Encyclopedia of French Film Directors

1981 Dickie-Roi (TV miniseries; also co-screenwriter)
1982 Julien Fontanes, Magistrat (episode “Cousin
Michel”)
1984 Julien Fontanes, Magistrat (episodes “La Pêche
au Vif,” “Week-End au Paradis”)
1989 Julien Fontanes, Magistrat (episode “Les Portes
s’ouvrent”)
LEFRANC, JEAN-MARTIAL
After being a publisher of comics and an editor of
video games, he began a new career as a fi lm producer
(1992 Le Fils du Requin, Agnès Merlet, France /
Belgium / Luxembourg; 1994 E pericoloso sporgersi /
Les Dimanches de Permission, Nae Caranfi l, Romania
/ France, shot in 1992; 1995 Tom est tout seul, Fabien
Onteniente, shot in 1993), executive producer
(1997 Les Mille Merveilles de l’Univers, Jean-Michel
Roux; 1999 Wing Commander, Chris Roberts, USA /
Luxembourg), and director.
Filmography
2006 L’Equilibre de la Terreur (also screenwriter,
producer)
2008 Une Vie éternelle (documentary; also screenwriter)
LÉGITIMUS, PASCAL (March 13, 1959, Paris,
France–)
The grandson of actress Darling Légitimus (1907–
1999) and the son of actor Théo Légitimus (b. 1929),
he was a member of famous comedy team Les Inconnus,
which was created in 1984 and became popular
with French audiences in the early 1990s thanks to
the parodical TV show La Télé des Inconnus. He made
his fi rst fi lm appearance in a short (1982 Anton Muze,
Philippe Setbon) and played in about thirty movies.
He also co-wrote the screenplay of several of them
(1985 Le Téléphone sonne toujours Deux Fois, Jean-
Pierre Vergne; 1997 L’Homme idéal, as co-dialogist
only, Xavier Gélin).
Filmography
1997 Abus de Méfi ance (short)
2000 Antilles-sur-Seine (also screenwriter, dialogist,
actor, composer)
LEGRAND, GILLES (October 16, 1958, Paris,
France–)
LEGRAND, MICHEL • 621
After being an assistant production manager (1982 La
Truite / USA: The Trout, Joseph Losey) and fi rst assistant
director (1984 Nemo / Dream One, Arnaud Sélignac),
he created his own production company, Epithète
Films, and became a delegate producer (1992 Blanc
d’Ebène, Cheik Doukouré, France / Guinea; 1994 Tombés
du Ciel / En transito, Philippe Lioret, France / Spain;
1996 Ridicule, Patrice Leconte; 1997 Tenue correcte
exigée, Philippe Lioret; 1999 Je règle mon Pas sur le
Pas de mon Père, Rémi Waterhouse; 2000 La Veuve de
Saint-Pierre / The Widow of St. Pierre, Patrice Leconte,
France / Canada; 2001 Vertiges de l’Amour, Lionel
Chouchan; 2002 Le Nouveau Jean-Claude, Didier Tronchet;
2004 Dagora—Ouvrons-les Yeux, documentary,
Patrice Leconte; 2005 Les Âmes grises, Yves Angelo;
2008 Musée haut, Musée bas, Jean-Michel Ribes; Micmacs
à Tire-Larigot, Jean-Pierre Jeunet).
Filmography
1994 Ad vitam eternam (short; also screenwriter,
dialogist)
2004 Malabar Princess (also co-screenwriter, codialogist)
2008 La Jeune Fille et les Loups (also co-screenwriter,
co-dialogist)
LEGRAND, JEAN-RENÉ (June 23, 1899, Paris,
France–Deceased)
A production manager (1934 Le Voyage de Monsieur
Perrichon, Jean Tarride; 1936 La Dernière Valse, Leo Mittler),
he sporadically directed fi lms.
Filmography
1933 Le Chant du Destin
1946 Au Temps des Fiacres (short)
1952 Un Jour avec vous
LEGRAND, MICHEL (February 24, 1932, Paris,
France–)
The son of composer and bandleader Raymond
Legrand (1908–1974), he entered the Paris Conservatory
at age eleven. Having graduated with a
fi rst prize for solfège the following year and a fi rst
prize for harmony at age seventeen, he started his
professional career as an accompanist for famous
French singers (Juliette Gréco, Henri Salvador, Catherine
Sauvage, Maurice Chevalier, Zizi Jeanmaire). He
soon began writing successful songs. In 1952, he had
his fi rst contact with cinema as an actor (1952 Son
Dernier Noël, Jacques Daniel-Norman). From 1952