Chiara Mastroianni

Last updated

Chiara Mastroianni
Chiara Mastroianni Cannes 2013.jpg
Mastroianni in 2013
Born
Chiara Charlotte Mastroianni

(1972-05-28) 28 May 1972 (age 51)
Paris, France
OccupationActress
Years active1993–present
Spouse
(m. 2002;div. 2009)
Children2
Parents
Relatives

Chiara Charlotte Mastroianni (born 28 May 1972) is a French actress and singer. She is the daughter of actors Marcello Mastroianni and Catherine Deneuve.

Contents

Early life

Mastroianni was born to French actress Catherine Deneuve and Italian actor Marcello Mastroianni. Her parents were both married to other people at the time of their affair and stayed together for four years, separating in 1975, when Chiara was two years old. She later revealed that she could not recall them being together: "I've never seen my parents together, never in my whole life. They split when I was two, so I've no recollection of them as a couple. I've never even seen them kiss except in the movies." [1]

Mastroianni has two half-siblings, a brother, Christian Vadim, from her mother's relationship with director Roger Vadim, and a sister, Barbara Mastroianni, from her father's marriage to actress Flora Carabella. Carabella is rumoured to have offered to adopt Mastroianni and raise her with her older sister as both her parents worked often and travelled from home, an offer Deneuve rejected. [2]

Through her mother, Mastroianni is connected to the famous Dorléac family of actors, which includes her maternal grandparents, Maurice Dorléac and Renée Simonot, and her aunts, Françoise Dorléac (who died five years before Chiara was born) and Sylvie Dorléac.

Career

Mastroianni earned a César Award nomination for her first feature film appearance in André Téchiné's My Favorite Season (1993), starring her mother in the lead role. The next year she played Kim Basinger's assistant in Prêt-à-Porter , directed by Robert Altman. Her first starring role came in 1995, opposite Melvil Poupaud in Le Journal du séducteur , a romantic comedy inspired by "The Seducer's Diary" chapter from Søren Kierkegaard's Either/Or . She worked with Poupaud again in Three Lives and Only One Death (1996), playing the daughter of her real-life father, and in Time Regained (1999), also starring her mother.

Along with a few supporting performances in French films, she appeared in Gregg Araki's Nowhere (1997) and took time off to have her first child with sculptor Pierre Thoretton. She returned to filmmaking to star in Manoel de Oliveira's The Letter (1999), based on Madame de La Fayette's novel La Princesse de Clèves .

After appearances in Mike Figgis's Hotel (2001) and Le parole di mio padre (2001), she played the lead in Delphine Gleize's interconnected drama Carnages (2002), a winner at several international film festivals. In 2003, she starred in the comedy drama Il est plus facile pour un chameau... .

In July 2016, Mastroianni was named a member of the main competition jury for the 73rd Venice International Film Festival. [3] In 2019 she won the Un Certain Regard Best Performance award for On a Magical Night . [4]

Collaborations

Mastroianni is a friend and frequent collaborator of French filmmaker Christophe Honoré. She has appeared in roughly half of his films in either major roles or cameos, beginning with the 2007 film Love Songs .

Before her father's death she appeared in two films with him, Prêt-à-Porter (1994) and Three Lives and Only One Death (1996).

Mastroianni also works frequently with her mother; they often play mother and daughter onscreen. Mastroianni first appeared in one of Deneuve's films in 1979 in an uncredited role in Us Two . Her second onscreen appearance also occurred in one of her mother's films, My Favorite Season (1993). Other notable films in which Mastroianni has acted opposite Deneuve include Persepolis , A Christmas Tale , Three Hearts and Claire Darling .

Mastroianni collaborated with her then-husband, musician Benjamin Biolay, on the album Home, released in 2004. [5] She also appeared on the track ¡Encore Encore! on Biolay's 2017 album Volver.

Personal life

Mastroianni dated actor Melvil Poupaud for four years from the age of 16 to 20. He encouraged her to pursue acting as a career and they remained friends for decades, with Poupaud saying he still loved her in 2018. [6]

In 1996, Mastroianni gave birth to son Milo, whose father is sculptor Pierre Thoretton. [7] In 2002, she married singer Benjamin Biolay. They had a daughter, Anna, in 2003, and divorced in 2009. [8]

Filmography

Mastroianni at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival Chiara Mastroianni.jpg
Mastroianni at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival
YearTitleRoleNotes
1993 Ma saison préférée AnneNominated — César Award for Most Promising Actress
1993A la belle étoileClaire
1994 Prêt-à-Porter Sophie Choiset
1995All Men are MortalFrançoise
1995 Le Journal du séducteur Claire Conti
1995 Don't Forget You're Going to Die Claudia
1996 Comment je me suis disputé... (ma vie sexuelle) Patricia
1996 Three Lives and Only One Death Cécile
1996CameleoneLéa
1997 Nowhere Kriss
1998On a très peu d'amisVivianne
1998 À vendre Mireille
1999 Le temps retrouvé Albertine
1999 Libero Burro Rosa Agnello
1999 La Lettre Madame de Clèves
2000 Six-Pack Marine
2001 Hotel Infirmière de l'hotel
2001 Le parole di mio padre Ada Malfenti
2002 Carnages Carlotta
2003 Il est plus facile pour un chameau... Bianca
2005 Akoibon Barbara
2007 L'Heure zéro Audrey Neuville
2007 Persepolis Marjane Satrapi (voice)
2007 Les Chansons d'amour Jeanne
2008 A Christmas Tale Silvia
2008 La Belle Personne La jeune femme dans le café
2008 Le crime est notre affaire Emma Charpentier
2009 Un chat un chat Nathalie/Célimène
2009 Park Benches Marianne's mother
2009 Making Plans For Lena Lena
2010 Man at Bath Actress
2011 Chicken with Plums [9] Lili (adult)
2011 Beloved Véra PasserNominated — Lumières Award for Best Actress
2011 Americano Claire
2012 Lines of Wellington Hussar
2013 Bastards Raphaëlle
2014 La Rançon de la gloire Rosa
2014 Three Hearts Sophie
2016 Saint-Amour
2018 La Dernière Folie de Claire Darling Marie Darling
2019 On a Magical Night Maria Mortemart Un Certain Regard – Best Actress
Nominated — César Award for Best Actress
The Girl with a Bracelet Céline Bataille
2022 Other People's Children Alice
2023 Eureka El Coronel / Maya
2024 Langue Étrangère It will be screened in Competition at the 74th Berlin International Film Festival in February 2024. [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Catherine Deneuve</span> French actress (born 1943)

Catherine Fabienne Dorléac, known professionally as Catherine Deneuve, is a French actress, producer, and model. She is considered one of the greatest European actresses on film. Early in her career, she gained acclaim for her portrayals of aloof and mysterious beauties for well-known directors, including Luis Buñuel, François Truffaut, Jacques Demy, Roman Polanski, and Agnès Varda. In 1985, she succeeded Mireille Mathieu as the official face of Marianne, France's national symbol of liberty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marcello Mastroianni</span> Italian actor (1924–1996)

Marcello Vincenzo Domenico Mastroianni was an Italian film actor, regarded as one of his country's most iconic male performers of the 20th century. He played leading roles for many of Italy's top directors in a career spanning 147 films between 1939 and 1997, and garnered many international honours including two BAFTA Awards, two Best Actor awards at the Venice and Cannes film festivals, two Golden Globes, and three Academy Award nominations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ludivine Sagnier</span> French actress (born 1979)

Ludivine Sagnier is a French actress. She was nominated three times for the César Award for Best Supporting Actress for Swimming Pool (2003), Peter Pan (2003), and A Secret (2007).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Françoise Dorléac</span> French actress (1942–1967)

Françoise Paulette Louise Dorléac was a French actress. She was the elder sister of Catherine Deneuve, with whom she starred in the 1967 musical, The Young Girls of Rochefort. Her other films include Philippe de Broca's movie That Man from Rio, François Truffaut's The Soft Skin, Roman Polanski's Cul-de-sac, and Val Guest's Where the Spies Are.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benjamin Biolay</span> French singer and actor (born 1973)

Benjamin Biolay is a French singer, musician, songwriter, record producer and actor. He is the brother of singer Coralie Clément—whose first three albums he wrote and produced—and the ex-husband of Chiara Mastroianni, the daughter of Catherine Deneuve and Marcello Mastroianni.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Melvil Poupaud</span> French actor (born 1973)

Melvil Matthias Julien Poupaud is a French actor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arnaud Desplechin</span> French film director and screenwriter

Arnaud Desplechin is a French film director and screenwriter. In 2016, he won the César Award for Best Director for My Golden Days (2015).

<i>My Favorite Season</i> 1993 French film

My Favorite Season is a 1993 French drama film directed by André Téchiné, co-written by Téchiné and Pascal Bonitzer, and starring Catherine Deneuve, Daniel Auteuil, and Marthe Villalonga. The story concerns a middle-aged brother and sister who resume their fragile relationship when they are forced to care for their ailing mother. It won Best Foreign Language Film at the 1996 Boston Society of Film Critics Awards.

<i>A Christmas Tale</i> 2008 film by Arnaud Desplechin

A Christmas Tale is a 2008 French Christmas comedy-drama film co-written and directed by Arnaud Desplechin, starring Catherine Deneuve, Jean-Paul Roussillon, Mathieu Amalric, Anne Consigny, Melvil Poupaud, Emmanuelle Devos and Chiara Mastroianni. It tells the story of a family with strained relationships which gathers at the parents' home for Christmas, having just learned that their mother has leukemia. It was in competition for the Palme d'Or at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival.

The 19th César Awards ceremony, presented by the Académie des Arts et Techniques du Cinéma, honoured the best French films of 1993 and took place on 26 February 1994 at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris. The ceremony was chaired by Gérard Depardieu and hosted by Fabrice Luchini and Clémentine Célarié. Smoking / No Smoking won the award for Best Film.

<i>It Only Happens to Others</i> 1971 film by Nadine Trintignant

It Only Happens to Others is a 1971 drama film written and directed by Nadine Trintignant. The film was made in the wake of the death of Nadine and Jean-Louis Trintignant's daughter Pauline in 1969.

<i>Marcello Mastroianni: I Remember</i> 1997 film

Marcello Mastroianni: I Remember is a 1997 Italian documentary film about the actor Marcello Mastroianni and directed by Anna Maria Tatò. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival.

<i>Crime Is Our Business</i> 2008 French film

Crime Is Our Business is a 2008 French comedy mystery film directed by Pascal Thomas and starring Catherine Frot, André Dussollier and Claude Rich. It is based on the 1957 Agatha Christie novel 4.50 from Paddington.

<i>Beloved</i> (2011 film) 2011 film by Christophe Honoré

Beloved is a 2011 French romantic drama film written and directed by Christophe Honoré, starring Chiara Mastroianni, Catherine Deneuve, Ludivine Sagnier, Louis Garrel, Radivoje Bukvic, Paul Schneider, and Michel Delpech. The story is set in the 1960s through the 2000s in Paris, Reims, Montreal, Prague and London. While not a musical, the characters use musical 'narration' and 'dialogues' throughout the film.

<i>Towards Zero</i> (film) 2007 French mystery film

Towards Zero is a 2007 French mystery film directed by Pascal Thomas and starring François Morel, Danielle Darrieux and Melvil Poupaud. It is an adaptation of the 1944 novel Towards Zero by Agatha Christie.

<i>Lines of Wellington</i> 2012 film

Lines of Wellington is a 2012 Franco-Portuguese epic war film and television series prepared by Chilean director Raúl Ruiz and completed by his widow Valeria Sarmiento. Its title refers to the historical Lines of Torres Vedras.

Jeanne Renée Deneuve, known professionally as Renée-Jeanne Simonot, was a French actress and voice artist. She was married to actor Maurice Dorléac, the mother of actresses Catherine Deneuve and Françoise Dorléac and the grandmother of actor Christian Vadim and actress Chiara Mastroianni.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flora Carabella</span> Italian actress (1926–1999)

Flora Carabella was an Italian film, television and stage actress.

<i>On a Magical Night</i> 2019 film by Christophe Honoré

On a Magical Night is a 2019 comedy film written and directed by Christophe Honoré and starring Chiara Mastroianni. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival, where Mastroianni won the award for Best Performance.

<i>Brother and Sister</i> (2022 film) 2022 film

Brother and Sister is a 2022 French drama film directed by Arnaud Desplechin, starring Marion Cotillard and Melvil Poupaud as estranged siblings who are forced to reunite after two decades following the death of their parents. The film made its world premiere at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival where it competed for the Palme d'Or, and was released in theaters in France on the same day as its Cannes premiere, on 20 May 2022.

References

  1. Solomons, Jason (7 April 2012). "Chiara Mastroianni: I only saw my parents together on screen". The Observer. Retrieved 28 April 2019.
  2. Robin Adams Sloan (25 September 1976). Mary Hemingway Keeps In Touch. St. Petersburg Independent .
  3. Vivarelli, Nick (24 July 2016). "Laurie Anderson, Joshua Oppenheimer, Zhao Wei Set For Venice Jury". Variety . Retrieved 24 July 2016.
  4. DEBRUGE, PETER (25 May 2019). "Bong Joon-ho's 'Parasite' Wins the Palme d'Or at Cannes".
  5. DENIZET-LEWIS, Benoit (27 March 2005). "Le Pop Star". The New York Times. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  6. "Benjamin Biolay et Melvil Poupaud évoquent la très célèbre ex-compagne qu'ils ont en commun". Voici (in French). 7 April 2014.
  7. "Chiara Mastroianni : « J'ai emménagé dans la rue derrière chez ma mère ! »". Elle (in French). 16 June 2017.
  8. Morrow, Fiona (16 March 2004). "Chiara Mastroianni: Independent woman". The Independent .
  9. "'Chicken with Plums' full of the unexpected". The Boston Globe . 20 September 2012. Retrieved 21 September 2012.
  10. Ntim, Zac (22 January 2024). "Berlin Reveals 2024 Competition Lineup: Rooney Mara, Mati Diop, Isabelle Huppert, Abderrahmane Sissako Movies Among Selection". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 28 January 2024.