Frédéric Dieudonné is a French writer, a filmmaker and a producer, environmentalist, and co-creator, with

Jean-Christophe Jeauffre Jean-Christophe Jeauffre is a French filmmaker, screenwriter, and film producer, producer, and environmentalist. He is the co-creator, with Frédéric Dieudonné, of the Jules Verne Film Festival in 1992. Education and early career After grad ...

, of the Jules Verne Film Festival in 1992. DIEUDONNE JEAUFFRE

Education and early career

In 1986, Dieudonné graduated from high school 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 honours, 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 14. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for students between ...

of Paris, where he prepared for competitive entrance exams (

Classe préparatoire aux grandes écoles The ''Classes préparatoires aux grandes écoles'' (, ''Higher school preparatory classes'', abbr. CPGE), commonly called ''classes prépas'' or ''prépas'', are part of the French post-secondary education system. They consist of two years of s ...

) to L'

École Normale Supérieure École or Ecole may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by Secondary education in France, secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing i ...

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 the humanities (A/L) or social science (B/L). It is one of the three main types of (CPGE, informally ), contrasting ...

). After earning a master's degree in Modern Literature, with honours, from the Sorbonne University of Paris in 1991, he founded the nonprofit Jules Verne Adventures the same year, along with Jean-Christophe Jeauffre.

Jules Verne Festival

In 1992, Dieudonné and Jeauffre launched the annual Jules Verne Festival in Paris, inaugurated by

Jacques-Yves Cousteau Jacques-Yves Cousteau, (, also , ; 11 June 191025 June 1997) was a French naval officer, oceanographer, filmmaker and author. He co-invented the first successful open-circuit self-contained underwater breathing apparatus (SCUBA), called the A ...

. This event, later also based in Los Angeles, is dedicated to exploration, education and conservation. Then they developed a production unit to create new adventure and exploration programs for television. The Jules Verne Festival was held each year in April at the Grand Rex theatre of Paris, Europe's largest movie theatre, where it attracted more than 35,000 visitors and guests. In 2005 Dieudonné and Jean-Christophe Jeauffre founded the American version of the French nonprofit 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 Angeles 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 and philanthropist. He created the ''Star Wars'' and ''Indiana Jones'' franchises and founded Lucasfilm, LucasArts, Industrial Light & Magic and THX. He served as chairman ...

Harrison Ford Harrison Ford (born July 13, 1942) is an American actor. Regarded as a cinematic cultural icon, he has starred in Harrison Ford filmography, many notable films over seven decades, and is one of List of highest-grossing actors, the highest-gr ...

Jane Goodall Dame Jane Morris Goodall (; born Valerie Jane Morris-Goodall; 3 April 1934), formerly Baroness Jane van Lawick-Goodall, is an English zoologist, Primatology, primatologist and Anthropology, anthropologist. She is considered the world's foremo ...

, and

James Cameron James Francis Cameron (born August 16, 1954) is a Canadian filmmaker, who resides in New Zealand. He is a major figure in the post-New Hollywood era and often uses novel technologies with a Classical Hollywood cinema, classical filmmaking styl ...

, and attracted 6,300 attendees.

Filmmaking

From 1999 on, Dieudonné co-produced several films for TV via Jules Verne Adventures, including ''Devil's Islands'' and ''Red and White''. A five-month expedition on the Atlantic aboard the tall ship Belem led to his production of several documentaries: * ''Whales of Atlantis'' * ''Amazon Trek'' (2008 Best Feature Documentary Award
White Sands International Film Festival

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

) * ''100 Years Under the Sea''100 Years Under the Sea
/ref> * ''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 theJules Verne Adventures]TV documentar
Explorers: From the Titanic to the Moon
starring producer/director

and veteran

Apollo 11 Apollo 11 was a spaceflight conducted from July 16 to 24, 1969, by the United States and launched by NASA. It marked the first time that humans Moon landing, landed on the Moon. Commander Neil Armstrong and Lunar Module pilot Buzz Aldrin l ...

astronaut

Buzz Aldrin Buzz Aldrin ( ; born Edwin Eugene Aldrin Jr.; January 20, 1930) is an American former astronaut, engineer and fighter pilot. He made three extravehicular activity, spacewalks as pilot of the 1966 Gemini 12 mission, and was the Lunar Module Eag ...

. 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 career spanning more than sixty years, Lee became known as an actor with a deep and commanding voice who often portrayed villains in horr ...

and

Ernest Borgnine Ernest Borgnine ( ; born Ermes Effron Borgnino; January 24, 1917 – July 8, 2012) was an American actor whose career spanned over six decades. He was noted for his gruff but relaxed voice and gap-toothed Cheshire Cat grin. A popular perf ...

. The latest expedition he produced for the

Mars Institute The Mars Institute is an international non-governmental organization created with the goals of advancing the scientific study and exploration of Mars, conducting peer-reviewed research, and educating the public about Mars exploration. It was inco ...

and

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...

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.

Recognition

In 2014, Dieudonné was elected a Fellow of the

Explorers Club The Explorers Club is an American-based international multidisciplinary professional society with the goal of promoting scientific exploration and field study. The club was founded in New York City in 1904 and has served as a meeting point for ex ...

, based in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

References

External links

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