François Leterrier

Though François Leterrier's career evolved from assistant director to writer and director, he left an important mark in cinema with an acting role as the leading man in Robert Bresson's immortal classic Un condamné à mort s'est échappé ou Le vent souffle où il veut (1956), as Fontaine, the man who skillfully tries several ways and attempts to escape from prison during World War II. He only acted once more in Resnais' Stavisky... (1974) in the role of poet André Malraux. After his work for Bresson, he was second assistant director in two films directed by Louis Malle: Ascenseur pour l'échafaud (1958) and Les amants (1958), then assistant director in four other films. His directorial debut was in _Les mauvais coups (1961), a film starring Simone Signoret. In the following 30 years, Leterrier directed 20 projects in between theatrical films, TV movies and series, which include Un roi sans divertissement (1963), La chasse royale (1969), the final film of the Emmanuelle franchise in the 1970's Goodbye Emmanuelle (1977), _Rat Race (1980)_ and _Slices of Life (1985)_. He is the father of director Louis Leterrier, famous for directing two films of The Transporter franchise. He passed away on 3 December, 2020.