Notre Dame

Director

Valérie Donzelli

Valérie Donzelli was born in Épinal, France, in 1973. At 19, she began studying architecture in Paris, which she gave up after a short time to study acting at the city's conservatory. After small roles in short films and television, Donzelli took on her first leading role in Sandrine Veysset's "Martha... Martha" (2001), for which she was awarded the Prix Michel Simon as best actress. 

Donzelli made her feature film directorial debut in 2009 with "La reine des pommes". In 2011 she made the autobiographically tinged film drama "Life Belongs to Us", which received numerous film awards. Donzelli was nominated for four Césars, among others.

In 2016, Valérie Donzelli was jury president of the Semaine de la Critique, a series organised in parallel to the Cannes International Film Festival. She is the mother of two children and is separated from her father, actor Jérémie Elkaïm, with whom she continues to work on many film projects.

Filmography (Selection)

2019    "Notre Dame" (Writer, Director, Leading Actress)
2015    "Marguerite & Julien" (Writer, Director)
2012    "Hand in Hand" (Writer, Director, Leading Actress)
2011    "Das Leben gehört uns" (Writer, Director, Leading Actress)
2009    "The Queen of Hearts" (Writer, Director, Leading Actress)