Cécile de France (; born 17 July 1975) is a Belgian actress. After achieving success in French cinema hits such as ''

L'Art (délicat) de la séduction ''L'Art (délicat) de la séduction'' (The (Delicate) Art of Seduction) is a 2001 French film directed by Richard Berry. The soundtrack for the film was composed by Éric Serra. Plot The film follows Etienne ( Patrick Timsit), a 40-year-old c ...

'' (2001) and ''Irène'' (2002), she gained international attention for her lead roles in ''

High Tension ''High Tension'' (French: ''Haute Tension'', ; released in the United Kingdom as ''Switchblade Romance'') is a 2003 French slasher film directed by Alexandre Aja, co-written with Grégory Levasseur, and starring Cécile de France and Maïwenn, ...

'' (2003) and ''

Hereafter The afterlife (also referred to as life after death) is a purported existence in which the essential part of an individual's identity or their stream of consciousness continues to live after the death of their physical body. The surviving ess ...

'' (2010).

Life and career

Born in

Namur Namur (; ; nl, Namen ; wa, Nameur) is a city and municipality in Wallonia, Belgium. It is both the capital of the province of Namur and of Wallonia, hosting the Parliament of Wallonia, the Government of Wallonia and its administration. Namu ...

, she left Belgium at the age of 17 to go to Paris where she studied theatre for two years with actor Jean Paul Denizon, assistant to British director

Peter Brook Peter Stephen Paul Brook (21 March 1925 – 2 July 2022) was an English theatre and film director. He worked first in England, from 1945 at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, from 1947 at the Royal Opera House, and from 1962 for the Royal Shak ...

. She then spent three years (1995–98) at the acting academy ENSATT (''École Nationale Supérieure des Arts et Techniques du Théâtre'') in the ''Département Comédie'' first at the ''Rue Blanche'' in Paris, then in

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...

. She was discovered by the agent

Dominique Besnehard Dominique Besnehard (; born 5 February 1954) is a French actor, film producer, casting director, writer and talent manager. He has appeared in more than 80 films and television shows since 1975. He starred in the 1983 film '' À nos amours'', wh ...

and appeared in French hit films such as ''L'Art (délicat) de la séduction'' (2001) and ''Irène'' (2002). Her international breakthrough came with the

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoca ...

'' (2003, UK title: ''Switchblade Romance'', US title: ''High Tension''). She caught the eye of

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

producers and soon landed her first major role in a US feature, ''

Around the World in 80 Days ''Around the World in Eighty Days'' (french: link=no, Le tour du monde en quatre-vingts jours) is an adventure novel by the French writer Jules Verne, first published in French in 1872. In the story, Phileas Fogg of London and his newly employe ...

'' (2004), in which she starred alongside

Jackie Chan Fang Shilong (born 7 April 1954), known professionally in English as Jackie Chan and in Chinese as Cheng Long ( zh, c=成龍, j=Sing4 Lung4; "becoming the dragon"), is a Hong Kong actor, filmmaker, martial artist, and stuntman known for ...

and

Steve Coogan Stephen John Coogan (; born 14 October 1965) is an English actor, comedian, producer and screenwriter. He is most known for creating original characters such as Alan Partridge, a socially inept and politically incorrect media personality, which ...

. She won two

César Award Cesar, César or Cèsar may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''César'' (film), a 1936 film directed by Marcel Pagnol * ''César'' (play), a play by Marcel Pagnolt * César Award, a French film award Places * Cesar, Portugal * C ...

s for Most Promising Actress in ''

L'Auberge espagnole ''L'Auberge Espagnole'' (; literally: "the Spanish inn"), also known as ''Pot Luck'' (UK) and ''The Spanish Apartment'' (Australia), is a 2002 French-Spanish film directed and written by Cédric Klapisch. It is a co-production of Mate Production ...

'' (2002), and Best Supporting Actress in '' Les Poupées russes'' (2005). In 2014, she hosted the

39th César Awards The 39th Annual César Awards ceremony, presented by the French Academy of Cinema Arts and Techniques (Académie des Arts et Techniques du Cinéma), was held on 28 February 2014, at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris. ''Me, Myself and Mum'' rec ...

ceremony. She was selected to be on the jury for the

Cinéfondation La ''Cinéfondation'' is a foundation under the aegis of the Cannes Film Festival, created to inspire and support the next generation of international filmmakers. It was created in 1998 by Gilles Jacob. Since then it has developed complementary ...

and short films sections of the

2015 Cannes Film Festival The 68th Cannes Film Festival was held from 13 to 24 May 2015. Joel and Ethan Coen were the Presidents of the Jury for the main competition. It was the first time that two people chaired the jury. Since the Coen brothers each received a separate ...

. She was also selected to be on the jury for the main competition section of the

68th Berlin International Film Festival The 68th annual Berlin International Film Festival took place from 15 to 25 February 2018. German filmmaker Tom Tykwer served as Jury President. American film director Wes Anderson's animated film ''Isle of Dogs'' opened the festival, becoming f ...

. She has two children, Lino and Joy, with musician Guillaume Siron. In 2019, she was cast in Wes Anderson's film ''

The French Dispatch ''The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun'', or simply ''The French Dispatch'', is a 2021 American anthology comedy drama film written, directed, and produced by Wes Anderson from a story he conceived with Roman Coppola, Hugo Gui ...

''.

Filmography

Film

Short film

Television

Theatre

*1996 : ''Dormez je le veux'' by

Georges Feydeau Georges-Léon-Jules-Marie Feydeau (; 8 December 1862 – 5 June 1921) was a French playwright of the era known as the Belle Époque. He is remembered for his farces, written between 1886 and 1914. Feydeau was born in Paris to middle-class parent ...

, directed by Benoît Blampain *1996 : ''Une palette rouge sang'' by Valeria Moretti, directed by Jean Paul Denizon *1996 : ''Le songe d'une nuit d'été'' by

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

, directed by Pierre Pradinas *1997 : ''Variations Strindberg-Feydeau'', directed by Nada Strancar *1998 : ''Pour nous'', directed by Serguei Issayev *1998 : ''Tu serais un ange tombé du ciel exprès pour nous'' by N. Sadour and A. Vampilov *1999, 2000 : ''Electre'', by Sophocle, directed by Claudia Stavisky *1999 : ''Le baladin du monde occidental de

John Millington Synge Edmund John Millington Synge (; 16 April 1871 – 24 March 1909) was an Irish playwright, poet, writer, collector of folklore, and a key figure in the Irish Literary Revival. His best known play ''The Playboy of the Western World'' was poorly r ...

'', directed by Philippe Delaigue *2001 : ''Mademoiselle Julie'' by

August Strindberg Johan August Strindberg (, ; 22 January 184914 May 1912) was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist and painter.Lane (1998), 1040. A prolific writer who often drew directly on his personal experience, Strindberg wrote more than sixty p ...

, directed by Gwenaël Morin *2001 : ''SC35C'', by Jean-Michel Frère

Awards and nominations

References

External links

*
Official web site
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:France, Cecile De 1975 births Living people People from Andenne Best Supporting Actress César Award winners Belgian film actresses 20th-century Belgian actresses 21st-century Belgian actresses Most Promising Actress Lumières Award winners Most Promising Actress César Award winners