'' The Artist'' is a 2011 French romantic comedy- drama film directed and written by

Michel Hazanavicius Michel Hazanavicius ( lt, Hazanavičius; born 29 March 1967) is a French film director, screenwriter, editor, and producer. He is best known for his 2011 film, '' The Artist'', which won the Academy Award for Best Picture at the 84th Academy Aw ...

. The film is set in Hollywood between 1927 and 1932 and focuses on a declining film star (played by

Jean Dujardin Jean Edmond Dujardin (; born 19 June 1972) is a French actor and comedian. He began his career as a stand-up comedian in Paris before guest starring in comedic television programmes and films. He first came to prominence with the cult TV series ...

) and a rising actress (played by Berenice Bejo), as

silent cinema A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, whe ...

falls out of fashion and is replaced by the talkies. The film premiered at the 64th Cannes Film Festival on 15 May 2011, where Dujardin won the

Best Actor Award Best Actor is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actors in a film, television series, television film or play. The term most often refers to the ...

. It was released in France on 12 October 2011. Following successful screenings at the Telluride Film Festival, the Toronto International Film Festival, and the New York Film Festival, ''The Artist'' was released on 23 November 2011 in the United States. The film earned a worldwide box office total of more than $133 million. Rotten Tomatoes, a review aggregator, surveyed 320 reviews and judged 95% to be positive. ''The Artist'' became the most honoured French film in history. The film garnered several awards and nominations with particular praise for the direction, the acting of its cast, the screenplay, the score, the cinematography, the editing, and the costumes. The film garnered ten nominations at the 84th Academy Awards, and went on to win five awards, including Best Picture,

Best Director Best Director is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards. It may refer to: Film awards * AACTA Award for Best Direction * Academy Award for Best Director * BA ...

(Hazanavicius), and

Best Actor Best Actor is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actors in a film, television series, television film or play. The term most often refers to th ...

(Dujardin). It is the first silent feature to win Best Picture after '' Wings'' at the inaugural ceremony in 1929 and the first black and white film to win the award since 1993's '' Schindler's List''. Dujardin became the first French actor to win an Oscar. The film was named Best Feature at the

27th Independent Spirit Awards The 27th Independent Spirit Awards, honoring the best independent films of 2011, were presented on February 25, 2012. The nominations were announced on November 29, 2011. The ceremony was hosted by Seth Rogen. Winners and nominees Films w ...

. It received twelve nominations at the 65th British Academy Film Awards, winning seven awards, including Best Film,

, and

. At the

37th César Awards The 37th César Awards ceremony, presented by the French Academy of Cinema Arts and Techniques (Académie des Arts et Techniques du Cinéma), was held on 24 February 2012, at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris. The awards honoured the best films ...

ceremony, the film earned six awards, including Best Film and Best Actress (Bejo). ''The Artist'' received six nominations at the 69th Golden Globe Awards, winning three, including Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy and Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy (Dujardin). At the

18th Screen Actors Guild Awards The 18th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards, honoring the best achievements in film and television performances for the year 2011, were presented on January 29, 2012 at the Shrine Exposition Center in Los Angeles, California for the sixteenth co ...

, Dujardin won the award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role. The film won the Best Theatrical Motion Picture at the

23rd Producers Guild of America Awards The 23rd Producers Guild of America Awards (also known as 2012 Producers Guild Awards), honoring the best film and television producers of 2011, were held at The Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California on January 21, 2012. The document ...

; Hazanavicius won

at the

64th Directors Guild of America Awards The 64th Directors Guild of America Awards, honoring the outstanding directorial achievements in films, documentary and television in 2011, were presented on January 28, 2012 at the Hollywood and Highland Center. The ceremony was hosted by Kelse ...

. The

17th Critics' Choice Awards The 17th Critics' Choice Awards were presented on January 12, 2012 at the Hollywood Palladium, honoring the finest achievements of 2011 filmmaking. The ceremony was broadcast on VH1, and hosted by Rob Huebel and Paul Scheer. The nominees were a ...

, 77th New York Film Critics Circle Awards, and the 32nd London Film Critics' Circle Awards named the film Best Picture.

Accolades

See also

Footnotes

References

External links