Jacques Rozier (; 10 November 1926 – 31 May 2023) was a French film director and screenwriter. He was one of the lesser-known members of the French New Wave movement and has collaborated with Jean-Luc Godard. Three of his films have been screened at the Cannes Film Festival. In 1978, he was a member of the jury at the 28th Berlin International Film Festival.
Life
Rozier was born in Paris on 10 November 1926. He attended the Institut des hautes études cinématographiques (IDHEC), where he graduated from in 1947, and quickly became known for his work in short films. In 1955, he directed his first short film, Back to School (Rentrée des classes). It was followed by Blue Jeans, a warm portrait of French youth after World War II. His next two short films, Paparazzi and Le Parti des choses, were documentaries about the filming of Contempt (Le Mépris), the famous film by Jean-Luc Godard. Paparazzi offers a candid look at the intense media atention surrounding one of cinema’s biggest stars and is regarded as an early cinematic exploration of the rise of celebrity culture and the loss of privacy that often accompanies international fame.
Rozier also worked as an assistant on film sets, including for Jean Renoir’s French Cancan in 1955. He later worked at the Buttes-Chaumont television studios. This job led him to make documentary films, which helped support him between feature films. Although his feature films often received strong critical praise, most of them were not commercial successes.
Career
His first film, Adieu Philippine, was released in 1962 and it premiered in the inaugural edition of Cannes Critics' Week in the same year. Featuring a young amateur cast scouted on the streets of Paris, this bittersweet story about French youth during the Algerian War received very positive reactions from both critics and audiences.
Style
Rozier was known for his unconventional storytelling and preference for alternative cinematic paths.
A marriage to Michèle O'Glor ended in divorce. They had a son who died in 2022.