Initially a director of documentaries on scientific or wildlife expeditions, he gained national fame with his show J'irai dormir chez vous, where he travels alone around the world, filming his encounters. After his first foray into cinema with J'irai dormir à Hollywood (2008), about his American journey, he ventured into fiction with J'irai mourir dans les Carpates (2020).
Biography
Early life and family
Antoine de Maximy comes from a noble family from the Dauphiné, ennobled by "letters of relief" dated December 1654[1].
Born into a somewhat bohemian family with both parents being painters, his father Jean de Maximy (1931-2014) and his mother Elisabeth (known as Lisette) Combe (royal family) born in 1933, were soixante-huitards living in Lyon and later in Paris. Antoine de Maximy is the eldest of four children[2]. His sister Odile is a sculptor, as is her husband, Jean-Pierre Blanc.
He then worked for CBS News as a sound engineer until 1986. He returned to Beirut during the Lebanon War and also covered the Iran-Iraq War with cameraman Patrick Denaud. It was during this time that he discovered his passion for adventure, war reporting, and traveling to unknown places.[5]
In parallel with his professional activities, he sought to work on projects that captivated him. In 1983, he was hired by a team from the European Guild of Raid to direct the film of their expedition in the Andes Mountains in Peru and the Amazon, for two episodes of the documentary series Carnets de l'aventure on Antenne 2[6]. After this experience, he aimed to move towards scientific and wildlife journalism, combining adventure, encounters, and culture.
He then directed two reports for the program Thalassa. The first, broadcast in 1987, was La route des cocotiers. It depicted the lives of men and women who chose to leave everything behind to sail around the world. In Demain les nodules, broadcast a few years later, he showcased a scientific mission by the IFREMER in the Pacific Ocean, aboard the ship Nadir, equipped with the submarine Nautile[6]. Through these expeditions, he learned the skills of cameraman, editor, and director.
When he was not directing, he continued to work as a sound engineer and was part of the filming team for the documentary Le Peuple singe (1989) by Gérard Vienne[6].
In 1989, he directed his first 52-minute documentary on the scientific expedition Radeau des cimes. Throughout his career, he participated four times in this expedition[6].
In 1994, in collaboration with director Jean-Yves Collet and balloonist Dany Cleyet-Marrel, he helped invent the cinebulle, a motorized two-seater hot air balloon with a capacity of 1,400 or 1,500 m³, specially designed for aerial filming and later adopted by Nicolas Hulot[citation needed].
He subsequently worked on numerous scientific and wildlife films, including Le gaz mortel Du lac Nyos (1995)[7], Inlandsis, dans le secret des glaces (1997)[8], La Civilisation perdue du Rio La Venta (1998)[9], and Voyage d'automne, la migration des cigognes (1998)[10].
Multitasking in the audiovisual field, he aspired to step in front of the camera to become a presenter. It was television producer Jean-Louis Burgat who gave him this opportunity by entrusting him with the presentation of the documentary series Zone sauvage in 1998[11].
A specialist in foreign travel (international news, wildlife films, and scientific expeditions), Antoine de Maximy has directed or presented around thirty shows and documentaries, including Les nouveaux mondes, Emmenez-moi, and Au-delà des dunes[11].
Antoine de Maximy in 2023.
He achieved considerable popular success with the show J'irai dormir chez vous. Traveling alone and equipped with three cameras, he visits a different country in each episode, attempting to meet people along the way with the goal of being invited to sleep in their homes[6]. The show set audience records, reaching up to 1.2 million viewers[12]. Antoine de Maximy gained significant notoriety as a result.
He ventured into fiction with the film J'irai mourir dans les Carpates, in which he portrayed himself on a shoot for J'irai dormir chez vous that does not go as planned[14]. His feature film was released in theaters on September 16, 2020 and achieved nearly 100,000 admissions in France[15].
In July 2023, he performed at the Avignon Festival in a one-man show titled J'irai dormir sur scène[16]. In this show, he recounted his background and the adventures that inspired J'irai dormir chez vous. Starting on December 27, 2023, he performed at the Théâtre Grand Point Virgule for several dates.
From July 7 to 29, 2023, he performed at the Avignon Festival in a one-man show titled J'irai dormir sur scène at the Archipel Théâtre (and on some days at the Rouge Gorge theater)[16]. The journalist discussed the show that made him famous on France 5 (now broadcast on RMC Découverte), as well as his past adventures (documentaries on scientific expeditions, wildlife films, war reporting). "It's a mix of J'irai dormir chez vous, world knowledge, and a bit of a one-man show," he summarized[19].
On December 27, 2023, he performed at the Théâtre Grand Point Virgule for a special date. Following the success of this performance, he performed on many other dates in 2024.
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References
↑ Dictionnaire de la noblesse française, Volume 1 - Page 707, by Étienne de Seréville and F. de Saint Simon.
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