Claude Lanzmann facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Claude Lanzmann
Lanzmann in 2014
Born	(1925-11-27)27 November 1925 Paris, France
Died	5 July 2018(2018-07-05) (aged 92) Paris, France
Occupation	Filmmaker
Years active	1970–2018
Known for	Shoah (1985)
Spouse(s)	Judith Magre ​ ​ (m. 1963; div. 1971)​ Angelika Schrobsdorff ​ ​ (m. 1971, divorced)​ Dominique Petithory ​ (m. 1995)​
Partner(s)	Simone de Beauvoir (1952–1959)
Children	2

Claude Lanzmann (born November 27, 1925 – died July 5, 2018) was a famous French filmmaker. He is best known for his very long documentary film called Shoah. This film tells the story of the Holocaust through interviews with people who lived through it. The Holocaust was a terrible time in history when about six million Jewish people were murdered by the Nazis during World War II.

Early Life and War Efforts

Claude Lanzmann was born in Paris, France, on November 27, 1925. His family was Jewish and had moved to France from Eastern Europe. He had a brother named Jacques Lanzmann, who became a writer.

During World War II, Claude's family had to hide their Jewish identity to stay safe. When he was only 17, Claude joined the French Resistance. This was a secret group of people who fought against the German occupation of France. He fought alongside his father and brother in a region called Auvergne.

After the war, Lanzmann also spoke out against the French war in Algeria. He signed a special petition in 1960 that was against the war.

Career as a Filmmaker and Editor

Claude Lanzmann was the main editor for a well-known magazine called Les Temps Modernes. This magazine was started by famous thinkers Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir. He also taught at the European Graduate School in Switzerland.

In 2009, he wrote a book about his life called Le lièvre de Patagonie, which means "The Patagonian Hare."

Making Shoah

Lanzmann's most famous work is the film Shoah, released in 1985. It is a very long film, about nine and a half hours! The film tells the story of the Holocaust using only interviews. It does not use any old video clips or photos from that time.

Instead, Lanzmann interviewed people who were there. He spoke with survivors, people who helped Jewish people, and even some who were involved in the terrible events. Some of the people he interviewed included a Polish fighter named Jan Karski and a historian named Raul Hilberg.

When the film came out, Lanzmann also published the full text of all the interviews. He believed it was wrong to try and explain why Adolf Hitler and the Nazis did what they did. He felt that their evil actions should not be explained away.

Later Works

Claude Lanzmann continued to make films about the Holocaust. On July 4, 2018, his last film was released. It was called Les Quatre Soeurs (Shoah: Four Sisters). This film featured new interviews with four Holocaust survivors whose stories were not included in his original Shoah film. Claude Lanzmann passed away the very next day.

Personal Life

From 1952 to 1959, Claude Lanzmann lived with the famous writer and philosopher Simone de Beauvoir. He later married French actress Judith Magre in 1963, but they divorced in 1971. He then married Angelika Schrobsdorff, a German-Jewish writer. They also divorced. Claude Lanzmann had two children, Angélique and Félix. He died at his home in Paris on July 5, 2018, at the age of 92.

Honours and Awards

Claude Lanzmann received many important awards for his work. These include:

• The Resistance Medal with rosette, for his bravery during World War II.
• The Grand Cross of the National Order of Merit, a high French award.
• The 2010 Welt-Literaturpreis, a German literary prize.
• An Honorary Doctorate from the University of Lucerne in 2011.
• Grand Officer of the Legion of Honor in 2011, which is France's highest award.
• The Honorary Golden Bear at the 63rd Berlin International Film Festival in 2013.

Selected Works

Filmography

• Pourquoi Israël (1973)
• Shoah (1985)
• Tsahal (1994)
• A Visitor from the Living [fr] (1997)
• Sobibor, October 14, 1943, 4 p.m. (2001)
• Lights and Shadows (2008)
• The Karski Report (2010)
• The Last of the Unjust (2013) about Benjamin Murmelstein, a leader in the Theresienstadt camp.
• Napalm (2017)
• Shoah: Four Sisters (2017)

Films About Claude Lanzmann

• Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah (2015) is a documentary film about Lanzmann himself. It was directed by Adam Benzine.

Books Written by Claude Lanzmann

• Shoah: An Oral History of the Holocaust : The Complete Text of the Film. Pantheon Books, New York 1985, ISBN: 978-0-394-55142-5
• The Patagonian Hare: A Memoir (translated by Frank Wynne). London: Atlantic Books, 2012, ISBN: 978-1-84887-360-5 ; Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York 2012, ISBN: 978-0-374-23004-3
• La Tombe du divin plongeur. Gallimard, Paris 2012 ISBN: 978-2-070-45677-2

See also

In Spanish: Claude Lanzmann para niños