Charlotte Gainsbourg facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Charlotte Gainsbourg
Gainsbourg in 2025
Born	Charlotte Lucy Gainsbourg (1971-07-21) 21 July 1971 (age 54) Marylebone, London, England
Citizenship	France United Kingdom
Occupation	Actress singer
Years active	1984–present
Partner(s)	Yvan Attal (c. 1991–present)
Children	3
Parents	Serge Gainsbourg (father) Jane Birkin (mother)
Relatives	Kate Barry (half-sister) Lou Doillon (half-sister) Judy Campbell (grandmother) Andrew Birkin (uncle) David Birkin (cousin) Anno Birkin (cousin)
Musical career
Genres	Alternative rock indie pop dream pop French pop (early)
Labels	Phonogram Because Atlantic Vice Elektra
Associated acts	Beck Nigel Godrich Sebastian

Charlotte Lucy Gainsbourg (born 21 July 1971) is a British and French actress and singer. She is the daughter of the famous English actress and singer Jane Birkin and the French singer Serge Gainsbourg.

Charlotte began her music career at age 12. At 15, she released her first album with her father. After a long break, she released more albums as an adult, which were very successful. She has also acted in many movies and won several important awards for her performances.

Early Life and Family

Gainsbourg with her mother Jane Birkin in 2010

Charlotte Gainsbourg was born in London, England. Her parents, Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg, were both very famous musicians and artists. Because of her parents' fame, her childhood was often in the public eye.

She grew up in Paris, France, and speaks both French and English fluently. Her grandmother, Judy Campbell, was also an actress, and her uncle, Andrew Birkin, is a screenwriter and director.

Charlotte has several siblings. She grew up with her older half-sister, Kate Barry. She also has a younger half-sister, Lou Doillon, and a younger brother, Lulu Gainsbourg.

When Charlotte was a child, her parents separated. Her mother began a relationship with the director Jacques Doillon. Charlotte later worked with her stepfather on a few films.

Her father, Serge Gainsbourg, passed away in 1991. Charlotte has worked to keep his memory alive. She helped turn his home in Paris into a museum, which opened in 2023.

Career

Acting Career

Gainsbourg at the 25th César Awards in 2000

Gainsbourg grew up around movies because her parents were in the film industry. Her mother encouraged her to start acting. Her first role was in the 1984 film Paroles et Musique, where she played the daughter of actress Catherine Deneuve.

In 1986, she won a César Award, which is like a French Oscar, for "Most Promising Actress" for the film An Impudent Girl.

She has starred in many French and English-language films. In 1996, she played the main character in a movie version of the famous book Jane Eyre. In 2000, she won another César Award, this time for "Best Supporting Actress" for the film La Bûche.

Some of her other well-known films include:

• 21 Grams (2003), with actors like Sean Penn and Naomi Watts.
• The Science of Sleep (2006), a creative film by director Michel Gondry.
• I'm Not There (2007), a movie about the musician Bob Dylan.
• Antichrist (2009), for which she won the Best Actress award at the famous Cannes Film Festival.
• Melancholia (2011), a science fiction movie.
• Samba (2014), a popular French film.
• Independence Day: Resurgence (2016), the sequel to the 1996 blockbuster.
• The Snowman (2017), a crime thriller.

Gainsbourg often works with the director Lars von Trier. She has appeared in several of his films, including Antichrist, Melancholia, and ....

Music Career

Gainsbourg at Webster Hall, New York City, in 2010

Gainsbourg started her music career when she was only 12 years old. She sang a song with her father that caused a lot of discussion at the time. In 1986, she released her first album, Charlotte for Ever, which was produced by her father.

She took a 20-year break from music after her father passed away. In 2006, she returned with her second album, 5:55. It was a huge success, especially in France, where it reached number one on the charts.

In 2009, she released her third album, IRM, which she created with the American musician Beck. The title IRM is the French name for an MRI scan (a machine that takes pictures inside the body). She got the idea for the album's sound while having a brain scan after an accident.

Her other albums include Stage Whisper (2011) and Rest (2017). The album Rest is very personal and talks about her feelings after her father and half-sister Kate passed away. She directed the music videos for some of the songs herself.

Personal Life

Gainsbourg at the 2022 Berlinale

Gainsbourg's longtime partner is the French-Israeli actor and director Yvan Attal. They met in 1991 on a film set. They have three children together, born in 1996, 2002, and 2011.

Although she was born in London, Gainsbourg lived most of her life in Paris. In 2013, after her sister Kate passed away, she and her family moved to New York City. They moved back to Paris in 2020.

In 2007, Gainsbourg had surgery for a serious head injury she got in a waterskiing accident. She made a full recovery.

Filmography

Awards and Nominations

Gainsbourg has won many awards for her acting. Here are some of the most important ones:

• César Awards

1986: Won Most Promising Actress for An Impudent Girl 2000: Won Best Supporting Actress for Season's Beatings

• Cannes Film Festival

2009: Won Best Actress for Antichrist

• Bodil Awards (Danish Film Awards)

2010: Won Best Actress for Antichrist 2014: Won Best Actress for ...

• Robert Awards (Danish Film Awards)

2012: Won Best Supporting Actress for Melancholia

• Victoires de la Musique (French Music Awards)

2018: Won Female Artist of the Year

Images for kids

• 

  Gainsbourg at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival

See also

In Spanish: Charlotte Gainsbourg para niños