Frédéric Dieudonné (born September 21, 1969) is a French writer, a filmmaker and a producer, environmentalist and creator of th
Jules Verne International Film Festival

Education and early career

In 1986, Dieudonné graduated from highschool and earned his

Baccalauréat The ''baccalauréat'' (; ), often known in France colloquially as the ''bac'', is a French national academic qualification that students can obtain at the completion of their secondary education (at the end of the ''lycée'') by meeting certain ...

in Literature and Foreign Languages, with honors, at the age of 16. He then was admitted at the

Lycée Janson de Sailly In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 15. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for children between ...

of Paris where he prepared for competitive entrance exams (

Classe préparatoire aux grandes écoles The ''classes préparatoires aux grandes écoles'' (CPGE) (English: Higher School Preparatory Classes), commonly called ''classes prépas'' or ''prépas'', are part of the French post-secondary education system. They consist of two years of stud ...

) to L' École Normale Supérieure de la rue d'Ulm (Hypokhâgne and

Khâgne (), officially known as , is a two-year academic program in the French “” (≈undergraduate) system, with a specialization in literature and the humanities. It is one of the three main types of (CPGE, informally ), contrasting with other CPGE ...

). After earning a master's degree in Modern Literature, with honors, from the prestigious Sorbonne University of Paris in 1991, he founded the nonprofi
Jules Verne Adventures
the same year, along with

Jean-Christophe Jeauffre Jean-Christophe Jeauffre (born 26 April 1970) is a French filmmaker, screenwriter and a producer, environmentalist and creator of the Jules Verne International Film Festival. Education and early career After graduating in French literature and C ...

. Dedicated to exploration, environment, filmmaking and education, the organization is now based both in Paris and in Los Angeles. In 1992, Dieudonné and Jeauffre launched the annual Pari
Jules Verne Festival
inaugurated by Jacques-Yves Cousteau. This event, now also based in Los Angeles, is dedicated to exploration, education and conservation. Then they developed a production unit to create new adventure & exploration programs for television. Th
Jules Verne Festival
is held each year in April at the Grand Rex theatre of Paris, Europe's largest movie theatre, where it attracts more than 35,000 visitors and guests.

Career

* Filmmaking From 1999 on, Dieudonné co-produced several films for TV vi
Jules Verne Adventures
includin

an

A five-month expedition on the Atlantic aboard the tall ship Belem led to his production of the highly acclaimed and award-winning documentaries:

(2008 Best Feature Documentary Award
White Sands International Film Festival
New Mexico)
100 Years Under the Sea
* Five Months on the Sea – the Jules Verne Expedition. Two fully illustrated books were also published after the expedition ( and ). In 2006, Dieudonné wrote, directed and co-produced th
Jules Verne Adventures
TV documentar

starring producer/director

James Cameron James Francis Cameron (born August 16, 1954) is a Canadian filmmaker. A major figure in the post-New Hollywood era, he is considered one of the industry's most innovative filmmakers, regularly pushing the boundaries of cinematic capability w ...

and veteran Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin. All of the aforementioned films are now being distributed in the US on DVD and Blu-ray with narrations by Sir

Christopher Lee Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee (27 May 1922 – 7 June 2015) was an English actor and singer. In a long career spanning more than 60 years, Lee often portrayed villains, and appeared as Count Dracula in seven Hammer Horror films, ultimat ...

and Ernest Borgnine. The latest expedition he produced for the Mars Institute and NASA is the Northwest Passage Drive (2009–2010): the first motorized crossing of the Arctic Sea. As an executive producer and a consultant, Dieudonné is currently developing both a feature documentary called ''Passage to Mars'' and a Science Fiction feature film to be produced in Hollywood. In 2014, Dieudonné was elected a Fellow of the famed Explorers Club, based in New York City. * Festivals and special events In 2005 Dieudonné and Jean-Christophe Jeauffre founded the American version of the French nonprofi
Jules Verne Adventures
It is based in Downtown Los Angeles and maintains an IRS 501(c)3 status. The inaugural American launch of the Los Angele
Jules Verne Festival
(October 2006 at the Shrine Auditorium) has celebrated the work of

George Lucas George Walton Lucas Jr. (born May 14, 1944) is an American filmmaker. Lucas is best known for creating the ''Star Wars'' and ''Indiana Jones'' franchises and founding Lucasfilm, LucasArts, Industrial Light & Magic and THX. He served as chairm ...

Harrison Ford Harrison Ford (born July 13, 1942) is an American actor. His films have grossed more than $5.4billion in North America and more than $9.3billion worldwide, making him the seventh-highest-grossing actor in North America. He is the recipient o ...

, Dr. Jane Goodall and

and attracted 6,300 attendees. Th
Jules Verne Festival
traditionally includes an awards ceremony during which selected explorers, environmentalists, filmmakers and movie stars are presented with the

Jules Verne Award Created in 1992 by Jean-Christophe Jeauffre and Frédéric Dieudonné, the two founders of the Jules Verne Festival, the Jules Verne Awards are a set of awards given annually for excellence in exploration, environmental and cinematic achievements ...

. Among others, the

was given to

Gérard Depardieu Gérard Xavier Marcel Depardieu, CQ (, , ; born 27 December 1948) is a French actor, filmmaker, businessman and vineyard owner since 1989 who is one of the most prolific thespians in film history having completed over 250 films since 1967 alm ...

, Catherine Deneuve,

Jean-Pierre Jeunet Jean-Pierre Jeunet (; born 3 September 1953) is a French film director, producer and screenwriter. His films combine fantasy, realism and science fiction to create idealized realities or to give relevance to mundane situations. Debuting as a di ...

Charlotte Rampling Tessa Charlotte Rampling (born 5 February 1946) is an English actress, known for her work in European arthouse films in English, French, and Italian. An icon of the Swinging Sixties, she began her career as a model. She was cast in the role ...

, Claude Lelouch,

Johnny Depp John Christopher Depp II (born June 9, 1963) is an American actor and musician. He is the recipient of multiple accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award, in addition to nominations for three Academy Award ...

, Patrick Stewart,

Mark Hamill Mark Richard Hamill (; born September 25, 1951) is an American actor and writer. He is known for his role as Luke Skywalker in the ''Star Wars'' film series, beginning with the original 1977 film and subsequently winning three Saturn Awards f ...

, Buzz Aldrin, William Shatner, Tippi Hedren,

Stan Lee Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber ; December 28, 1922 – November 12, 2018) was an American comic book writer, editor, publisher, and producer. He rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Publications which ...

, Ray Bradbury, Ted Turner, Richard Dean Anderson,

Larry Hagman Larry Martin Hagman (September 21, 1931 – November 23, 2012) was an American film and television actor, director, and producer, best known for playing ruthless oil baron J. R. Ewing in the 1978–1991 primetime television soap opera, ''Dal ...

, Christopher Reeve, Roy E. Disney, Tony Curtis, Ernest Borgnine,

Steve McQueen Terrence Stephen McQueen (March 24, 1930November 7, 1980) was an American actor. His antihero persona, emphasized during the height of the counterculture of the 1960s, made him a top box-office draw for his films of the late 1950s, 1960s, and 1 ...

, TV series '' Heroes'', '' Lost'', ''

Stargate SG1 ''Stargate SG-1'' (often stylized in all caps, or abbreviated ''SG-1'') is a military science fiction adventure television series within Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's ''Stargate'' franchise. The show, created by Brad Wright and Jonathan Glassner, is ...

'' and ''

Battlestar Galactica ''Battlestar Galactica'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Glen A. Larson. The franchise began with the Battlestar Galactica (1978 TV series), original television series in 1978, and was followed by a short-run sequel se ...

'' cast and crew, and has celebrated movie classics such as '' Blade Runner'', ''

Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...

'', ''

Superman Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...

'', '' Forbidden Planet'', Alfred Hitchcock's '' The Birds'', '' 2001: A Space Odyssey'', '' Planet of the Apes'', ''

Some Like It Hot ''Some Like It Hot'' is a 1959 American crime comedy film directed, produced and co-written by Billy Wilder. It stars Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon, with George Raft, Pat O'Brien, Joe E. Brown, Joan Shawlee, Grace Lee Whitney and N ...

'' and '' The Wild Bunch''.

References

External links

* *
Jules Verne Adventures
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dieudonne, Frederic 1969 births Living people French film directors French male writers