Life and Career
Ozon was born in Paris, France. Having studied directing at the French film school La Femis, Ozon made several short movies like Une robe d'été (1996) and Scènes de lit (1998) that already display his defining style. His motion picture directing debut was Sitcom (also 1998), which was well received by both critics and audiences.
After the Fassbinder adaptation Gouttes d'eau sur pierres brûlantes (2000) came the movie which made his name outside France, 8 femmes, starring such icons of French cinema as Catherine Deneuve, Fanny Ardant, Isabelle Huppert and Emmanuelle Béart. With its quirky mix of musical numbers and murder mystery and a production design harking back to 1950s Hollywood melodramas such as those directed by Douglas Sirk, this film became a huge commercial success.
In 2003, Swimming Pool starring Charlotte Rampling and Ludivine Sagnier was released, considered by Ozon a very personal film that gives insight into the difficult process of writing a novel or screenplay.
In 2004, he directed the movie 5x2. In 2005, he debuted Time To Leave at various film festivals worldwide.
Ozon's first full English-language production Angel starring Romola Garai (I Capture the Castle, Vanity Fair) was released in early 2007. The film, based on a novel by British writer Elizabeth Taylor, follows the story of a poor girl who climbs Edwardian England's social ladder by becoming a romance writer. The film was shot at Tyntesfield House and Estate near Bristol, at other UK locations and in Belgium.
While filming Angel, Ozon developed a strong friendship with Romola Garai and now calls her his 'muse.'
His film Le Refuge had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival September 2009.
On 19 December 2011, he was announced as being on the jury for the 62nd Berlin International Film Festival, scheduled to be held in February 2012.
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