dramatic musical Carnegie Hall (1947) in which she sang the "The Bell Song" from her signature opera "Lakme." Other classical vocalist cameos included Ezio Pinza, Jan Peerce and Risë Stevens.
In 1938, Lily married Russian-American conductor Andre Kostelanetz and a beautiful collaboration began. For over three decades, they would appear together in concert. During this time, she became one of the highest paid performers in history and recorded for RCA Records. Although the couple divorced in 1958, they continued a professional relationship, appearing together from time to time.
Unlike film, radio was a different matter and Lily remained an enduring favorite. In addition, she entertained troops once again, this time during WWII, touring battlefields in North Africa and Asia. In the 1950's, she made several singing/speaking appearances on TV variety shows, including "The Bob Hope Show," "The Ed Sullivan Show," "The Colgate Comedy Show," "The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show," "All-Star Revue," "The Eddie Fisher Show" and "Kraft Music Hall." She would also be featured on "Person to Person" with Edward R. Murrow and honored on "This Is Your Life."
Lily took her final opera curtain hall as Lucia di Lammermoor opposite young, rising Plácido Domingo's Edgardo in 1962. She continued sporadically in concert until 1972, and died of pancreatic cancer four years later on February 13, 1976, at age 77. She was buried in a family grave in Cannes.- Djibril Cissé is a French footballer who played as a striker.
He started his career at AC Arles in 1989, at the age of eight. After seven years at the club, he had a six-month spell at Nîmes Olympique, before moving to AJ Auxerre, joining the club's youth system. Cissé spent two years in the system, before graduating to the first team in 1998. After playing for Auxerre for six seasons, scoring 90 goals in 166 appearances, he moved to Premier League club Liverpool F.C. in 2004.
During his time at Anfield, Cissé played 79 games, scoring 24 times and winning the 2004-05 UEFA Champions League and 2005-06 FA Cup. He went on to play in Greece with Panathinaikos F.C., Italy with S.S. Lazio, Qatar with Al-Gharafa and Russia with Kuban Krasnodar. He had further spells in English football with Sunderland A.F.C. and Queens Park Rangers F.C., and France with Olympique de Marseille and SC Bastia. In 2015, Cissé made one appearance for Réunion based club JS Saint-Pierroise, before retiring from professional football.
In the course of his career, Cissé suffered from two leg breaks, breaking his left leg in 2004, and his right leg in 2006.
Cissé represented the France National Football Team at the 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan (2002) and 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa (2010) and was part of les Bleus' 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup winning squad. - Actress
Magali Amadei was born on 30 November 1974 in Nice, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. She is an actress, known for Taxi (2004), The Wedding Planner (2001) and House of D (2004).- Julien Ciamaca was born on 4 May 1978 in Arles, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur, France. He is an actor, known for My Mother's Castle (1990), My Father's Glory (1990) and Sacrée soirée (1987).
- Actress
- Producer
French actress Renée Saint-Cyr became synonymous with chic comedy and costumed drama, enjoying major success for nearly seven decades before her death after an attack of bronchitis at age 99. Over the years she equipped herself well opposite the established talents of Raymond Rouleau, Jules Berry, Raimu, Noël-Noël, Harry Baur, Pierre Brasseur and Paul Meurisse.
Born Marie Louise Eugénie Vittore on November 16, 1904, and the daughter of a hotel owner and opera singer, Renée was a one-time model who married Charles Leopold Lautner (1894-1938), a wealthy man, at age 21 before entering the acting leagues. After studies at a drama school in Marseilles, she made her film bow starring as one of The Two Orphans (1933) co-starring Rosine Deréan, based on the Gish sisters' silent classic Orphans of the Storm (1921). She took on Lillian's role and would adopt the moniker of Saint-Cyr, supposedly taken from a beloved canine.
Saint-Cyr's alluring beauty, patrician demeanor, and comedic skills gave her great momentum co-starring in such chic 1930's film comedies as Toto (1933), D'amour et d'eau fraîche (1933), Une fois dans la vie (1934) (Once in a Lifetime), Le dernier milliardaire (1934), Paris (1937), L'école des cocottes (1935), Donogoo (1936), Paris (1937) and The Pearls of the Crown (1937), as well as the dramas 27 rue de la Paix (1936) and Marked Girls (1938).
Renée also graced the stage during this time in a production of "The Threepenny Opera," among others. She nixed an offer to sign with 20th Century-Fox, but did star in England's Strange Boarders (1938) and Italy's Red Roses (1940) (Red Roses) co-starring Vittorio De Sica. Into the 1940s war years, she starred in such popular film vehicles as the Hector Berlioz biopic La symphonie fantastique (1942) (The Fantastic Symphony), the title dramatic roles in Marie-Martine (1943) and Paméla (1945), plus Pierre et Jean (1943), Étrange destin (1946) and L'insaisissable Frédéric (1946).
Saint-Cyr left films after shooting The Knight of the Night (1953), Il cavaliere di Maison Rouge (1954) (The Glorious Avenger) (as Marie Antoinette) and Si Paris nous était conté (1956) (as Empress Eugénie}, but returned into the next decade with Coctail party (1960) and Lafayette (1962). By this time, her only child, Georges Lautner, had become an influential film writer and director and had begun churning out a series of standard genre movies that occasionally featured Renee in the cast. Such films included The Monocle (1964), Fleur d'oseille (1967), Quelques messieurs trop tranquilles (1973), Now We've Seen It All! (1976), Ils sont fous ces sorciers (1978), My Other Husband (1983), Room Service (1992).- Maria Mauban was born on 10 May 1924 in Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. She was an actress, known for Journey to Italy (1954), The Gendarme and the Extra-Terrestrials (1979) and Le concierge (1973). She was married to Jean Versini and Claude Dauphin. She died on 26 August 2014 in Ouzouer-des-Champs, Loiret, France.
- Director
- Writer
- Actor
Léo Joannon was born on 21 August 1904 in Aix-en-Provence, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. He was a director and writer, known for Le défroqué (1954), Le camion blanc (1943) and S.O.S. Mediterranean (1938). He was married to Foun-Sen. He died on 28 March 1969 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, Hauts-de-Seine, France.- Anne Bruzac was born in 1955 in St. Tropez, Var, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. She is an actress, known for Only Fools and Horses (1981), Metal Mickey (1980) and Bless Me, Father (1978).
- Composer
- Producer
- Music Department
Charles-Henri Avelange is mostly known for his symphonic music scores. He started making music with his first electric keyboard when he was 9 years old. Even though he is now able to compose for a hundred-piece orchestra, he never had formal training in music composition and only trusts his ears. When the time came for university studies, he decided to focus on sound engineering so that he could master all the technical aspects of musical composition and recording. He graduated from the Superior Institute of Sound Technics (ISTS, Institut Supérieur des Techniques du Son) in France in 2004.
When he was only 22, Charles-Henri was already being compared to composers like Hans Zimmer. Gilles Tinayre, the President of the French Film Composers' Association, called him the "French Hans Zimmer" and strongly recommended he go to the United States where he could find far better professional opportunities than in France. His career as a film composer started just after his arrival at the United States in March, 2005. His first contact with the American people inspired such great feelings in him that he created a symphony for a CD called "The Age of Heroes" - 11 themes resounding like those of a big action motion picture, in a symphonic Hollywood movie style, as a tribute to all kinds of American heroes.
Charles-Henri is one of the few independent artists distributed at a national level by Barnes & Noble corporation. After he became a BMI registered artist and a member of the Seattle Composers Alliance, his CD became an official fund raiser for the Washington State Council of Fire Fighters (W.S.C.F.F). He has been personally recognized and complimented by the President of the International Association of Fire Fighters (I.A.F.F), Harold Shaitberger, as well as Washington State Governor, Christine Gregoire.
Numerous corporations have benefited from Charles-Henri's music, including Microsoft Corp., the Lion's Foundation. and Kostov Productions. Charles-Henri recently had the opportunity to score a documentary set during World War II, titled "Roystone at War" and produced by Exposure TV in England. Charles-Henri appeared on the well-known French TV show, "Nice Morning", where he talked about his incredible adventure in the United States, and how his CD "The Age of Heroes" was linked to the American fire fighters.
Charles-Henri now applies the skills which have taken him to success with his music upon the broader and deeper oceans of producing.- Raymone was born on 11 August 1896 in Gardanne, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. She was an actress, known for This Man Must Die (1969), Le théâtre de la jeunesse (1960) and Café de Paris (1938). She was married to Blaise Cendrars. She died on 15 March 1986 in Geneva, Canton de Genève, Switzerland.
- Director
- Writer
- Producer
Caroline Fourest was born on 19 September 1975 in Aix-en-Provence, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. She is a director and writer, known for Wild Soul, Sisters in Arms (2019) and 100 Muslim Women Speak for Themselves (2007).- Actor
- Editor
- Director
Michael Marco is a French-American filmmaker. He was born Michaël Joseph Raymond Marco, in Toulon, France. The son of Lyna Pont, a French Navy employee and François Marco, a talented carpenter. His parents are both from Spanish decent.
Marco got bit by the acting bug at an early age while performing in a summer camp play.
He grew up watching American and French classics such as The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966), The Great Escape (1963), Le Samouraï (1967), The Night Caller (1975), The Towering Inferno (1974), Death Wish (1974), Dirty Harry (1971), Buffet Froid (1979), and the list goes on and on...
In the '80s, Marco was lucky to have found a video group in the little town he grew up in, who took a few kids under their wing and gave them proper training in production and post-production. They let the teenagers borrow the equipment and taught them how to work a U-matic editing bench. They started writing and shooting short films.
Marco ended the last year of junior high by acting in the short play "Edouard et Agrippine" de René de Obaldia, a story written with three characters and one location. It was just enough for the acting bug to permanently sink its teeth into him.
When Marco moved to Dallas, Texas in 1993, it was inevitable that he would get into the film and TV business.
Today Marco lives in Texas with his wife Jennifer. He is an award-winning writer and filmmaker, a seasoned editor and a passionate actor... who now produces as well.- Actor
- Casting Director
- Producer
Born in Marseille (France) in 1973, Vincent Matile is a French-Swiss actor known under the name of Laohu in China. After a consultant career in Europe, he moved to China in 2011, learned Mandarin and began to perform in various Chinese film and television productions. Since then, he has appeared in more than 80 films and series across the Middle Kingdom. From that time on, he continues to develop his craft in French, English and Chinese. Vincent is also a founding member of the association "Professionnels Francophones du Cinéma" (ASSOPFC), an association that represents the french spearking working in the cinema industry world wide.- Actor
- Writer
- Director
Cyprien Iov, aka MonsieursDream is a French actor, screenwriter, director and humorist. He started his debut on DailyMotion in 2007 by making podcasts, and then two years later, on YouTube. Within a few years, he gained a strong fan base. As of March 2017, he has more than 10 million subscribers on the platform. He made several short films, including "La Cartouche" (2016) which has more than 15 million views, and "Technophobe" (2015), with over 22 million views.- "Hugo Lloris is Tottenham Hotspur's goalkeeper and captain. Born in Nice, France on 26th December 1986, the goalkeeper began his senior playing career with hometown club Nice in 2005, where he made 72 appearances before departing for French champions, Olympique Lyonnais. There he clocked up 146 league appearances, twice winning the Ligue 1 Goalkeeper of the Year award.
After joining Tottenham Hotspur in August 2012, he made his debut and kept a clean sheet in a goalless draw against Lazio in the Europa League before making his Premier League bow against Aston Villa that October.
He enjoyed an outstanding 2013/14 campaign and was by then, regarded internationally as one of the best goalkeepers in the world. He was named vice-captain at the start of the 2014/15 season and went on to captain the team for most of that Premier League campaign, including the 2015 League Cup Final at Wembley.
Assuming the captaincy on a permanent basis in 2015/16, he missed the first game of that season at Manchester United after picking up a wrist injury over the summer, but was back in time for the second game at home to Stoke and in total he made 46 appearances throughout the campaign.
His 2016/17 season, his fifth at Spurs, got off to a frustrating start as a hamstring injury forced him off in the first half of the opening-day draw at Everton, but he returned to make 34 league starts and keep 15 clean sheets - only missing out on a share of the Premier League's 'Golden Gloves' award by one shutout.
He started 36 of Spurs' 38 Premier League games in 2017/18, playing a further seven times in the UEFA Champions League, Tottenham Hotspur enjoyed some terrific results and performances against Borussia Dortmund and eventual winners Real Madrid. He also surpassed the 200 game mark in the Premier League and made his 250th appearance for Spurs during the closing weeks of that campaign.
He began the 2018/19 season - his seventh at the Club - as a World Cup winner with his country, becoming the first Spurs player ever to win the famous trophy when he lifted it on behalf of 'Les Bleus' in Russia that summer, and ended it as a Champions League finalist, playing 11 times during the run to the showpiece fixture in Madrid." - Actor
- Additional Crew
René Génin was born on 25 January 1890 in Aix-en-Provence, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. He was an actor, known for Eyes Without a Face (1960), Port of Shadows (1938) and Les disparus de St. Agil (1938). He died on 24 October 1967 in Paris, France.- Camera and Electrical Department
Philippe Leroy was born on 6 August 1977 in Draguignan, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. He is known for Traitor (2008), A Good Year (2006) and Kangaroo Jack (2003).- Alain Emery was born on 5 August 1940 in Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. He was an actor, known for White Mane (1953), Glamador (1958) and Les indiens (1964). He died on 22 May 2024 in Arles, Bouches-du-Rhône, France.
- Actress
- Sound Department
- Additional Crew
Hélène Tossy was born on 3 November 1906 in Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. She was an actress, known for Fantastic Planet (1973), The Immature Grain (1954) and La caméra explore le temps (1957). She died on 26 July 1979 in Paris, Ile-de-France, France.- Jean Alesi was one of the handful of racing drivers whose talent and commitment set him apart from the others. Unfortunately, one bad professional move (early in his career) kept him from achieving numerous wins and possibly multiple world driving championships. He started out racing in the 80s and immediately achieved success winning the French Formula 3 championship. He then won the Formula 3000 title, the final step towards the prestigious Formula 1 World Championship. Alesi first raced for Tyrrell and scored championship points in his first race (1989 French Grand Prix). The next year he put the racing world on its ear when he qualified on the front row at the opening race of the year (Phoenix GP) and battled the legendary Ayrton Senna for the lead. He ultimately finished 2nd and immediately predictions of wins and world titles came and he even signed a contract with then power Williams. Unfortunately, he let his heart rule his head and he left the contract to race for Ferrari, which at the time was struggling to re-establish itself as a racing power. He raced for four fruitless seasons before he finally won what would turn out to be his only F1 victory in Canada. He then raced for Sauber, Benetton and Prost (formerly Ligier) in inferior equipment. Although he does have a win, his was the career that could have been and had he raced for Williams, he could have been elevated into the pantheon of Senna, Prost, Clark, Stewart and other F1 untouchables.
- Milly Mathis was born on 8 September 1901 in Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. She was an actress, known for The Well-Digger's Daughter (1940), Whirlwind of Paris (1939) and Les gangsters de l'expo (1938). She died on 30 March 1965 in Salon-de-Provence, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France.
- Andrée Clément (b. 1918) lived like a shooting star. Her dark, mysterious cold beauty was unique; her face epitomized either sweet innocence and/or malign evil. An exceptionally talented actress, her career was cut short when she died of tuberculosis at the early age of 36. A student of Charles Dullin, she made her debut on stage in 1941 : she was to play in Molière's « Don Juan » and in Anouilh's « Adèle Ou la Marguerite » (1948). After minor roles, notably in Bresson's « Les Anges du Péché » and in Daquin's « Premier de Cordée », she got her breakout part in Decoin's « La Fille du Diable » (1945) in which she outshone such seasoned actors as Pierre Fresnay and Fernand Ledoux. Serge Reggiani was extremely impressed by his co-star's performance in « Coïncidences » (1946). In both movies, she was ideally cast as the outcast, the ill-fated girl who had a chip on her shoulder. Prestigious Michèle Morgan once said that « la Symphonie Pastorale » was Clément 's film, not hers. Other movies include « Dieu a besoin des Hommes », « Suivez cet Homme » and « Macadam ». Her death was certainly a major loss for the French cinema, particularly the film Noir.
- Producer
- Actress
Adriana Randall was born in 1986 in Nice, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France. She is a producer and actress, known for Triple 9 (2016), Wish I Was Here (2014) and The Call Up (2016).