Fanny Ardant
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Fanny Ardant | |
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 Fanny Ardant at the 2004 César awards ceremony. | |
| Born | Fanny Marguerite Judith Ardant 22 March 1949 Saumur, Maine-et-Loire, France |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1974–present |
| Partner(s) | Dominique Leverd (1975) 1 daughter François Truffaut (1983) 1 daughter Fabio Conversi (1990) 1 daughter |
Fanny Marguerite Judith Ardant (born 22 March 1949) is a French actress. She has appeared in more than eighty motion pictures since 1976. Ardant won the César Award for Best Actress in 1997 for her performance in Pédale douce.
Early life
Ardant was born in Saumur Maine-et-Loire, France, to a military attaché father.[1] She grew up in Monaco until age 17 when she moved to Aix-en-Provence to study at the Institut d'études politiques d'Aix-en-Provence. In her early twenties her interest turned to acting and in 1974 she made her first appearance on stage.
Career
By the early 1980s she was a major motion picture star, gaining international recognition for her role opposite Gérard Depardieu in La Femme d'à côté (The Woman Next Door).[2] The film, directed by François Truffaut, brought Ardant her first César Award nomination for best actress in 1982 and in 1984 she was nominated again for Vivement dimanche!. Eventually she became Truffaut's companion, giving birth to their daughter, Joséphine Truffaut, on 28 September 1983. Initially, her youthful beauty brought popularity but over time her sophistication and acting skills have made her one of France's most admired actresses.[3] She proved her versatility, playing a comedic role in Pédale douce for which she won the 1997 César Award for Best Actress.
Fluent in English and Italian, Ardant has starred in several Hollywood and British films. Her most recent English-language film was the Franco Zeffirelli production Callas Forever, in which she portrayed opera diva Maria Callas. It opened the 14th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival on 9 January 2003. In 2003, Ardant received the Stanislavsky Award at the 25th Moscow International Film Festival (for the outstanding achievement in the career of acting and devotion to the principles of Stanislavsky's school).[4]
In 2009, she became a director and screenwriter, with Cendres et sang (Ashes and Blood). She also took part in a rare performance of Sardou's La Haine on 19 July 2009 at the Festival de Radio France et Montpellier Languedoc Roussillon, with Gérard Depardieu, the concert broadcast on France Musique.[5]
In 2010, she directed her first-ever short feature called Absent Chimeras (Chimères absentes in French) in which she also stars. She made this short film in order to raise public awareness to the plight of Romani people in Europe, a cause she personally defends.[6]
In 2011, she starred in the music video for Elle me dit, the first French single by Lebanese singer Mika, and appeared in the play based on Joan Didion's 2005 novel The Year of Magical Thinking in the Théâtre de l'Atelier, Paris.
In 2013, she made a cameo appearance as herself in The Great Beauty.[7]
Controversy
She once expressed admiration for Renato Curcio, ex leader of the militant Red Brigades (Brigate Rosse), saying that it was good of him to adhere to his principles. She later discovered that it would be difficult to attend a film festival in Venice, as her declaration had created much scandal in Italy.[8] The Governor of Veneto said that he would prefer that Ardant not visit his region. She then pleaded for forgiveness from victims of terrorism.[9][10]
Selected filmography
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | The Dogs | |
| 1980 | Les Uns et les Autres | Véronique |
| 1981 | The Woman Next Door | Mathilde Bauchard |
| 1982 | Life Is a Bed of Roses | Livia Ceraskier |
| Confidentially Yours | Barbara Becker | |
| 1983 | Un amour de Swann | Duchesse de Guermantes |
| Benvenuta | Benvenuta | |
| 1984 | L'Amour à mort | Judith Martignac |
| 1986 | Mélo | Christiane Levesque |
| 1987 | The Family | Adriana |
| 1988 | Love and Fear | Velia |
| 1989 | Australia | Jeanne Gauthier |
| 1992 | Afraid of the Dark | Miriam |
| 1994 | Colonel Chabert | Countess Ferraud |
| A Hundred and One Nights | the star who works at night | |
| 1995 | Beyond the Clouds | Patricia |
| Sabrina | Irene | |
| 1996 | Désiré | Odette |
| Pédale douce | Evelyne, called Eva | |
| Ridicule | Madame de Blayac | |
| 1998 | Elizabeth | Mary of Guise |
| Le Dîner | Flora | |
| 1999 | Augustin, King of Kung-Fu | as herself |
| Le fils du Français | Anne | |
| 2000 | Le Libertin | Madame Therbouche |
| 2001 | 8 Women | Pierrette |
| Callas Forever | Maria Callas | |
| Don't Tempt Me | Marina D'Angelo | |
| 2003 | Nathalie... | Catherine |
| 2006 | Paris, je t'aime | Fanny |
| 2007 | Roman de Gare | Judith Ralitzer |
| Il Divo | the wife of the French ambassador | |
| 2008 | Hello Goodbye | Gisèle |
| The Secrets | Anouk | |
| 2009 | Ashes and Blood | (Director) |
| Face | the producer/ Queen Hérodias | |
| 2011 | ||
| Interno Giorno | Maria Toricello | |
| 2013 | Bright Days Ahead | Caroline |
| The Great Beauty | cameo appearance as herself | |
| Cadences obstinées | (Director) | |
| 2015 | Chic! | Alicia Ricosi |
Awards
César Awards
| Year | Group | Award | Film | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | César Award | Best Actress | Pédale douce | Won |
| Year | Group | Award | Film | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | César Award | Best Actress | The Woman Next Door (La Femme d'à côté) | Nominated |
| 1984 | César Award | Best Actress | Confidentially Yours (Vivement dimanche !) | Nominated |
| 2002 | César Award | Best Actress | 8 Women (Huit Femmes) | Nominated |
Molière Awards
| Year | Group | Award | Film | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Molière Award | Best Actress | fr | Nominated |
| 1997 | Molière Award | Best Actress | Master Class | Nominated |
References
- ^ Fanny Ardant Biography (1949-) at Film Reference.com. Retrieved on 10 January 2009
- ^ Fanny Ardant at Hollywood.com
- ^ Fanny Ardant at AllMovie
- ^ "25th Moscow International Film Festival (2003)". MIFF. Retrieved 2013-04-01.
- ^ Presentation of concert on Festival de Radio France site.
- ^ Presentation of Absent Chimeras
- ^ Young, Deborah (21 May 2013). "The Great Beauty: Cannes Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 11 December 2013.
- ^ "Plainte en Italie contre Fanny Ardant pour éloge des brigadistes". Le Monde. 28 August 2007. Retrieved 29 August 2007.
- ^ "Marra tra finanzieri corrotti e palazzinari". Corriere della Sera. 6 September 2007.
- ^ Elogio a Curcio, la Ardant chiede scusa, Corriere della Sera, 25 August 2007
Bibliography
- Anarchisme et surréalisme, Mémoire de l'I.E.P. d'Aix-en-Provence, 1971.
External links
- Fanny Ardant at IMDb
- Fanny Ardant at AllMovie
- Fanny Ardant at AlloCiné (in French)
