YANNE, JEAN

(1933-2003)

Actor, director, screenwriter, and producer. Born Jean Gouyé, Jean Yann started his career as a journalist and worked in radio and television. His debut acting role was in Alain Jessua'sLa Vie à l'Envers(1964). He landed significant roles inJean-Luc Godard'sWeek-End(1967) and inClaude Chabrol'sQue la bête meure(1969) andLe Boucher(1969). He later won best actor atCannesfor his performance in Maurice Pialat'sNous ne vieillirons pas ensemble(1971). He directed and starred inTout le monde il est beau,tout le monde il est gentil(1972), a satire on radio journalism. He later directed and played the lead in several films, includingMoi y en a vouloir des sous(1973),Les Chinois à Paris(1974),Chobizenesse(1975), andJe te tiens,tu me tiens par la barbichette(1979).

Yann was especially adept at satire and parody. His featureDeux heures moins le quart avant Jésus-Christwas one of the most popular films of 1982. Yanne plays a leading role in the film alongsideColucheandMichel Serrault, who is featured in many of his films. It was followed by the last film he directed,Liberté,égalité,chou-croute(1985). He subsequently played memorable characters inRégis Wargnier'sIndochine(1992), Rémy Duchemin'sFausto(1993), Christophe Gans'sLe Pacte des loups(2001), and Gilles Paquet-Brenner'sGomez&Tavares(2003).