French actor Jacques Perrin died, remembered for “Cinema Paradiso” and “The Choristas”

The French artist Jacques Perrin, who participated, in his long film career, in major blockbusters such as The Choristas and Cinema Paradiso, died this Thursday in Paris at the age of 80.

Perrin's filmography features performances in more than 70 films, participated in plays and directed documentaries and produced several feature films by Costa Gravas or Jean-Jacques Annaud.

Born in Paris in 1941, he appeared in his first film when he was just five years old and, in the late 1950s, he began a professional career that, over the years, made him a popular face on screens in France.

Costa Gavras, Vittorio de Seta, Jacques Demy, Pierre Schoendoerffer, Giuseppe Tornatore and Agnès Varda had him at their command, in films such as Le Crabe-tamour, L'honneur du capitaine, The Little Ladies of Rochefort, Peau d'âne, Cinema Paradiso and The Choristas, which had a great blockbuster international. In 1997 he won the César Award for Best Producer for the documentary Microcosmos: People of the Grass.

“The family is deeply saddened to report the passing of filmmaker Jacques Perrin, who died on Thursday, April 21 in Paris. He died peacefully,” his family announced in a statement sent to the AFP agency by his son, Mathieu Simonet.

Entered the Academy of Fine Arts in 2019 and Commander of the Legion of Honor, Jacques Perrin was immersed in the world of theater from a young age, before embarking on a career in film with small roles in Marcel Carné's films, such as Les Portes de la nuit (1946) or Les Tricheurs (1958). In 1960, in Valerio Zurlini's La chica de la suitcase, he got his first leading role.

Jacques Perrin worked with France's most famous directors throughout his career, before becoming a producer with the creation of his company Reggane Films (which later became Galatée Films). He had also directed documentaries, especially Le Peuple migrateur - in which he puts his voice - in 2001, and Océans in 2010.

“I can't believe it, we were all attached to him,” said his nephew Christophe Barratier.

Jacques Perrin was the father of three children, Mathieu Simonet, born in 1975, Maxence Perrin, born in 1995, and Lancelot Perrin, born in 1999.

(With information from AFP and EFE)

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