Claude Sautet (23 February 1924 – 22 July 2000) was a French film director and screenwriter. He was a chronicler of post-war French society. He made a total of five films with his favorite actress

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 ...

Biography

Born in

Montrouge Montrouge () is a Communes of France, commune in the southern Parisian suburbs, located from the centre of Paris. It is one of the most densely populated municipalities in Europe. After a long period of decline, the population has increased agai ...

, Hauts-de-Seine, France, Sautet first studied painting and sculpture before attending a film university in Paris where he began his career and later became a television producer. His first movie, '' Hello Smile!'' (originally ''Bonjour Sourire'') was released in 1956. He earned international attention with '' The Things of Life'' (''Les choses de la vie'', 1970), which he wrote and directed, like the rest of his later films. Featuring

Michel Piccoli Jacques Daniel Michel Piccoli (27 December 1925 – 12 May 2020) was a French actor, producer and film director with a career spanning 70 years. He was lauded as one of the greatest French character actors of his generation who played a wide vari ...

in the male lead, it was shown in competition at the 1970 Cannes Festival. The film also revived the career of

; she acted in several of Sautet's later films. In his next film ''Max and the Junkmen'' ('' Max et les Ferrailleurs'', 1971) Schneider played a prostitute, while in '' César and Rosalie'' (''César et Rosalie'', 1972) she portrayed a married woman who copes with the reappearance of an old flame. '' Vincent, François, Paul and the Others'' (''Vincent, Paul, François, et les Autres'', 1974) is one of Sautet's most acclaimed films. Four middle-class men meet in the country every weekend mainly to discuss their lives. As well as Piccoli, it featured

Yves Montand Ivo Livi (; 13 October 1921 – 9 November 1991), better known as Yves Montand (), was an Italian-born French actor and singer. He is said to be one of France's greatest 20th-century artists. Early life Montand was born Ivo Livi in Stignano, a ...

Gérard Depardieu Gérard Xavier Marcel Depardieu (, , ; born 27 December 1948) is a French actor. An icon of French cinema, considered a world star in the same way as Alain Delon or Brigitte Bardot, he has completed over 250 films since 1967, most of which as ...

, and Stéphane Audran.

Peter Bradshaw Peter Nicholas Bradshaw (born 19 June 1962) is a British writer and film critic. He has been chief film critic at ''The Guardian'' since 1999, and is a contributing editor at ''Esquire'' magazine. Early life and education Bradshaw was educat ...

of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' in a 2020 tribute article to Michel Piccoli thought it was "arguably the best" of the "five very well-regarded movies" on which the actor and director collaborated. Sautet achieved even further critical success with '' Mado'' (1976). His film '' A Simple Story'' (''Une Histoire simple'', 1978) was nominated for an

Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2020) is one of the Academy Awards handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to a ...

. The film featured Schneider again, this time as a dissatisfied working woman in her 40s. She won 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 1980s, he made only two films '' Waiter!'' (''Garçon!'', 1983), a drama starring Yves Montand as a middle-aged waiter, and the comedy '' A Few Days with Me'' (''Quelques Jours Avec Moi'', 1988). Claude Sautet won the Silver Lion at the

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...

and the César Award for Best Director for '' A Heart in Winter'' (''Un cœur en hiver'', 1992) and received the César once more for '' Nelly and Mr. Arnaud'' (''Nelly et Monsieur Arnaud'', 1995). Both films starred Emmanuelle Béart. Apart from his own directing, he also wrote screenplays for other directors. Claude Sautet died of

liver cancer Liver cancer, also known as hepatic cancer, primary hepatic cancer, or primary hepatic malignancy, is cancer that starts in the liver. Liver cancer can be primary in which the cancer starts in the liver, or it can be liver metastasis, or secondar ...

in Paris in July 22, 2000 and was buried there in the

Montparnasse Cemetery Montparnasse Cemetery () is a cemetery in the Montparnasse quarter of Paris, in the city's 14th arrondissement of Paris, 14th arrondissement. The cemetery is roughly 47 acres and is the second largest cemetery in Paris. The cemetery has over 35,00 ...

. In 2001, from May 5th to July 14th, Canal Plus aired eleven of its feature films in their final versions, following the work done with Béatrice Valbin.

Filmography

Director *' (1955) *' (1960) *' (1965) *' (1970) *' (1971) *' (1972) *' (1974) *'' Mado'' (1976) *' (1978) *' (1980) *' (1983) *' (1988) *' (1992) *' (1995) Writer *' (1959), directed by Georges Franju (also first assistant director) *' (1963), directed by

Jacques Deray Jacques Deray (born Jacques Desrayaud, 19 February 1929 – 9 August 2003) was a French film director and screenwriter. Deray is prominently known for directing many crime films, crime and thriller films. Biography Born Jacques Desrayaud in Lyon, ...

*'' Peau de banane'' (1963), directed by Marcel Ophüls * '' That Tender Age'' (1964), directed by

Gilles Grangier Gilles Grangier (5 May 1911 – 27 April 1996) was a French film director and screenwriter. He directed more than 50 films and several TV series between 1943 and 1985. His film ''Archimède le clochard'' was entered into the 9th Berlin Inter ...

*'' Échappement libre'' (1964), directed by Jean Becker *' (1965), directed by

Jean-Paul Rappeneau Jean-Paul Rappeneau (; born 8 April 1932) is a French film director and screenwriter. Career He started out in film as an assistant and screenwriter collaborating with Louis Malle on ''Zazie dans le métro'' in 1960 and ''Vie privée'' in 1961. ...

*' (1967), directed by Alain Cavalier *' (1970), directed by

*' (1971), directed by

*' (1988), directed by José Giovanni Other *''

Patrick Dewaere Patrick Dewaere (26 January 1947 – 16 July 1982) was a French film actor. Born in Saint-Brieuc, Côtes-d'Armor, he was the son of French actress Mado Maurin. An actor from a young age, his career lasted more than 21 years until his suicide in ...

'' (1992), documentary of Marc Esposito

References

External links

*
Senses of Cinema: Great Directors Critical Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sautet, Claude 1924 births 2000 deaths People from Montrouge French film directors Burials at Montparnasse Cemetery Deaths from liver cancer in France Best Director César Award winners Institut des hautes études cinématographiques alumni