Berenice Bejo

Actor

• Born: July 7, 1976
• Place of Birth: Buenos Aires, Argentina

Contribution: Bérénice Bejo is an Academy Award-nominated actor best known for her costarring role in The Artist (2011) and the films Bookshop in Paris (2021), A Lost Prince (2022), and Sisterhood (2023).

Background

Bérénice Bejo was born on July 7, 1976, in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She is the daughter of Argentine filmmaker Miguel Bejo and Silvia Bejo, a lawyer. The family relocated to Paris, France, when Bejo was three years old.

Career

Bejo began her acting career with roles in French television productions, beginning with a part in the television film Histories d’hommes (Stories of men) in 1996. The following year, she made her first of six appearances in the French comedy series Un et un font six (One plus one equals six). Film roles followed, including a part in director Chantal Akerman’s The Captive in 2000.

In 2001, Bejo made her Hollywood debut in A Knight’s Tale, directed by Brian Helgeland. The film follows a squire of common birth, played by Heath Ledger, who pretends to be a knight in order to enter a jousting tournament and win the love of a noblewoman. Bejo plays Christiana, the noblewoman’s handmaiden and messenger.

Bejo’s appearance in A Knight’s Tale did not result in further American film work, but she continued to appear in French films and television shows, taking on increasingly major roles. In 2002, Bejo costarred in the film 24 Hours in the Life of a Woman, directed by Laurent Bouhnik. In the film, an elderly man helps a young woman named Olivia, played by Bejo, escape an unhealthy relationship by recounting the story of his mother’s life.

In 2006, Bejo had a starring role in OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies, an adventure comedy that parodies the OSS 117 spy novels and films of the 1950s and 1960s. Directed by Michel Hazanavicius, the film features Jean Dujardin as the eponymous spy and Bejo as one of his love interests. OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies was nominated for several major awards and won the grand prize at the Tokyo International Film Festival.

Bejo went on to appear in a variety of films, including The House (2007), Modern Love (2008), and Prey (2010). In 2011, she reunited with Dujardin in the silent black-and-white film The Artist, written and directed by Hazanavicius. Set in Hollywood in the late 1920s, The Artist documents the relationship between Peppy Miller, an up-and-coming actor played by Bejo, and George Valentin, an older silent film star played by Dujardin.

The Artist was widely praised by critics, earning nominations for numerous awards. The film ultimately won five Academy Awards, including the award for best picture. In recognition of her performance, Bejo was nominated for an Academy Award and a British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Award and won the César Award, the most prestigious honor in French cinema.

Following the success of The Artist, Bejo returned to France and took on a number of film roles, including a supporting role in the 2012 comedy Populaire, in which an employer attempts to train his secretary to become the fastest typist in the world. The film was nominated for five César Awards. The following year, Bejo starred in the film Le passé, directed by Iranian director Asghar Farhadi and released in English-speaking countries as The Past. The film was a hit at the Cannes International Film Festival, where Bejo won the award for best actress for her performance. Since then she has continued to find ample work, mostly in French film but occasionally in other continental projects such as the Italian film Sweet Dreams (2016) directed by Marco Bellocchio, and in 2018 she starred in the drama La quietud ("The quietude") by the formidable Argentinian director Pablo Trapero.

Bejo continued her busy film career with roles in a long list of movies, some of which included The Lost Prince (2020), A Bookshop in Paris (2021), and Final Cut (2022). She also played Luisa Lattes in The Hummingbird (2022), Chantal in Sisterhood (2023), and Ebe in Another End (2024). One of Bejo's more notable parts came when she played the lead role of a grieving marine biologist in the 2024 Netflix original action-horror movie Under Paris. Bejo has also starred in movies with French titles.

Impact

Though Bejo appeared in many films prior to The Artist, her performance in the award-winning film dramatically increased her recognition among international audiences and critics, drawing attention not only to her earlier works but also to French cinema as a whole. Her achievement at the 2013 Cannes International Film Festival further solidified her status as a critically successful, versatile actor.

Personal Life

Bejo is married to Hazanavicius, whom she first met while filming OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies. They live in Paris with their two children, Lucien and Gloria.

Bibliography

"Bérénice Bejo." IMDb, 2024, www.imdb.com/name/nm0067367. Accessed 16 Sept. 2024.

“The Brit List: Interview with Bérénice Bejo, Oscar Nominee for ‘The Artist.’” BBC America. BBC Worldwide Americas, 24 Jan. 2012. Web. 25 July 2013.

Buckland, Lucy. “She’s an Artist!” Mail Online. Assoc. Newspapers, 17 May 2013. Web. 25 July 2013.

Lamont, Tom. “Bérénice Bejo: ‘The Artist Was a Gift. But I Thought I Was Really Good.’” Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 25 May 2013. Web. 25 July 2013.

McCammon, Ross. “Bérénice Bejo: A Woman We Love.” Esquire. Hearst Communication, 15 Jan. 2012. Web. 25 July 2013.

Secher, Benjamin. “The Artist’s Bérénice Bejo.” Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group, 2 Jan. 2012. Web. 25 July 2013.