Jean-Pierre Leo (photos are presented below), a hereditary French actor, whose heyday was in the late 50s, 60s and 70s of the last century. Born in 1944, May 28, in Paris, in the family of screenwriter Leo Pierre and Pierre Jacqueline, actress. Parents worked at the Gomon Societe studio in the comedy films department, and when little Jean-Pierre reached the age of four, his mother began to take her son to the set to introduce the child to the difficult but extremely interesting process of making films.
First role
Jean-Pierre Leo made his film debut at the age of fourteen.
He played his first role in La Tour, Watch Out in 1958. Then he took part in the production of the film directed by Francois Truffaut , entitled “Four hundred strokes”, in which he played Antoine Duanel, the alter ego of Truffaut himself.
And since the film was the director’s debut picture, he began to develop the theme and relocate Duanel to other characters in order to continue the conceived line of using the alter ego. Jean-Pierre Leo met Truffaut thanks to his mother, who heard that the director would like to find a teenager for the main role in his film, and brought her son to audition. As soon as the director saw the gloomy young man immersed in himself, he immediately realized that luck literally put him into the hands of a ready-made lead actor.
The future hero of the film himself at that time studied at the municipal guesthouse Yonne, and in character perfectly suited his character. As a result, Jean-Pierre Leo was accepted for the role of Antoine. The very first episodes filmed with his participation confirmed the correctness of the choice - Leo absolutely corresponded to the role of Duanel, that was the name of the main character. Filming was more than successful, and the director was given the opportunity to further experiment with the alter ego.
Collaboration with the masters
In the next few years, the actor joined the group of directors of the "new wave", continued cooperation with Francois Truffaut, and also became close to Jean-Luc Godard. Played with actress Claude Jade in three Truffaut films: Family Hearth, Escaping Love, and Stolen Kisses.
Creativity with philosophy
Then Truffaut, together with Jean-Pierre, continued the theme of alter ego. So the movie "Antoine and Colette" appeared.
Then Jean-Pierre Leo took part in the filming of the films "Last Tango in Paris", "Pornographer", "Pointing Dogs". At the same time, he participated in the creation of film projects by Pierre Paolo Pazolini and Bernardo Bertolucci.
A notable role was the image of Mark in the film by Jerzy Skolimovsky called "Start", shot in 1967. In 1966, Leo was awarded the prize at the Berlin Film Festival for his shot in the movie "Male - Female".
At the International Cannes Film Festival, the actor received the Silver Bear, in 1966 - the prize for acting, the Honorary Cesar in 2002 and other awards.
Jean-Pierre Leo, whose personal life interests his fans, did not get a family and children. The actor devotes all his time to his beloved profession. Therefore, unlimited personal freedom contributes to its implementation as a professional film actor. All the time it takes to read scripts and rehearsals. And when the shooting begins, Leo does not appear at home, he spends all the time on the set.
Jean-Pierre Leo. Filmography
During his career, the actor starred in nearly a hundred films. The following is a sample list of films with his participation.
- "Four hundred strokes," the work of François Truffaut, (1959).
- "Boulevard" (1960), tape Duvivier Julien.
- Antoine and Colette, production by Francois Truffaut, (1962).
- Mad Pierrot, directed by J.-L. Godard, (1965).
- Alphaville (1965), staged by Jean-Luc Godard.
- "Male - female", director J.-L. Godard, (1966).
- "Chinese Woman" (1967), directed by J.-L. Godard.
- Weekend (1967), production by J.-L. Godard.
- Stolen Kisses, directed by Francois Truffaut, (1968).
- "Blue-eyed Santa Claus", directed by Jean Estache, (1969).
- "The Pigsty" (1969), directed by Paolo Pasolini.
- Family Hearth (1970), production by Francois Truffaut.
- The Continent and Two English Women (1971), directed by Truffaut Francois.
- "The Last Tango in Paris," directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, (1972).
- American Night (1973), directed by Francois Truffaut.
- "The Whore and Mommy" (1973), staged by Jean Estache.
- "Education of the senses" (1973), directed by Ways Kreven.
- Runaway Love, directed by Francois Truffaut (1979).
- "Body and Soul" (1986), directed by Jacot Benoit.
Currently, Jean-Pierre Leo collaborates with almost all the directors of the "new wave", incidentally occasionally starring in a particular commercial film in order to maintain his financial situation. Usually these are small advertising screensavers that delight viewers, allowing you to see your favorite actor once again.
A new approach to creativity
The creative reputation of Jean-Pierre is in its prime, the actor is full of strength and new ideas. Although age is increasingly declaring itself, there is no longer the same speed in finding the only correct mise en scene. But there are no errors in determining episodic positions. In other words, the shooting process now resembles a well-established mechanism that suits the entire crew.