Agnès Godard
Encyclopedia
Agnès Godard is a César Award
-winning French cinematographer
. She is most famous for her long-running collaboration with filmmaker Claire Denis
.
(then known as IDHEC) in 1980. Her first project as a cinematographer was Wim Wenders
' 50-minute Room 666
, made for television. There she met Claire Denis, who was working as Wenders' assistant director
.
Godard spent much of the 1980s working as an assistant camera operator or focus puller
on films by Wenders, Joseph Losey
, Peter Greenaway
and Alain Resnais
. She also served as director of photography on a short film directed by legendary cinematographer Henri Alekan
. Her first collaboration with Denis was the director's debut feature, Chocolat
, where she served as the camera operator; she has been Denis' regular cinematographer since 1990, when the two worked together on a documentary about Nouvelle Vague filmmaker Jacques Rivette
made for the French television series Cinema, de Notre Temps.
César Award
The César Award is the national film award of France, first given out in 1975. The nominations are selected by the members of the Académie des arts et techniques du cinéma....
-winning French cinematographer
Cinematographer
A cinematographer is one photographing with a motion picture camera . The title is generally equivalent to director of photography , used to designate a chief over the camera and lighting crews working on a film, responsible for achieving artistic and technical decisions related to the image...
. She is most famous for her long-running collaboration with filmmaker Claire Denis
Claire Denis
Claire Denis is a French film director and Professor of Film at the European Graduate School in Saas-Fee, Switzerland.-Early life:...
.
Biography, career and collaboration with Denis
Godard originally studied journalism, but switched to film after several years, graduating from La FemisLa Femis
La Fémis , is the French state film school. FEMIS is an acronym for Fondation Européenne pour les Métiers de l’Image et du Son. Based in Paris, it offers courses balanced between artistic research, professional development and technical training...
(then known as IDHEC) in 1980. Her first project as a cinematographer was Wim Wenders
Wim Wenders
Ernst Wilhelm "Wim" Wenders is a German film director, playwright, author, photographer and producer.-Early life:Wenders was born in Düsseldorf. He graduated from high school in Oberhausen in the Ruhr area. He then studied medicine and philosophy in Freiburg and Düsseldorf...
' 50-minute Room 666
Room 666
Room 666 is a 1982 documentary film directed by German film director Wim Wenders.During the 1982 Cannes Film Festival, Wenders set up a static camera in room 666 of the Hotel Martinez and provided selected film directors a list of questions to answer concerning the future of cinema. Each director...
, made for television. There she met Claire Denis, who was working as Wenders' assistant director
Assistant director
The role of an Assistant director include tracking daily progress against the filming production schedule, arranging logistics, preparing daily call sheets, checking cast and crew, maintaining order on the set. They also have to take care of health and safety of the crew...
.
Godard spent much of the 1980s working as an assistant camera operator or focus puller
Focus puller
A focus puller, or 1st assistant cameraman, is a member of a film crew’s camera department whose primary responsibility is to maintain image sharpness on whatever subject or action is being filmed....
on films by Wenders, Joseph Losey
Joseph Losey
Joseph Walton Losey was an American theater and film director. After studying in Germany with Bertolt Brecht, Losey returned to the United States, eventually making his way to Hollywood...
, Peter Greenaway
Peter Greenaway
Peter Greenaway, CBE is a British film director. His films are noted for the distinct influence of Renaissance and Baroque painting, and Flemish painting in particular...
and Alain Resnais
Alain Resnais
Alain Resnais is a French film director whose career has extended over more than six decades. After training as a film editor in the mid-1940s, he went on to direct a number of short films which included Nuit et Brouillard , an influential documentary about the Nazi concentration camps.He began...
. She also served as director of photography on a short film directed by legendary cinematographer Henri Alekan
Henri Alekan
Henri Alekan was a French cinematographer.-Life:Henri Alekan was born in Montmartre in 1909. At the age of sixteen he and his brother became travelling puppeteers. A little later he started work as third assistant cameraman at the Billancourt studios. He then spent a short time in the army,...
. Her first collaboration with Denis was the director's debut feature, Chocolat
Chocolat (1988 film)
Chocolat is a 1988 film directed by Claire Denis, about a French family that lives in colonial Cameroon. Marc and Aimée Dalens are the parents of France , a young girl who befriends Protée , a Cameroon native who is the family's household servant...
, where she served as the camera operator; she has been Denis' regular cinematographer since 1990, when the two worked together on a documentary about Nouvelle Vague filmmaker Jacques Rivette
Jacques Rivette
Jacques Rivette is a French film director. His most well known films include Celine and Julie Go Boating, La Belle Noiseuse and the cult film Out 1....
made for the French television series Cinema, de Notre Temps.
Filmography
- Simon Werner a DisparuSimon Werner a DisparuLights Out is a French thriller film directed by Fabrice Gobert and starring Jules Pelissier, Ana Girardot, Arthur Mazet, Laurent Delbecque, Serge Riaboukine and Laurent Capelluto.-Cast:* Jules Pelissier as Jérémie Legrand...
(2010) - HomeHome (2008 film)Home is a 2008 Swiss drama film directed by Ursula Meier and starring Isabelle Huppert. The film was the official Swiss submission for Best Foreign Language Film at the 82nd Academy Awards.-Plot:...
(2008) - 35 rhums (2008)
- Ensemble, c'est tout (2007)
- The Golden DoorThe Golden DoorThe Golden Door may refer to:* Nuovomondo, a 2006 film about an Italian immigrant to the USA, whose title translated into English is The Golden Door* The Golden Door , a play by Toronto playwright Catherine Frid...
(2006) - BackstageBackstageBackstage may refer to:* Backstage , by Cher* Backstage , an Australian drama* Back Stage , a silent film starring Oliver Hardy* Back Stage , a silent film starring Buster Keaton...
(2005) - Vers Mathilde (2005)
- L'Intrus (2004)
- Wild SideWild Side (2004 film)Wild Side is a 2004 drama film directed by Sébastien Lifshitz. It premiered at the 2004 Berlin International Film Festival.-Plot:Stéphanie, a transsexual prostitute travels to a small town to care for her sick mother. She is joined by her two flatmates, an Algerian hustler and an AWOL Russian...
(2004) - Les égarés (2003)
- Ten Minutes Older: The Cello (2002) (segment "Vers Nancy")
- Vendredi soirVendredi soirVendredi soir is a drama film directed by Claire Denis. The screenplay was written by Claire Denis and Emmanuèle Bernheim, based upon Bernheim's novel of the same name. The film premiered at the 2002 Venice Film Festival....
(2002) - Au plus près du paradis (2002)
- Trouble Every Day (2001)
- La RépétitionReplay (2001 film)Replay is a 2001 French drama film directed by Catherine Corsini. It was entered into the 2001 Cannes Film Festival.-Cast:* Emmanuelle Béart - Nathalie* Pascale Bussières - Louise* Dani Levy - Matthias * Jean-Pierre Kalfon - Walter Amar...
(2001) - Beau TravailBeau travailBeau travail is a 1999 French movie directed by Claire Denis that is loosely based on Herman Melville's novella Billy Budd. However, instead of the maritime setting of the novella, the movie takes place in Djibouti where the protagonists are soldiers in the French Foreign Legion...
(1999) - Vie ne me fait pas peur (1999)
- La Nouvelle Ève (1999)
- L'Arrière pays (1998)
- The Dreamlife of AngelsThe Dreamlife of AngelsThe Dreamlife of Angels is a 1998 French drama film directed by Erick Zonca.-Story:The film is about two working class women, Isa and Marie. Isa is a drifter and searching for a lover she had met during the summer. When she realizes that her search for him is futile and turns elsewhere she meets...
(1998) - Années lycée: Petites (1997) (TV)
- Nénette et BoniNénette et BoniNénette et Boni is a 1996 feature film directed by Claire Denis, written by Denis in collaboration with Jean-Pol Fargeau.The soundtrack to the film is by the English band Tindersticks....
(1996) - Jeunesse sans Dieu (1996) (TV)
- À propos de Nice, la suite (1995) (segment "Nice, Very Nice")
- US Go Home (1994)
- I Can't SleepI Can't Sleep (film)I Can't Sleep is a 1994 French drama film written and directed by Claire Denis. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1994 Cannes Film Festival.-Cast:* Yekaterina Golubeva as Daiga* Richard Courcet as Camille...
(1994) - Le Géographe manuel (1994)
- La robe à cerceau (1993) TV episode
- L'Absence (1993)
- Sida, une histoire qui n'a pas de fin (1993)
- Histoires autour de la folie (1993) (TV)
- La Vis (1993)
- Dimanche soir (1992)
- Jacquot de NantesJacquot de NantesJacquot de Nantes is a 1991 French drama film directed by Agnès Varda. It was screened out of competition at the 1991 Cannes Film Festival....
(1991) - Keep It for YourselfKeep It for Yourself-Plot:Sophie comes to New York from France with the intention of meeting up with a man she met a few months before. She finds herself alone in the man's apartment, and she discovers that he left town because he was scared stiff at the idea of seeing her.-Cast:...
(1991) - Jacques Rivette - Le veilleur (1990) (TV)
- Room 666Room 666Room 666 is a 1982 documentary film directed by German film director Wim Wenders.During the 1982 Cannes Film Festival, Wenders set up a static camera in room 666 of the Hotel Martinez and provided selected film directors a list of questions to answer concerning the future of cinema. Each director...
(1982) (TV)