Bérénice Bejo (; born 7 July 1976) is a
French-Argentine actress best known for playing Christiana in ''
A Knight's Tale'' (2001) and Peppy Miller in ''
The Artist'' (2011). Her work in the latter earned her a nomination for the
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
The Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It has been awarded since the 9th Academy Awards to an actress who has delivered an outstanding performanc ...
and won her the
César Award for Best Actress Cesar or César may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''César'' (film), a 1936 French romantic drama
* ''César'' (play), a play by Marcel Pagnolt
Places
* Cesar, Portugal
* Cesar Department, Colombia
* Cesar River, in Colombia
* Cesa ...
. For her performance in ''
The Past'', she won
Best Actress at the Cannes Film Festival in 2013 and was nominated for a César.
Personal life
Bejo was born in
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...
, Argentina, and is the daughter of Argentine filmmaker Miguel Bejo and his wife Silvia, a lawyer. When she was three, her family moved to France, escaping from
Argentina's most recent civil-military dictatorship (1976–1983). Her father enrolled her at the school of Les Enfants Terribles theater.
In 2006, she starred in ''
OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies'', where she met director
Michel Hazanavicius
Michel Hazanavicius ( ; born 29 March 1967) is a French film director, screenwriter, editor, and producer. He is best known for his 2011 film, ''The Artist (film), The Artist'', which won the Academy Award for Best Picture at the 84th Academy Aw ...
, whom she later married. They have two children: Lucien and Gloria.
Career
In 2001, Bejo made her American film debut, playing the role of Christiana in ''
A Knight's Tale'' opposite
Heath Ledger
Heath Andrew Ledger (4 April 1979 – 22 January 2008) was an Australian actor. After playing roles in several Australian television and film productions during the 1990s, he moved to the United States in 1998 to further develop his film care ...
. Christiana is a
lady-in-waiting
A lady-in-waiting (alternatively written lady in waiting) or court lady is a female personal assistant at a Royal court, court, attending on a royal woman or a high-ranking nobility, noblewoman. Historically, in Europe, a lady-in-waiting was o ...
to Jocelyn (
Shannyn Sossamon
Shannon Marie Kahololani "Shannyn" Sossamon (born October 3, 1978) is an American actress. She has appeared in the films ''A Knight's Tale (film), A Knight's Tale'' (2001), ''40 Days and 40 Nights'' (2002), ''The Rules of Attraction (film), The R ...
).
In 2002, she toured in France with
Marie-France Pisier
Marie-France Pisier (10 May 194424 April 2011) was a French actress, screenwriter, and director. She appeared in numerous films of the French New Wave, and twice earned the national César Award for César Award for Best Supporting Actress, Best ...
and
Guillaume Depardieu.
In 2003, Bejo starred as Olivia in ''
24 Hours in the Life of a Woman'' by Laurent Bouhnik.
Under the direction of Steve Suissa, she seduces Stephane Freiss and Titoff in ''The Grand Role'' (2004), a comedy about the world of actors, and ''Cavalcade'' (2005), a drama dealing with the theme of disability.
In 2006, she appeared alongside
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 ...
in ''OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies'' by Michel Hazanavicius. This was the first collaboration of the trio.
In 2007, she made an appearance in the short film ''La Pomme d'Adam''.
In 2008, she appeared in two romantic comedies: ''Modern Love Bouquet'' and ''Stéphane Kazandjian''. The same year she gave birth to her first child by Hazanavicius.
In 2009, she participated in the documentary by , ''
Henri-Georges Clouzot's Inferno''. The documentary reconstructs
Clouzot's film, alternating between scenes from the 1964 film and dialogue readings between
Jacques Gamblin (for
Serge Reggiani) and Béjo (for
Romy Schneider
Rosemarie Magdalena Albach (23 September 1938 – 29 May 1982), known professionally as Romy Schneider (), was a German and French actress. She is regarded as one of the greatest screen actresses of all time and became a cult figure due to ...
).
In the 2011 film, ''
The Artist'', which is directed by Hazanavicius and stars Dujardin, Bejo plays Peppy Miller, a 1920s film actress. Her performance received critical acclaim, the
César Award for Best Actress Cesar or César may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''César'' (film), a 1936 French romantic drama
* ''César'' (play), a play by Marcel Pagnolt
Places
* Cesar, Portugal
* Cesar Department, Colombia
* Cesar River, in Colombia
* Cesa ...
, and several award nominations: the
, the
award,
BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role
Best Actress in a Leading Role is a British Academy Film Awards, British Academy Film Award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding leading performan ...
and the
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
The Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It has been awarded since the 9th Academy Awards to an actress who has delivered an outstanding performanc ...
.
In 2012, she was announced as the host of the opening and closing ceremonies at the
2012 Cannes Film Festival
The 65th Cannes Film Festival took place from 16 to 27 May 2012. Italian filmmaker Nanni Moretti was the president of the jury for the main competition. French actress Bérénice Bejo hosted the opening and closing ceremonies. Austrian filmma ...
.
She dubbed the role of Mérida in the French dub of the Disney/Pixar film ''
Brave''. In June 2012, Bejo was invited to join the
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS, often pronounced ; also known as simply the Academy or the Motion Picture Academy) is a professional honorary organization in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., with the stated goal of adva ...
.
The same month, she received the
Prix Romy Schneider.
Filmography
Theatre
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bejo, Berenice
1976 births
21st-century French actresses
Argentine emigrants to France
Best Actress César Award winners
Best Actress Lumières Award winners
Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress winners
French film actresses
French silent film actresses
Living people
Actresses from Buenos Aires
20th-century French actresses