Olivier Assayas facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Olivier Assayas
Assayas in 2010
Born	(1955-01-25) 25 January 1955 (age 70) Paris, France
Occupation	Film director, screenwriter, film critic
Years active	1977–present
Spouse(s)	Maggie Cheung ​ ​ (m. 1998; div. 2001)​
Partner(s)	Mia Hansen-Løve (2002–2017)
Children	1

Olivier Assayas (born 25 January 1955) is a French film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He is famous for making many different kinds of movies. These include films set in the past, exciting psychological thrillers, and comedies.

Assayas has directed movies in French, Spanish, and English. His films often feature actors from all over the world. He is the son of filmmaker Jacques Rémy. Olivier Assayas started his career writing about movies for a magazine called Cahiers du Cinéma. He wrote about films from different countries and the directors who made them. These directors later inspired his own work. Assayas first made several short films. His first full-length movie, Disorder, came out in 1986.

He continued to direct many feature films. His movie Cold Water (1994) was a big step forward in his career. It was the first of his films to be shown at the famous Cannes Film Festival. His next film, Irma Vep (1996), also screened at Cannes. Later films like Sentimental Destinies (2000), Demonlover (2002), and Clean (2004) all competed for the top prize, the Palme d'Or, at Cannes. In 2006, he made a short film for the movie Paris, je t'aime, which was a collection of short stories.

Assayas earned a lot of praise for his dramas. These include Summer Hours (2008), Clouds of Sils Maria (2014), and Personal Shopper (2016). He won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Director for Personal Shopper. He also directed the comedy Non-Fiction (2018) and the spy thriller Wasp Network (2019).

Early Life and Career Beginnings

Olivier Assayas was born in Paris, France. His father was Raymond Assayas, a French director and screenwriter. His mother, Catherine de Károlyi, was a fashion designer. His father had Turkish-Jewish roots and lived in Italy before moving to France. His mother was Protestant and from Hungary.

Assayas began his journey in the film industry by helping his father. He wrote parts of TV shows his father was working on when his father's health wasn't good. In an interview, Assayas mentioned that he was interested in politics and social changes when he was growing up.

Key Films and Collaborations

Assayas's most well-known film is Irma Vep, which stars Maggie Cheung. This movie is a tribute to both French director Louis Feuillade and movies from Hong Kong.

When he worked at Cahiers du cinéma, Assayas wrote about many European and Asian film directors he admired. He even made a documentary called HHH: A Portrait of Hou Hsiao-hsien. This film is about the Taiwanese filmmaker Hou Hsiao-hsien.

Assayas married actress Maggie Cheung in 1998. They divorced in 2001 but remained good friends. In 2004, she even starred in his film Clean.

He met actress and director Mia Hansen-Løve when she was 17. She acted in his 1998 film Late August, Early September. Assayas said they started dating when she was 20. They separated in 2017.

Directing and Awards

Assayas directed and helped write the 2010 French TV miniseries Carlos. This series was about the life of a famous historical figure, Ilich Ramírez Sánchez. The Venezuelan actor Édgar Ramírez won an award for his role as Carlos in 2011.

In April 2011, Assayas was chosen to be a judge for the main film competition at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival.

His 2012 film Something in the Air was chosen to compete for the top award at the 69th Venice International Film Festival. Assayas won an award for Best Screenplay at Venice for this film. His 2014 film Clouds of Sils Maria also competed for the Palme d'Or at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival.

Clouds of Sils Maria won the Louis Delluc Prize. It also received six nominations for the César Award, which is a major French film award. These nominations included Best Film and Best Director. Actress Kristen Stewart won a César Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the film.

In 2016, Assayas won the Best Director Award (Cannes Film Festival) for Personal Shopper. Kristen Stewart also starred in this movie.

In June 2017, it was announced that Assayas would lead the jury at the 2017 Locarno Film Festival.

Filmmaking Style and Inspirations

Olivier Assayas took part in a survey in 2012 by Sight & Sound magazine. He shared his ten favorite films of all time. These included 2001: A Space Odyssey, The Gospel According to St. Matthew, Ludwig, A Man Escaped, Mirror, Napoléon, Playtime, The Rules of the Game, The Tree of Life, and Van Gogh. These films likely influenced his own unique style.

Filmography

Movies Directed and Written

As a writer only

• Passage secret (1985)
• Rendez-vous (1985)
• L'Unique (1986)
• Scene of the Crime (1986)
• Avril brisé (1987)
• Filha da Mãe (1990)
• Alice and Martin (1998)
• Based on a True Story (2017) - Co-written with Roman Polanski

Television Projects

Short Films and Documentaries

Awards and Recognitions