Ingrid Bisu ( ro, Bișu; born 15 September 1987) is a Romanian actress, producer, and screenwriter, known for her appearance in the dramedy ''
Toni Erdmann
Toni, Toñi or Tóni is a unisex given name.
In Spanish, Italian, Croatian and Finnish, it is a masculine given name used as a short form of the names derived from Antonius like Antonio, Ante or Anttoni.
In Danish, English, Finnish, Nor ...
'' (2016), which was nominated at The
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films ...
for the
Palme d'Or
The Palme d'Or (; en, Golden Palm) is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festival's highest prize was the Grand Prix du Fe ...
and also for Best Foreign Film at the
Golden Globe Awards
The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of ...
and the
Academy Awards
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
in 2017. She is also known for co-writing the horror film ''
Malignant
Malignancy () is the tendency of a medical condition to become progressively worse.
Malignancy is most familiar as a characterization of cancer. A ''malignant'' tumor contrasts with a non-cancerous ''benign'' tumor in that a malignancy is not s ...
'' (2021).
Early life and family
Bisu was born on 15 September 1987 in
Bucharest
Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north ...
to Romanian-German parents. She grew up in the
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
community in Romania, attending the German
kindergarten
Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cent ...
, high school, and college in
Bucharest
Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north ...
.
In 2003 at the age of 16, Bisu had her first photoshoot in the teenage magazine "Cool Girl" and then landed her first commercial for
Orange S.A. Mobile, which was broadcast in Israel and Romania.
Career
Early career
Bisu made her debut in a Romanian TV series ''Casatorie de Proba'' (''Marriage of Probation'') Following this, she was featured in a number of Romanian magazines and television interviews. Bisu had a role in the movie ''
BloodRayne
''BloodRayne'' is a media franchise that originated with an action-adventure video game series originally developed by Terminal Reality and published by Majesco Entertainment which began with the game of the same name in 2002.
The franchise f ...
'' where she acted alongside
Ben Kingsley
Sir Ben Kingsley (born Krishna Pandit Bhanji; 31 December 1943) is an English actor. He has received various accolades throughout his career spanning five decades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Grammy Award, and tw ...
, and had other smaller roles in sitcoms such as ''La Bloc''(In The Building) and ''Arestat la domiciliu'' (House Arrested) with
Pro TV
PRO TV (, often stylized as PRO•TV as of 2017) is a Romanian free-to-air television network, launched on 1 December 1995 as the fourth private TV channel in the country (after TV SOTI, Antena 1, and the now-defunct Tele7ABC). It is owned by CME ...
.
In 2006, Bisu played the lead role of Alice in the drama television movie ''O Lume A Durerii'' (A World of Pain), which showed the struggles of teenage women in Romania at the time. Her performance gained the attention of director
Cristian Mungiu
Cristian Mungiu (; born 27 April 1968) is a Romanian filmmaker. He won the Palme d'Or at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival for his film ''4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days'', which he wrote and directed. He has also won the awards for Best Screenplay and ...
, winner of the
Palme d’Or at the
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films ...
in 2007 for his movie ''
4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days''. He cast Bisu as Viviana for his series ''
Tales from the Golden Age''. The series was nominated six times at the Cannes Film Festival. In 2007, Bisu enrolled in the Hyperion Academy of Dramatic Arts in
Bucharest
Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north ...
. During this time she appeared as Naomi in the drama series ''17, Poveste despre destin'' (2008) on
Prima TV, and as Bianca in the comedy series ''
Nimeni nu-i perfect'' (Nobody's Perfect),
Further success
After roles in the horror film ''
Slaughter'' and the Christmas comedy ''
Ho Ho Ho
Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring children gifts during the late evening and overnight ...
'', Bisu played the part of Mona/Amie 2 in the movie ''
What War May Bring'', directed by
Claude Lelouch
Claude Barruck Joseph Lelouch (; born 30 October 1937) is a French film director, writer, cinematographer, actor and producer. Lelouch grew up in an Algerian Jewish Family. He emerged as a prominent director in the 1960s. Lelouch gained critica ...
. She then appeared in the film ''
Portrait of the Fighter as a Young Man'', directed by Constantin Popescu, where she played the real-life figure Matilda Jubleanu.
In 2011, Bisu worked with
Cristian Mungiu
Cristian Mungiu (; born 27 April 1968) is a Romanian filmmaker. He won the Palme d'Or at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival for his film ''4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days'', which he wrote and directed. He has also won the awards for Best Screenplay and ...
in ''
Outbound''. The film earned 19 awards and nine nominations at international film festivals, including the
Locarno International Film Festival
The Locarno Film Festival is an annual film festival, held every August in Locarno, Switzerland. Founded in 1946, the festival screens films in various competitive and non-competitive sections, including feature-length narrative, documentary, ...
,
Viennale
The Vienna International Film Festival, or Viennale, is a film festival taking place every October since 1960 in Vienna, Austria.
The average number of visitors is about 75,000. Traditional cinema venues are ''Gartenbaukino'', ''Urania'', ''Metro ...
. The same year, she became one of the youngest television presenters, for her work as host and producer on the national morning show on
Kanal D
Kanal D, also known as Channel D, is a nationwide television channel in Turkey and part of Demirören Group. It was founded by Ayhan Şahenk and Aydın Doğan in 1993.
The network also runs an international channel, Euro D which is available ...
Romania. ''Cafeaua de dimineata'' (Morning Coffee), was a two-hour live morning news program. During every show, she would teach people how to do something themselves or show activities they could try.
In 2012, Bisu was featured in Romanian films such as ''
Sunt o babă comunistă'', directed by
Stere Gulea, and ''Roxanne'', directed by Vali Hotea. both films with multiple nominations. She played a supporting role as Minerva in the American horror movie ''
Dracula: The Dark Prince'' in 2013 starring
Jon Voight
Jonathan Vincent Voight (; born December 29, 1938) is an American actor. He came to prominence in the late 1960s with his Academy Award–nominated performance as Joe Buck, a would-be gigolo, in ''Midnight Cowboy'' (1969). During the 1970s, he ...
. The same year, she was featured in the science fiction film ''
The Zero Theorem'', directed by
Terry Gilliam
Terrence Vance Gilliam (; born 22 November 1940) is an American-born British filmmaker, comedian, animator, actor and former member of the Monty Python comedy troupe.
Gilliam has directed 13 feature films, including '' Time Bandits'' (1981), '' ...
, with
Matt Damon
Matthew Paige Damon (; born October 8, 1970) is an American actor, film producer, and screenwriter. Ranked among '' Forbes'' most bankable stars, the films in which he has appeared have collectively earned over $3.88 billion at the North Amer ...
and
Christoph Waltz
Christoph Waltz (; born 4 October 1956) is an Austrian-German actor. Since 2009 he has been primarily active in the United States. His accolades include two Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, two British Academy Film Awards and two Scre ...
. In 2014, she played Brittany White, the host of a five-hour live comedy web series, being broadcast in the United States, called ''The Super Yolo Sho''.
International crossover
In 2016, Bisu appeared in ''
Toni Erdmann
Toni, Toñi or Tóni is a unisex given name.
In Spanish, Italian, Croatian and Finnish, it is a masculine given name used as a short form of the names derived from Antonius like Antonio, Ante or Anttoni.
In Danish, English, Finnish, Nor ...
'' as Anca, the assistant of the lead character played by
Sandra Hüller. Directed by
Maren Ade, the film received over 56 nominations and 33 award wins, including Best Film and Best Screenplay, with Maren Ade named Best Director and actors Sandra Hüller and
Peter Simonischek Best Actress and Best Actor at the 2016
European Film Awards
The European Film Awards (or European Film Academy Awards) have been presented annually since 1988 by the European Film Academy to recognize excellence in European cinematic achievements. The awards are given in 19 categories, of which the mo ...
. It was also nominated for the
Palme d'Or
The Palme d'Or (; en, Golden Palm) is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festival's highest prize was the Grand Prix du Fe ...
at the
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films ...
where it won the
FIPRESCI award. It was nominated for Best Foreign Film at the
2017 Golden Globes and the
2016 Academy Awards.
Bisu's performance was singled out for praise by
A.O. Scott in his review for ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
''
Bisu then co-starred in the horror film ''
The Nun'', a spinoff of ''
The Conjuring 2
''The Conjuring 2'' (known in the United Kingdom as ''The Conjuring 2: The Enfield Case'') is a 2016 American supernatural horror film, directed by James Wan. The screenplay is by Chad Hayes, Carey W. Hayes, Wan, and David Leslie Johnson. It i ...
'', playing Sister Oana: she met future husband James Wan on set. The film was released in September 2018. In 2021 she co-wrote, executive produced and had a supporting role in ''
Malignant
Malignancy () is the tendency of a medical condition to become progressively worse.
Malignancy is most familiar as a characterization of cancer. A ''malignant'' tumor contrasts with a non-cancerous ''benign'' tumor in that a malignancy is not s ...
,'' her first joint creative and behind the scenes project with husband James Wan.
Filmography
Film
Television
Personal life
On June 22, 2019, Bisu became engaged to Australian director
James Wan
James Wan (born 26 February 1977) is an Australian director, producer, screenwriter and comic book writer. He has primarily worked in the horror genre as the co-creator of the '' Saw'' and ''Insidious'' franchises and the creator of The Conjurin ...
. They married in November 2019.
James Wan Officially Marries Actress Ingrid Bisu
''NextShark.'' November 4, 2019.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bisu, Ingrid
1987 births
Living people
Actresses from Bucharest
Romanian people of German descent
Romanian emigrants to the United States