Resnais, Alain

(June 3, 1922, Vannes, Morbihan, France - )

   A pharmacist's son, he has had a passion for com­ics, popular literature, and cinema since his child­hood. He directed his first 8-mm amateur shorts at age thirteen. He settled in Paris in 1937 and attended René Simon's acting courses. He enrolled in the famous French film school IDHEC in 1944. Discharged from his military service in 1946, he made his professional debut as an editor (1948 Paris 1900, documentary, Nicole Védrès, also assist­ant director, shot in 1946; Jean Eiffel, documentary, short, also camera operator, Sylvain Dhomme; 1952 Saint-Tropez, Devoir de Vacances, short, Paul Paviot; 1953 Aux Frontières de l'Homme, documentary, short, Nicole Védrès, Jean Rostand; 1955 Une Visite, short, François Truffaut; 1956 La Pointe courte, Agnès Varda, shot in 1954; 1957 L'œil du Maître, short, Jacques Doniol-Valcroze, André Vetusto; 1958 Broadway by Light, also technical adviser, William Klein). Other credits (as camera operator): 1948 Versailles et ses Fantômes (documentary, short, also coordina­tor of SFX, Jean Béranger); (as coordinator of SFX only): 1953 Haussmann et la transformation de Paris (documentary, short, Jean Leduc, Pierre Mignot); (as actor): 1942 Les Visiteurs du Soir / USA: The Devil's En­voys (bit, Marcel Carné); 1962 Le Signe du Lion / UK and USA: The Sign of Leo (Eric Rohmer); 1964 Salut les Cubains (short, Agnès Varda); 1974 Histoire du Ci­néma français par ceux qui l'ont fait (TV documentary, as himself, Armand Panigel); 1979 Fantômas, je pense à vous! (TV documentary, as himself, Christian Marc); 1980 Une Approche d'Alain Resnais, Révolutionnaire discret (TV documentary, as himself, Michel Leclerc); 1997 L'Atelier d'Alain Resnais (TV documentary, voice only, Francis Thomas).

 Filmography

        ◘ Fantômas (short; unfinished)

        ◘ L'Aventure de Guy (short; unfinished)

        ◘ Le Meilleur des Mondes (short; unfinished)

        ◘ Ouvert pour Cause d'Inventaire (short)

        ◘ L'Alcool tue (documentary; short; also cinematographer, editor)

        ◘ La Bague (documentary; short)

        ◘ Journée naturelle / Visite à Max Ernst (documentary; short)

        ◘ Portrait de Henri Goetz (documentary; short)

        ◘ Transfo transforme l'Energie du Pyrium (documentary; short; also cinematographer, editor)

        ◘ Visite à César Doméla (documentary; short)

        ◘ Visite à Christine Boumeester (documentary; short)

        ◘ Visite à Félix Labisse (documentary; short)

        ◘ Visite à Hans Hartung (documentary; short)

        ◘ Visite à Lucien Coutaud (documentary; short)

        ◘ Visite à Oscar Dominguez (documentary; short; unfinished)

1948 ◘ Châteaux de France / Versailles (documentary; short; also cinematographer, editor)

        ◘ Les Jardins de Paris (documentary; medium-length; unfinished)

        ◘ Malfray (documentary; short; co-director with Robert Hessens)

        ◘ Van Gogh (documentary; short; also editor)

        ◘ Gauguin (documentary; short; also editor)

        ◘ Guernica (documentary; short; also editor; co-director with Robert Hessens)

        ◘ Pictura / USA: Pictura: Adventure in Art (documentary; co-director with Ewald André Du­pont, Luciano Emmer, Robert Hessens)

1953 ◘ Les Statues meurent aussi / UK and USA: Statues Also Die (documentary; short; also editor)

1955 ◘ Nuit et Brouillard / UK and USA: Night and Fog (documentary; short; also editor)

1956 ◘ La Bibliothèque Nationale (documentary; short)

        ◘ Toute la Mémoire du Monde (documentary; short; also editor)

        ◘ Le Mystère de l'Atelier 15 (short; co-director with André Heinrich)

        ◘ Le Chant du Styrène (documentary; short; also screenwriter, editor)

        ◘ Hiroshima mon Amour / 24—Jikan no joji / UK and USA: Hiroshima My Love (France / Japan)

1961 ◘ L'Année dernière à Marienbad / L'anno scorso a Marienbad / UK: Last Year in Marienbad / USA: Last Year at Marienbad (France / Italy)

1963 ◘ Muriel ou Le Temps d'un Retour / Muriel, il tempo di un ritorno / UK: Muriel, or the Time of a Return / USA: The Time of Return (France / Italy)

        ◘ La Guerre est finie / Kriget ar slut / USA: The War Is Over (France / Sweden)

        ◘ Loin du Vietnam / USA: Far from Vietnam (segment "Claude Ridder")

        ◘ Cinétracts (documentary; uncredited director with Jean-Luc Godard, Chris Marker)

        ◘ Je t'aime, je t'aime (also co-adapter, co-dialogist)

1973 ◘ L'An 01 (segment "Wall Street"; co-director with Jacques Doillon, Jean Rouch; shot in 1971)

1974 ◘ Stavisky / Stavisky, il grande truffatore (France / Italy)

1977 ◘ Providence (France / UK)

1980 ◘ Mon Oncle d'Amérique / UK and USA: My American Uncle

        ◘ La Vie est un Roman / USA: Life Is a Bed of Roses

        ◘ L'Amour à Mort

1986 ◘ Mélo (also screenwriter, adapter, dialogist)

1989 ◘ I Want to Go Home

        ◘ Contre l'oubli / Ecrire contre l'Oubli / Against Ob­livion / Lest We Forget (documentary; segment "Pour Esteban Gonzalez, Cuba")

        ◘ Gershwin (video documentary)

        ◘ Smoking No Smoking

1997 ◘ On connaît la Chanson / UK and USA: Same Old Song (France / UK / Switzerland)

2003 ◘ Pas sur la bouche / UK and USA: Not on the Lips (also screenwriter, adapter, dialogist; France / Switzerland)

2006 ◘ Cœurs / Cuori / US festival: Private Fears in Pub­lic Places (France / Italy)

2008 ◘ Les Herbes folles