Jean Seberg

Jean Seberg's "Breathless" Co-Star Jean-Paul Belmondo Dies

Jean-Paul Belmondo and Jean Seberg in Backfire (Échappement libre), directed by Jean Becker (1964).

Jean-Paul Belmondo, the French actor who shot to international fame in Jean-Luc Godard’s revolutionary New Wave classic Breathless with Jean Seberg has died aged 88.

Belmondo became one of the country’s biggest box-office stars in the 60s and 70s with films including Two Women , starring Sophia Loren, and That Man From Rio. His rugged yet boyish looks combined with the series of films he made with Godard--which included A Woman Is a Woman and Pierrot le Fou--made an indelible mark.

Born in 1933, Belmondo embarked on a brief amateur boxing career as a teenager. After contracting tuberculosis, he became interested in performing, and applied to and attended the elite National Academy of Dramatic Arts in 1952.

After graduation, Belmondo began acting in the theatre and in small film roles. One of them, Marc Allegret’s 1958 comedy Un Drôle de Dimanche, brought Belmondo to the attention of Godard who was then still a critic at Cahiers du Cinéma. Godard cast him in his 12-minute short, Charlotte and Her Boyfriend.

Jean-Paul Belmondo and Jean Seberg in Jean-Luc Godard's French New Wave classic "Breathless" (Photo by Raymond Cauchetier).

Before Godard could get a full-length feature off the ground, his fellow critic Claude Chabrol cast Belmondo in his 1959 thriller A Double Tour playing the murder victim’s boyfriend. But it was Godard’s film, shot in the late summer of 1959, that secured Belmondo’s (as well as Seberg’s and Godard’s) ascension into the small circle of members of the French New Wave.

Jean-Paul Belmondo and Jean Seberg reteamed in the comedy caper film Echappementlibre (Backfire) four years after Breathless to the enjoyment of many. Although they were friendly to each other and grateful for the success of Breathless, Belmondo and Seberg were never close friends. However, when Seberg passed away in 1979, Belmondo attended her graveside service at Montparnasse Cemetery as a tribute to his former co-star.

Garry McGee is the co-producer-director-writer of Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon (now in the distribution phase). He is the Emmy® nominated filmmaker behind the documentary The Last Wright (co-produced with Lucille Carra) and the author of Jean Seberg--Breathless, Neutralized: the FBI vs. Jean Seberg (with Jean Russell Larson) and The Films of Jean Seberg (with Michael Coates-Smith). 

The award-winning documentary Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon tells the true story of Hollywood and heartbreak, beginning when an unknown 17-year-old Iowa girl who beat out 18,000 actresses to play Saint Joan in Otto Preminger's 1957 film. The documentary goes behind the scenes of her rocky life in the international film spotlight, her civil rights activism that drew FBI attention, and her mysterious death in Paris in 1979 - deemed a "probable suicide." Produced by Emmy-nominated and award-winning filmmakers Garry McGee (McMarr Ltd.), and Kelly Rundle and Tammy Rundle (Fourth Wall Films).

Visit JeanSebergMovie for updates on the documentary, glimpses behind-the-scenes, all things Jean Seberg, and upcoming news on the film's release.

Jean Seberg's Widower Dennis Berry Dies

By Garry McGee

Jean Seberg’s widower, Dennis Berry, died on June 12 in Paris. He was 76.

Berry was married to Seberg from 1972 until her death in 1979. From 1982 he was married to actress Anna Karina until her death in 2019.

Born in the United States, Dennis Berry had lived in Paris most of his life. His father was the exiled Hollywood film director John Berry. In 1950, John Berry agreed to direct a short documentary on the Hollywood 10, a group of directors and writers who refused to cooperate with the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) in their pursuit of supposed Communist Party infiltration within the US film industry. John Berry was named as a communist by fellow director and former party member Edward Dmytryk, one of the Hollywood Ten who had been jailed for contempt of Congress for refusing to cooperate with HUAC. After being released from prison, Dmytryk had gone into exile in England, but he subsequently sought to reenter the Hollywood film industry and voluntarily testified before HUAC in April 1951, clearing himself by "naming names."

The Hollywood 10.

By naming John Berry and 25 other alleged communists, Dmytryk was then able to resume his Hollywood career. Berry was also named by ex-Communist Party member Frank Tuttle, who testified before HUAC in 1951 after returning from Austria, to clear his name and regain employment in Hollywood. Unable to secure work and unwilling to compromise his principles, Berry left the U.S. and resettled with his family in Paris.

Jean Seberg and Dennis Berry at the premiere of Last Tango in Paris in 1972.

Dennis Berry was introduced to Jean Seberg at a party in early 1972. A whirlwind courtship took place and the couple married in Las Vegas several weeks after meeting. Although separated, the couple remained married at the time of Seberg’s death in 1979. The couple had no children.

Dennis Berry appeared as an actor in various works including a brief bit in 1970’s “Promise at Dawn”, a biographical work of Seberg’s second husband novelist Romain Gary. Berry’s film shorts drew attention and acclaim in France, and in 1975 he directed his first full-length film “le grand delire” with Seberg and Isabelle Huppert. He continued to work in American and French film and television productions including “Highlander” with Marion Cotillard in 1992. His last film, “Savages”, was released in 2019.

Seberg’s first husband, film director and producer Francois Moreuil, died in 2017. Her second husband, Romain Gary, passed in 1980.

Garry McGee is the co-producer-director-writer of Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon (now in the distribution phase). He is the Emmy® nominated filmmaker behind the documentary The Last Wright (co-produced with Lucille Carra) and the author of Jean Seberg--Breathless, Neutralized: the FBI vs. Jean Seberg (with Jean Russell Larson) and The Films of Jean Seberg (with Michael Coates-Smith). 

The award-winning documentary Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon tells the true story of Hollywood and heartbreak, beginning when an unknown 17-year-old Iowa girl who beat out 18,000 actresses to play Saint Joan in Otto Preminger's 1957 film. The documentary goes behind the scenes of her rocky life in the international film spotlight, her civil rights activism that drew FBI attention, and her mysterious death in Paris in 1979 - deemed a "probable suicide." Produced by Emmy-nominated and award-winning filmmakers Garry McGee (McMarr Ltd.), and Kelly Rundle and Tammy Rundle (Fourth Wall Films).

Visit JeanSebergMovie for updates on the documentary, glimpses behind-the-scenes, all things Jean Seberg, and upcoming news on the film's release.

Jean Seberg Friend & American Indian Rights Activist Donald Wanatee Walks On

Garry McGee, Tammy Rundle and Kelly Rundle (outside photo) interviewing Meskwaki tribal council member Don Wanatee for Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon.

Meskwaki Elder Donald Wanatee, 88, has walked on.

As a child growing up in Marshalltown, Iowa, Jean Seberg was well aware of the Meskwaki Nation (Sac & Fox Tribe of the Mississippi--Red Earth People) settlement in nearby Tama. 

In September 1970, while visiting her parents following the burial of her daughter, Nina Hart Gary, actress Jean Seberg visited the Meskwaki Settlement and met Donald Wanatee for the first time. She saw the challenges the Tribe was facing, and asked what she could do to help.

"There were no jobs. No housing. No running water. It was extreme poverty," said Wanatee, who befriended Jean.

In 1972, a donation was made by Seberg for athletic equipment for the Meskwaki boys' basketball team.

Actress Jean Seberg.

Don talked about his friendship with Jean and her interest in the civil rights movement during an interview for the documentary Jean Seberg: Actress Activist Icon. 

"I think she was a real educated person. She was worried about what was happening in the state and in the world, especially concerning minorities. She was welcome to come here anytime."

Wanatee died in his home on the Meskwaki Settlement on April 21.

Dr. David Gradwohl, Professor Emeritus of Anthropology at Iowa State University, posted a tribute on Facebook: "...Don was a student of mine at Iowa State University in the early 1970s. Along with his wife, Priscilla Lasley Wanatee, they co-founded the United Native American Student Association (UNASA) with two other students; I was privileged to serve as UNASA's first faculty advisor. He was seminal in the establishment of the American Indian Studies Program at ISU. Donald went on to obtain his Masters of Social Work degree at the University of Iowa. Donald helped establish the national Coalition of Indian Controlled School Boards which eventually led to the Meskwaki creating their own schools at the Settlement without the interference of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Donald served several terms on the Meskwaki Tribal Council and mentored many young Native American men and women. His legacy will live on."

Des Moines Register, March 1968.

Jean Seberg did not live to witness the transformative conditions on the Settlement over the decades that followed her first meeting with friend and activist Donald Wanatee--the Meskwaki Nation's several successful enterprises, and work to provide health services, senior services, family services, youth services, higher education and housing to its people; its efforts for historic preservation, language preservation, and cultural celebration; the establishment of Meskwaki, Inc., a family of companies dedicated to the Meskwaki mission of developing and operating successful tribally-owned business enterprises; providing meaningful jobs and opportunities for its Tribal members; and providing its Tribe with an adequate income stream from its business operations so the Tribe may reach total economic self-sufficiency.

In 2013, nearly 70 years after eight Meskwaki men were trained to use their native language to provide secure battlefield communication, Donald Wanatee was among representatives of the Meskwaki Settlement to accept the Congressional Gold Medal on behalf of their ancestors who served as World War II “code talkers.”

"It was an honor to see the Meskwaki veterans recognized for their “historic role in World War II, using their native language as the basis for creating unbreakable codes for communicating messages in combat,” Sen. Tom Harkin said. In their efforts, they “exemplified the traditional Meskwaki values of bravery, honor and justice.”"

Donald Wanatee, a member of the Meskwaki tribal council at the time simply said, “At last.”

It was truly an honor for us to meet and talk with Don. Our deepest sympathy goes out to his family, his friends, and all who knew and loved him.

Documentary filmmakers Garry McGee and Kelly Rundle with Donald Wanatee (center).

Garry McGee is the co-producer-director-writer of Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon (now in the distribution phase). He is the Emmy® nominated filmmaker behind the documentary The Last Wright (co-produced with Lucille Carra) and the author of Jean Seberg--Breathless, Neutralized: the FBI vs. Jean Seberg (with Jean Russell Larson) and The Films of Jean Seberg (with Michael Coates-Smith). 

The award-winning documentary Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon tells the true story of Hollywood and heartbreak, beginning when an unknown 17-year-old Iowa girl who beat out 18,000 actresses to play Saint Joan in Otto Preminger's 1957 film. The documentary goes behind the scenes of her rocky life in the international film spotlight, her civil rights activism that drew FBI attention, and her mysterious death in Paris in 1979 - deemed a "probable suicide." Produced by Emmy-nominated and award-winning filmmakers Garry McGee (McMarr Ltd.), and Kelly Rundle and Tammy Rundle (Fourth Wall Films).

Visit JeanSebergMovie for updates on the documentary, glimpses behind-the-scenes, all things Jean Seberg, and upcoming news on the film's release.

How Accurately Are the Black Panthers Depicted in Movies? Former BPP Leader Elaine Brown Rates 6 Films

Elaine Brown during her interview for Jean Seberg: Actress. Activist. Icon.

Former Black Panther Party leader Elaine Brown was recently asked to rate six films involving the Black Panther Party for realism. Brown, a BBP contact and close friend of Jean Seberg's, provided a riveting interview for the new documentary Jean Seberg: Actress. Activist. Icon. (currently in distribution review). Among the films she rated is SEBERG starring Kristen Stewart released in 2019.

2021 Oscar nominated "Judas and the Black Messiah".

INSIDER noted: "Brown joined the Black Panther Party in 1968 and was the acting chair of the party from 1974 to 1977 while Black Panther cofounder Huey Newton was in self-imposed exile in Cuba. The Black Panther Party was an organization focused on creating a revolution for Black freedom, housing rights, the end of police violence against Black people, and other social causes. It was founded by Newton and Bobby Seale in 1966 in Oakland, California. Its ideology incorporated socialism, Marxism-Leninism, and Black nationalism. The party was active between 1966 and 1982 and had chapters across the United States. Brown discusses the accuracy of the portrayal of the Black Panther Party in films such as "Judas and the Black Messiah" (2021), "Forrest Gump" (1994), and "The Butler" (2013). Brown has personal connections to Seale, Fred Hampton, and Jean Seberg, and she comments on their depictions in "Panther" (1995), "The Trial of the Chicago 7" (2020), and "Seberg" (2019)."

"Seberg" (2019).

DISCLAIMER: Please note that the interview subtitles are inaccurate with numerous errors and misspellings. View Elaine Brown's INSIDER interview HERE!

Garry McGee is the co-producer-director-writer of Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon (now in the distribution phase). He is the Emmy® nominated filmmaker behind the documentary The Last Wright (co-produced with Lucille Carra) and the author of Jean Seberg--Breathless, Neutralized: the FBI vs. Jean Seberg (with Jean Russell Larson) and The Films of Jean Seberg (with Michael Coates-Smith). 

The award-winning documentary Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon tells the true story of Hollywood and heartbreak, beginning when an unknown 17-year-old Iowa girl who beat out 18,000 actresses to play Saint Joan in Otto Preminger's 1957 film. The documentary goes behind the scenes of her rocky life in the international film spotlight, her civil rights activism that drew FBI attention, and her mysterious death in Paris in 1979 - deemed a "probable suicide." Produced by Emmy-nominated and award-winning filmmakers Garry McGee (McMarr Ltd.), and Kelly Rundle and Tammy Rundle (Fourth Wall Films).

Visit JeanSebergMovie for updates on the documentary, glimpses behind-the-scenes, all things Jean Seberg, and upcoming news on the film's release.

Film Biography of Romain Gary in the Works

 

 

Note: The following news story was published today on a new film in pre-production by Living Time Motion Pictures on diplomat, writer and filmmaker Romain Gary. Nicolas Cage is on the wish list as the actor to portray Gary. While Jean is identified in the photo below as the "tragic suicide actress Jean Seberg" (the cause of death was inconclusive and officially recorded as "probable suicide"). Romain Gary committed suicide on December 2, 1980.

 

NEWS PROVIDED BY

FILM TIME Entertainment News

 

Living Time Motion Pictures is producing the Film Biography of War Hero Aviator, Literary Great, Top-Ranking Diplomat, Filmmaker and Man of Mystery Romain Gary.

 

Romain Gary was husband to tragic suicide actress Jean Seberg.

LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM, April 2, 2021 /EINPresswire.com/ -- At their virtual Easter press conference on April 1st, Living Time Motion Pictures announced a slate of new productions for 2021-2022, headed by the biographical film 'Man of Promise' about the life and work of multi-award-winning novelist Romain Gary. Four other features were also announced - including documentary 'In the Absence of the Author' as well as the forthcoming television series 'Crimes Past'. Attending the event, it was clear from the core focus being given to 'Man of Promise' that it is one of LTMP's major productions - they were fully at the ready with two poster designs for the movie whose full title was presented as 'Man of Promise: The Many Lives of Romain Gary'.

Nicholas Cage (sic) is the #1 choice of screenwriter Edouard d'Araille

Jack D. Goldstein, Vice-President of Production for Living Time Motion Pictures, announced that 'Man of Promise' would be going ahead on a $43 Million budget and will be shooting from 2021-2022 - partially dependent on Coronavirus restrictions. Some further details were provided about the financials into the film, including that England, France, Poland and Germany have staked investments into it, making it an international co-production. The involvement of Lithuania in the film was also explained, as it turns out Romain Gary was originally from Vilnius, having been born there in 1914. Other shooting locations were also named, including Paris, New York, Warsaw, Hollywood, Nice and Casablanca.

But who was Romain Gary? And why is a motion picture being made about his life now? 

Read the rest of the EIN news story HERE.

Garry McGee is the co-producer-director-writer of Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon (now in the distribution phase). He is the Emmy® nominated filmmaker behind the documentary The Last Wright (co-produced with Lucille Carra) and the author of Jean Seberg--Breathless, Neutralized: the FBI vs. Jean Seberg (with Jean Russell Larson) and The Films of Jean Seberg (with Michael Coates-Smith). 

The award-winning documentary Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon tells the true story of Hollywood and heartbreak, beginning when an unknown 17-year-old Iowa girl who beat out 18,000 actresses to play Saint Joan in Otto Preminger's 1957 film. The documentary goes behind the scenes of her rocky life in the international film spotlight, her civil rights activism that drew FBI attention, and her mysterious death in Paris in 1979 - deemed a "probable suicide." Produced by Emmy-nominated and award-winning filmmakers Garry McGee (McMarr Ltd.), and Kelly Rundle and Tammy Rundle (Fourth Wall Films).

Visit JeanSebergMovie for updates on the documentary, glimpses behind-the-scenes, all things Jean Seberg, and upcoming news on the film's release.

Actress Jessica Walter co-star of Jean Seberg's "Lilith" dies

Jessica Walter in her film debut, Lilith.

Jessica Walter, who appeared in Jean Seberg's Lilith, died on March 24 at the age of 80. Currently best known for her portrayal of Lucille Bluth on the sitcom Arrested Development and the voice of Malory Archer on the show Archer, the stage, film and television actress' acting career spanned over six decades with a Golden Globe-nominated performance in Clint Eastwood's directorial debut Play Misty for Me (1971), a Primetime Emmy win for "Amy Prentiss" (1974-1975), and ‘80s and '90s films like PCU and The Flamingo Kid.

Jean Seberg and Warren Beatty in Lilith.

She had more than 500 television show appearances including tele-films. Her motion picture film debut was in director Robert Rossen's Lilith (1964) in which she portrayed Warren Beatty's former girlfriend married to Gene Hackman in what was one his early film roles.

Walter leaves behind her daughter Brooke and a grandson. 

Garry McGee is the co-producer-director-writer of Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon (now in the distribution phase). He is the Emmy® nominated filmmaker behind the documentary The Last Wright (co-produced with Lucille Carra) and the author of Jean Seberg--Breathless, Neutralized: the FBI vs. Jean Seberg (with Jean Russell Larson) and The Films of Jean Seberg (with Michael Coates-Smith). 

The award-winning documentary Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon tells the true story of Hollywood and heartbreak, beginning when an unknown 17-year-old Iowa girl who beat out 18,000 actresses to play Saint Joan in Otto Preminger's 1957 film. The documentary goes behind the scenes of her rocky life in the international film spotlight, her civil rights activism that drew FBI attention, and her mysterious death in Paris in 1979 - deemed a "probable suicide." Produced by Emmy-nominated and award-winning filmmakers Garry McGee (McMarr Ltd.), and Kelly Rundle and Tammy Rundle (Fourth Wall Films).

Visit JeanSebergMovie for updates on the documentary, glimpses behind-the-scenes, all things Jean Seberg, and upcoming news on the film's release.

New York Time's reports Raymond Cauchetier, New Wave photographer, Dead at 101

Photo by Raymond Cauchetier. "Breathless" directed by Jean-Luc Godard. Starring Jean-Paul Belmondo and Jean Seberg. (1960)

From the NEW YORK TIMES

By Robert D. McFadden

Feb. 26, 2021

Raymond Cauchetier, the renowned French photographer who documented the revolutionary early films of Jean-Luc Godard, François Truffaut and other New Wave directors a half-century ago with now-classic portraits, only to go uncredited for decades, died on Monday in Paris. He was 101.

The cause was Covid-19, said Julia Gragnon, who runs La Galerie de l’Instant, the French gallery that represents Mr. Cauchetier.

A self-taught photographer who did not own a camera until he was in his 30s, Mr. Cauchetier for most of his life was known for pictures of Romanesque sculptures and architectural treasures of Europe and Southeast Asia, including thousands of images of the ancient temples at Angkor Wat, a portfolio mindlessly burned by the Khmer Rouge when it toppled the Cambodian government in 1975.

Read the rest of the article at: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/26/movies/raymond-cauchetier-dead.html

Garry McGee is the co-producer-director-writer of Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon (now in the distribution phase). He is the Emmy® nominated filmmaker behind the documentary The Last Wright (co-produced with Lucille Carra) and the author of Jean Seberg--Breathless, Neutralized: the FBI vs. Jean Seberg (with Jean Russell Larson) and The Films of Jean Seberg (with Michael Coates-Smith). 

The award-winning documentary Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon tells the true story of Hollywood and heartbreak, beginning when an unknown 17-year-old Iowa girl who beat out 18,000 actresses to play Saint Joan in Otto Preminger's 1957 film. The documentary goes behind the scenes of her rocky life in the international film spotlight, her civil rights activism that drew FBI attention, and her mysterious death in Paris in 1979 - deemed a "probable suicide." Produced by Emmy-nominated and award-winning filmmakers Garry McGee (McMarr Ltd.), and Kelly Rundle and Tammy Rundle (Fourth Wall Films).

Visit JeanSebergMovie for updates on the documentary, glimpses behind-the-scenes, all things Jean Seberg, and upcoming news on the film's release.

The Truth about Jean Seberg's "Fourth Husband"

Jean Seberg and Ahmed Hasni, 1979.

By Garry McGee
Author of Jean Seberg--Breathless, and Neutralized: the FBI vs. Jean Seberg

Jean Seberg was not married four times.

This myth has been perpetuated for over forty years now. Uncorrected. Reprinted. Inaccurate information re-reported by news outlets that the man Jean was living with at the time of her death, Ahmed Hasni, was her fourth husband.

Algerian Ahmed Hasni, 19 (he lied about his age and said he was 29), met Jean in France in April 1979. By July they were fighting and Jean fled the violent relationship as she began preparing to work on a film produced by Georges de Beauregard, La legion saute sur Kolwezi.

Hasni found Jean and the couple reunited and rented a small first-floor apartment at 125 rue de Longchamp on August 11th. Nineteen days later Hasni alerted the police that Jean and her car had disappeared. Her body was found ten days later on September 8th in the back seat of her white Raunault, parked on the rue du Genreral-Appert, just three blocks from her apartment.

Hasni sold all of Jean's possessions after her death, including her jewelry, paintings and artwork, and kept the money she had received from selling the apartment she owned at 108 rue du bac.  He also sold her letters to dealers, and portions of her writings to the top bidder (which happened to be an Italian magazine).

While this was happening, Hasni posed for newspapers and magazines, gazing at photographs of Jean.  And he claimed they were married. While the U.S. news media steered clear of him, they nonetheless identified him as her fourth husband--while making much of the fact that she wasn't divorced from her third husband Dennis Berry.  Jean knew that in the eyes of the law she was still married to Berry--a fact she did not deny.

Jean and husband Dennis Berry.

The truth of the matter is that Jean Seberg and Ahmed Hasni were not married.  Reverend Thomas Duggan had officiated a "blessing" of the couple at the American Church in Paris, and in correspondence with Reverend Duggan, he adds there was no such marriage or wedding ceremony that took place--in the eyes of the church of the law.

Instead it was prayer said over the couple, to keep their union safe.  Nothing more.  Although it may sound odd to some people, how does it compare to blessing a house or a ship or other material things?  Or to regular churchgoers and the prayers recited and the extensions of peace to one another? 

Had news media conducted basic research by contacting the American Church in Paris and inquiring about the allegation, they would have discovered Hasni was lying. Although the French media reciprocated after investigating, most of the American news media perpetuated the misinformation and the confusion continues today.

 
Jean with 2nd husband, Romain Gary. Jean with 1st husband, Francois Moreuil.

Jean was buried on September 14th, 1979 at Montparnasse Cemetery in Paris, with husband Dennis Berry and her two former husbands, Romain Gary and Francois Moreuil in attendance--each laying a single pink rose on her casket. Ahmed Hasni was also at the funeral.

None of Jean's personal belongings were ever recovered from Hasni. By 1982 his whereabouts were unknown.

Garry McGee is the co-producer-director-writer of Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon (now in the distribution phase). He is the Emmy® nominated filmmaker behind the documentary The Last Wright (co-produced with Lucille Carra) and the author of Jean Seberg--Breathless, Neutralized: the FBI vs. Jean Seberg (with Jean Russell Larson) and The Films of Jean Seberg (with Michael Coates-Smith). 

The award-winning documentary Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon tells the true story of Hollywood and heartbreak, beginning when an unknown 17-year-old Iowa girl who beat out 18,000 actresses to play Saint Joan in Otto Preminger's 1957 film. The documentary goes behind the scenes of her rocky life in the international film spotlight, her civil rights activism that drew FBI attention, and her mysterious death in Paris in 1979 - deemed a "probable suicide." Produced by Emmy-nominated and award-winning filmmakers Garry McGee (McMarr Ltd.), and Kelly Rundle and Tammy Rundle (Fourth Wall Films).

Visit JeanSebergMovie for updates on the documentary, glimpses behind-the-scenes, all things Jean Seberg, and upcoming news on the film's release.

The Forgotten Films of Jean Seberg

Jean Seberg in Le grand escroc directed by Jean-Luc Godard.

By Garry McGee

On practically every website and print article written on Jean Seberg, there have been errors about the number of films in which she has appeared.  In working with scholars as well as her family, the number stands at 37: 34 full-length features, two shorts, and one documentary which was produced while she was still living.  Post-death projects are not counted.

Jean's filmography appears on this website.

One error is the short film Le grand escroc [1963] and The Beautiful Swindlers.  Le grand escroc was directed by Jean-Luc Godard as a continuation of Jean's Breathless character who, four years later, is a TV reporter for a San Francisco station and is in Morocco investigating a story.

Le grand escroc was to be included with other short films under the title Les plus belles esroqueries de monde (The Greatest Swindlers in the World also known as The Beautiful Swindlers), but it was cut for various reasons depending on the source. Some claimed it was too weak of a film, others reported the running time of all the shorts together was too long.

In John Kreidl's book Jean-Luc Godard (Twayne Publishers, 1980), Kreidl writes Le grand escroc is the "clearest intellectually self-defining film Godard ever made... method and sentiment perfectly fuse.  In all his other films, they are at loggerheads."

The short was later shown on television and in a few international film festivals.  The second short Jean appeared in was her own Ballad for the Kid.

Jean Seberg in Les hautes solitudes, directed by Philippe Garrel.

Not a traditional film actress, Jean was in Les hautes solitudes, a silent black and white "experimental" film directed by Philippe Garrel of which is correctly listed in most of her filmographies.

A second film by Garrel entitled Les bleu des origines (The Blue of the Beginning) [1978] that has been listed in her filmography is arguable.  Jean allowed Garrel use of her apartment for filming; however, she is not recognizable in any of the scenes (which would at least count as a cameo appearance and inclusion in her filmography). And, she is not listed in the film credits as being a performer in the film.

Nevertheless, she did help Garrel with the use of her apartment, if not her name and talent.

La légion saute sur Kolwezi (The Legion Parachutes into Kolwezi also known as Operation Leopard) was the film Jean was working on at the time of her death.  She had scenes filmed in Africa and returned to Paris for additional work in September.  After her death, the scenes were reshot with actress Mimsy Farmer, and Jean's performance in the film was not destroyed, but locked away without the public ever viewing the footage.

Since Jean does not appear in the finished film (as arranged by producer Georges de Beauregard and director Raoul Coutard), her last work is not considered.  That distinction would be Die Wildente (The Wild Duck) which had its American release in 1977.

The one documentary film listed in her filmography is the little-known work The Girls, shot in 1968. The work was intended to be part of a series and was directed by John Crome. According to Crome, the production company folded before distribution.

In The Girls, Jean talks about making films in Europe and comparing them with the Hollywood method.  Other leading names included Joseph Janni (who was included because Julie Christie was unavailable), and Jane Fonda.  Crome noted Jean was a bigger name than Fonda at the time.

Of the 34 feature films Jean appeared in a majority were American and French productions.  But there were also British, Italian, Spanish, and German ones, and a range of genres and techniques which added to the uniqueness of her resume.  There were comedies and dramas, "old" and "new" directors, writers and actors.

From silents to musicals, experimentals to standards, westerns to thrillers, love stories to suspense, and at times crossing one into another.  Although Jean had hoped for another groundbreaking film like Breathless, she knew she was fortunate to have had that experience. Many actors do not even have that.

Garry McGee is the co-producer-director-writer of Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon (now in the distribution phase). He is the Emmy® nominated filmmaker behind the documentary The Last Wright (co-produced with Lucille Carra) and the author of Jean Seberg--Breathless, Neutralized: the FBI vs. Jean Seberg (with Jean Russell Larson) and The Films of Jean Seberg (with Michael Coates-Smith). 

The award-winning documentary Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon tells the true story of Hollywood and heartbreak, beginning when an unknown 17-year-old Iowa girl who beat out 18,000 actresses to play Saint Joan in Otto Preminger's 1957 film. The documentary goes behind the scenes of her rocky life in the international film spotlight, her civil rights activism that drew FBI attention, and her mysterious death in Paris in 1979 - deemed a "probable suicide." Produced by Emmy-nominated and award-winning filmmakers Garry McGee (McMarr Ltd.), and Kelly Rundle and Tammy Rundle (Fourth Wall Films).

Visit JeanSebergMovie for updates on the documentary, glimpses behind-the-scenes, all things Jean Seberg, and upcoming news on the film's release.

Happy 82nd Birthday, Jean Seberg

Courtesy Jean Seberg Collection, Orpheum Theater Center.

Today, November 13th, we honor Jean Seberg on what would have been her 82nd birthday.

Author Garry McGee wrote: "From fashion to the manipulation of the news media, she has been either in the forefront or a sidenote, but nonetheless a name that resonates. That is something no one could have predicted. So much has been said, written, reported, and unfortunately fictionalized about Jean Seberg. Her story was filled with unbelievable peaks, and devastating lows. She was not a person who forced herself into the limelight to take away from others who were shining. She believed film directors were the boss, and she gave them the performance they wanted rather than, many times, trusting her own instincts. Her activism was low-key, and she did not use her involvement in such to further her career or public standing. She was a caring, intelligent person. We need more people like the true Jean Seberg. She is sorely missed by many. It's important for those who never had the opportunity to know her to understand what is truth and what is fiction."

The award-winning documentary Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon tells the true story of Hollywood and heartbreak, beginning when an unknown 17-year-old Iowa girl who beat out 18,000 actresses to play Saint Joan in Otto Preminger's 1957 film. The documentary goes behind the scenes of her rocky life in the international film spotlight, her civil rights activism that drew FBI attention, and her mysterious death in Paris in 1979 - deemed a "probable suicide." Produced by Emmy-nominated and award-winning filmmakers Garry McGee (McMarr Ltd.), and Kelly Rundle and Tammy Rundle (Fourth Wall Films).

Visit JeanSebergMovie for updates on the documentary, glimpses behind-the-scenes, all things Jean Seberg, and upcoming news on the film's release.