Encyclopedia of French Film Directors

416 • FREESS, EDMOND
USA: Queen of Spades, also editor; 1945 Le Père Chopin
/ L’Oncle du Canada, also editor, France / Canada). He
also was an editor (1935 Bourrasque / Moghreb, Pierre
Billon; 1936 Les Jumeaux de Brighton, also co-screenwriter,
Claude Heymann; 1937 Il est un petit Pays, documentary,
René Leclère; Au Service du Tsar, Pierre Billon;
1938 La principessa Tarakanova / Tarakanowa / UK:
Betrayal / USA: Princess Tarakanova, Fedor Ozep, Mario
Soldati, Italy / France; 1952 Le Banquet des Fraudeurs /
Het Banket der Smokkelaars / Das Bankett der Schmuggler,
Henri Storck, Belgium / West Germany; 1975 Le
Bol d’Air, short, Charles Nemes) and a screenwriter
or dialogist (1933 Amour et Publicité, short, as author
of original idea, Leo Mittler; 1984 Panther Squad, Peter
Knight = Pierre Chevalier; 1986 Les Amazones du
Temple d’Or / US DVD: Golden Temple Amazons, James
Gartner = Jesús Franco; 1987 Maniac Killer, Frank
Drew White = Andrea Bianchi; Commando Mengele
/ USA: Angel of Death, A. M. Franck White = Andrea
Bianchi; Dark Mission / Operacion Cocaina, Jess Franco,
France / Spain). From 1940 to 1945, he settled in the
USA, where he directed information shorts for the
“France Libre” (The Free France) and education fi lms
for the U.S. Navy.
Filmography
1935 Le Rapide 713 (short)
1948 Neuf Garçons, un Coeur (also screenwriter, codialogist)
1950 La Danse solitaire (short)
Enfantillages (short)
1959 Zurück aus dem Weltall / Und immer ruft das
Herz / Avaruusraketilla rakkauteen / Rymdraket
till kärleken / USA: Moon Wolf (also screenwriter;
West Germany / Finland)
1975 Une Vierge pour Saint-Tropez / Video: Scandale
à Saint-Tropez / La ragazzina perversa (as Gregory
Freed; also co-adapter, co-dialogist; shot
in 1973; France / Italy)
FREESS, EDMOND (1938, Paris, France–)
From 1953 to 1957, he studied at the Ecole des Arts
Appliqués and the Beaux-Arts. At age eighteen, he
exhibited his fi rst gouaches. He began his fi lm career
as an art director in 1965. A fi lm director since 1968,
he also shot about thirty commercials for French and
Italian TV. Among his other activities, he notably was
a set designer (1965–1968), co-adapter (1980 Tout
dépend des Filles, Pierre Fabre), and actor (1968 La
Bande à Bonnot / La banda Bonnot, uncredited, Philippe
Fourastié, France / Italy; 1972 Mandrin, 6 52' TV series,
Philippe Fourastié). Since 1976, he has dedicated
himself to painting.
Filmography
1969 L’Examen du Petit (short; also actor)
1970 Comme Larrons en Foire (short; also screenwriter,
dialogist, actor)
1972 Le Trèfl e à Cinq Feuilles (also co-screenwriter,
co-dialogist)
1976 Deux Imbéciles heureux (also screenwriter;
shot in 1973)
FRESNAY, GUY DU
Filmography
1912 Le Démon du Foyer
1918 Le Jardin du Pirate
La Cathédrale merveilleuse
1920 De la Coupe aux Lèvres
L’Ami des Montagnes
1921 Les Ailes s’ouvrent
1922 Margot
1923 Frou-Frou
FRESNAY, PIERRE (April 4, 1897, Paris, France–
January 9, 1975, Neuilly-sur-Seine, Hauts-de-Seine,
France)
One of the fi nest French stage and fi lm actors he made
his theatrical debut in 1912 and joined the Comédie-
Française in 1919. From 1915 (Quand même, Henri
Fescourt, Henri Pouctal) to 1960 (Les Vieux de la Vieille /
UK: The Old Guard, Gilles Grangier), he played in about
seventy movies, including the one he directed.
Filmography
1939 Le Duel (also actor)
FRIEDMAN, SERGE (September 17, 1930, Paris,
France–)
The son of furrier workers, he became a fi lm addict
at age fi ve after seeing his fi rst fi lm (a Charlie Chaplin
comic short). Having graduated from the IDHEC,
he started as an assistant director (1956 Gervaise,
René Clément, France / Italy; Michel Strogoff / Michele
Strogoff / Der Kurier der Zaren / USA: Michael Strogoff,
Carmine Gallone, France / Italy / West Germany / Yugoslavia;
1958 Bonjour Tristesse, Otto Preminger, USA;
Les Tricheurs / Peccatori in blue jeans / UK: Youthful Sinners
/ USA: The Cheaters, Marcel Carné, France / Italy).