Robert Bresson Video | Clips from Films Directed and Interviews

Robert Bresson (pronounced [ʁɔbɛʁ bʁɛˈsɔ̃] in French; 25 September 1901 – 18 December 1999) was a French film director known for his spiritual, ascetic style. Notably contributed to the art of film and influenced the French New Wave, he is often referred as the most highly regarded French filmmaker after Jean Renoir, as Jean-Luc Godard quotes “Robert Bresson is French cinema, as Dostoevsky is the Russian novel and Mozart is the German music." Bresson was born at Bromont-Lamothe, Puy-de-Dôme, the son of Marie-Élisabeth (née Clausels) and Léon Bresson. Little is known of his... MORE

Robert Bresson (pronounced [ʁɔbɛʁ bʁɛˈsɔ̃] in French; 25 September 1901 – 18 December 1999) was a French film director known for his spiritual, ascetic style. Notably contributed to the art of film and influenced the French New Wave, he is often referred as the most highly regarded French filmmaker after Jean Renoir, as Jean-Luc Godard quotes “Robert Bresson is French cinema, as Dostoevsky is the Russian novel and Mozart is the German music." Bresson was born at Bromont-Lamothe, Puy-de-Dôme, the son of Marie-Élisabeth (née Clausels) and Léon Bresson. Little is known of his early life, and the year of his birth – 1901 or 1907 – varies depending on the source. He was educated at Lycée Lakanal in Sceaux, Hauts-de-Seine, close to Paris, and turned to painting after graduating. Three formative influences in his early life seem to have a mark on his films - Catholicism, art and his experiences as a prisoner of war. Initially also a photographer, Bresson made his first short film, Les affaires publiques (Public Affairs) in 1934. During World War II, he spent over a year in a prisoner-of-war camp - an experience which informs Un condamné à mort s'est échappé ou Le vent souffle où il veut LESS