Paul Kircher
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Paul Kircher (; born 30 December 2001) is a French actor. The eldest son of actors
Irène Jacob Irène Marie Jacob (born 15 July 1966) is a French-Swiss actress known for her work with Polish film director Krzysztof Kieślowski. She won the 1991 Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress for the Kieślowski film '' The Double Life of V ...
and
Jérôme Kircher Jérôme Kircher (; born 21 November 1964) is a French actor known for ''A Very Long Engagement'' (2004), '' Louise Wimmer'' (2011) and ''Café de Flore'' (2011). Biography Born in Paris, Kircher is a stage actor and was a student of the Conser ...
, he is known for his starring roles in the drama film '' Winter Boy'' (2022) and the adventure film '' The Animal Kingdom'' (2023). Both roles earned him nominations for the
César Award for Most Promising Actor 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 * Cesar ...
. For starring in the coming-of-age drama film ''And Their Children After Them'' (2024), he won the
Marcello Mastroianni Award The Marcello Mastroianni Award (Italian: ''Premio Marcello Mastroianni'') is one of the awards given out at the Venice International Film Festival. It was established in 1998 in honor of the Italian actor Marcello Mastroianni, who died at the e ...
for Best Young Actor.


Early life

Paul Kircher was born in
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
on 30 December 2001. He is the eldest son of actors
Irène Jacob Irène Marie Jacob (born 15 July 1966) is a French-Swiss actress known for her work with Polish film director Krzysztof Kieślowski. She won the 1991 Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress for the Kieślowski film '' The Double Life of V ...
and
Jérôme Kircher Jérôme Kircher (; born 21 November 1964) is a French actor known for ''A Very Long Engagement'' (2004), '' Louise Wimmer'' (2011) and ''Café de Flore'' (2011). Biography Born in Paris, Kircher is a stage actor and was a student of the Conser ...
. His grandfather was the physicist Maurice Jacob (1933–2007). He grew up in Paris with his brother
Samuel Samuel is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the biblical judges to the United Kingdom of Israel under Saul, and again in the monarchy's transition from Saul to David. He is venera ...
, who is three years his junior and is also an actor. They both attended school in the
18th arrondissement The 18th arrondissement of Paris (''XVIIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements, or administrative districts, of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as ''dix-huitième''. The arrondiss ...
. Irène Jacob and Jérôme Kircher both often acted together and took their sons on tours. Originally, Kircher did not want to follow in his parents' footsteps by stepping into the acting business, an industry which initially "scared him a bit". Parallel to attending high school, he took lessons at a music school in Paris and sang in various rock bands. After graduating from high school, he began studying
geography Geography (from Ancient Greek ; combining 'Earth' and 'write', literally 'Earth writing') is the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. Geography is an all-encompassing discipline that seeks an understanding o ...
and
economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...
at
Paris Diderot University Paris Diderot University, also known as Paris 7 (), was a French university located in Paris, France. It was one of the inheritors of the historic University of Paris, which was split into 13 universities in 1970. Paris Diderot merged with Pari ...
. At the same time, he completed theater internships with Jordan Beswick, who is a professor at the
Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute The Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute (originally the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute) is an acting school founded in 1969 by the actor, director, and acting teacher Lee Strasberg. The Institute is located in Union Square on East 15th Str ...
in
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
and at the Manufacture des Abbesses in Paris.


Career

Kircher made his feature film debut in 2020 in the teen comedy ''How to Make Out'' (''T'as pécho?'') directed by Adeline Picault. In the film, he took on the lead role of 15-year-old Arthur, whose love for Ouassima (portrayed by Inès d'Assomption) is unrequited. He then gathers a group of unsuccessful male classmates to give them tips on flirting with girls. Kircher had found out about the casting from a friend and spontaneously auditioned. The part led Kircher to another major role, in the 2021 romantic comedy film ''A Little Lesson in Love'' (''Petite leçon d'amour''), which starred
Laetitia Dosch Laetitia Dosch (; born 1 September 1980) is a French-Swiss actress. Her film credits include '' Age of Panic'', '' Keeper'', '' Summertime'', '' Montparnasse Bienvenue'', and '' Our Struggles''. In 2024, she made make her directorial debut with ' ...
and
Pierre Deladonchamps Pierre Deladonchamps (born 1 June 1978) is a French actor. He is known for starring in the thriller film ''Stranger by the Lake'' (2013), for which he won the César Award for Most Promising Actor. He went on to receive a nomination for the Césa ...
as lovers.Kircher''
In: ''allocine.fr'' (accessed 16 April 2023)
Kircher's breakthrough as a film actor was the award-winning title role in
Christophe Honoré Christophe Honoré (; born 10 April 1970) is a French writer and film and theatre director. Career Honoré was born in Carhaix, Finistère. After moving to Paris in 1995, he wrote articles in . He started writing soon after. His 1996 book ''Tout ...
's semi-autobiographical drama '' Winter Boy'' (''Le Lycéen'') Kircher portrays Lucas Ronis, a 17-year-old gay teenager coping with the sudden and unexpected death of his father in an accident that may or may not have been suicide. To help her spiraling son, Isabelle ( Juliet Binoche) sends Lucas to Paris for a week with his older brother Quentin (
Vincent Lacoste Vincent Lacoste (born 3 July 1993) is a French actor. Most know for his works with auteur filmmakers, such as '' Eden'' (2014), '' In Bed with Victoria'' (2016), '' Sorry Angel'' (2018), ''Amanda'' (2018) and '' Lost Illusions'' (2021). For the ...
). Honoré had chosen Kircher from hundreds of actors and would later praise him for his "overwhelming sensitivity". In preparation, he gave the actor, among other things, the novel ''
The Beautiful Room Is Empty ''The Beautiful Room Is Empty'' is a 1988 semi-autobiographical novel by Edmund White. It is the second of a trilogy of novels, being preceded by '' A Boy's Own Story'' (1982) and followed by '' The Farewell Symphony'' (1997). It depicts th ...
'' by
Edmund White Edmund Valentine White III (January 13, 1940 – June 3, 2025) was an American novelist, memoirist, playwright, biographer, and essayist. A pioneering figure in LGBTQ and especially gay literature after the Stonewall riots, he wrote with ra ...
to read.''Ciné Kircher''. ''Tribune de Genève'', 29 November 2022, p. 23. For his portrayal of Lucas, Kircher won the
Silver Shell for Best Leading Performance The Silver Shell for Best Leading Performance (Spanish: ''Concha de Plata a la mejor interpretación protagonista''; Basque: ''Interpretazio nagusi onenaren Zilarrezko maskorra'') is one of the main awards presented at the San Sebastián Internati ...
at the
70th San Sebastián International Film Festival The 70th San Sebastián International Film Festival took place from 16 to 24 September 2022 in San Sebastián, Gipuzkoa, Spain. The awards were announced on 24 September 2022, with '' The Kings of the World'' winning the Golden Shell. Backgroun ...
and received nominations for the
César Award for Most Promising Actor 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 * Cesar ...
and the
Lumière Award for Best Male Revelation The Lumière Award for Best Male Revelation () is an award presented annually by the Académie des Lumières since 2000. It was presented as the Lumière du meilleur espoir masculin from 2000 to 2013. In English, the award was variously referred ...
. Following the success of ''Winter Boy'', Kircher was originally slated to play the male lead in
Catherine Breillat Catherine Breillat (; born 13 July 1948) is a French filmmaker, novelist and professor of auteur cinema at the European Graduate School. Life and career Breillat was born in Bressuire, Deux-Sèvres, but grew up in Niort. She decided to becom ...
's erotic drama '' Last Summer'' (''L'Été dernier''). However, the shooting was delayed, after which the actor was considered too old for the part intended for him. He then recommended his brother Samuel, who was not active in cinema, to the director, who ultimately awarded him the role. Kircher was instead cast in a main role alongside
Romain Duris Romain Duris (; born 28 May 1974) is a French actor. He is best known for his role in Cédric Klapisch's ''Spanish Apartment'' trilogy, which consists of '' L'Auberge Espagnole'' (2002), '' Russian Dolls'' (2005), and '' Chinese Puzzle'' (2013) ...
and
Adèle Exarchopoulos Adèle Exarchopoulos (; born 22 November 1993) is a French actress. She had her career breakthrough starring as Adèle in the romance '' Blue Is the Warmest Colour'' (2013). At the 2013 Cannes Film Festival, she became the youngest person in the ...
in
Thomas Cailley Thomas Cailley (; born 29 April 1980) is a French screenwriter and film director. In 2014, he made his feature directorial debut with '' Love at First Fight'', which won three César Awards including Best First Film. In 2023 he made his second m ...
's science fiction adventure film '' The Animal Kingdom'' (''Le Règne animal''), which screened as the opening film of the
Un Certain Regard (; 'A Certain Glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob. The section presents 20 films with unusua ...
section at the
76th Cannes Film Festival The 76th annual Cannes Film Festival took place from 16 to 27 May 2023. Swedish filmmaker Ruben Östlund served as jury president. With the French film ''Anatomy of a Fall'' winning the Palme d'Or, the festival's top prize, Justine Triet became ...
. Kircher next played the lead role in Ludovic and Zoran Boukherma's ''And Their Children After Them'' (''Leurs enfants après eux''), an adaptation of Nicolas Mathieu's novel of the same name. The film premiered at the
81st Venice International Film Festival The 81st annual Venice Film Festival, Venice International Film Festival was held from 28 August to 7 September 2024, at Venice Lido in Italy. French actress Isabelle Huppert served as Jury President for the main competition. Italian actress an ...
, with Kircher portraying Anthony, a 14-year-old boy navigating the socio-economic and racial tensions in the fictional town of Heillange during the 1990s. Guy Lodge from ''Variety'' noted Kircher's portrayal as 'cocky' and 'charismatic,' embodying the reckless bravado of a teenager grappling with the limitations of his small-town life. His performance earned him the
Marcello Mastroianni Award The Marcello Mastroianni Award (Italian: ''Premio Marcello Mastroianni'') is one of the awards given out at the Venice International Film Festival. It was established in 1998 in honor of the Italian actor Marcello Mastroianni, who died at the e ...
for Best Young Actor. He made his theater debut in January 2025, portraying French playwright
Bernard-Marie Koltès Bernard-Marie Koltès (; ; 9 April 1948 – 15 April 1989) was a French playwright and theatre director best known for his plays ''La Nuit juste avant les Forêts'' (''The Night Just Before the Forests'', 1976), ''Sallinger'' (1977) and ''Dans ...
in ''Les Idoles'', at the
Théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin The Théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin () is a venerable theatre and opera house at 18, Boulevard Saint-Martin in the 10th arrondissement of Paris. History It was first built very rapidly in 1781 under the direction of (1726–1810) to hou ...
. Kircher next starred in two films that screened at the
2025 Cannes Film Festival The 78th annual Cannes Film Festival took place from 13 to 24 May 2025. French actress Juliette Binoche served as jury president for the main competition. Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi won the Palme d'Or, the festival's top prize, for the drama ...
: Hubert Charuel's ''Meteors'' (''Météors)'' and
Cédric Klapisch Cédric Klapisch ( ; born 4 September 1961) is a French film director, screenwriter and producer. Life and career Klapisch was born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, Hauts-de-Seine. He is from a Jewish family; his maternal grandparents were deported to ...
's '' Colours of Time''. He will next star in Phuong Mai Nguyen's animated feature, ''In Waves'', based on the graphic novel of the same name by AJ Dungo.


Filmography


Film


Television


Theatre


Music videos


Awards and nominations


Notes


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kircher, Paul 2001 births Living people 21st-century French male actors Male actors from Paris French male film actors French male television actors Marcello Mastroianni Award winners