Catherine Deneuve

Catherine Fabienne Dorléac, known professionally as Catherine Deneuve, is a French actress as well as an occasional singer, model and producer. She gained recognition for her portrayal of icy, aloof and mysterious beauties for various directors, including Luis Buñuel, François Truffaut and Roman Polanski. In 1985, she succeeded Mireille Mathieu as the official face of Marianne, France's national symbol of liberty. Deneuve, who has been nominated for over a dozen César Awards, won the prestigious honor for her performances in Régis Wargnier's Indochine (1992) and Truffaut's The Last Metro (1980), for which she also won the David di Donatello Award for Best Foreign Actress.

Deneuve made her film debut in 1957 and first came to prominence in Jacques Demy's 1964 musical The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, before going on to star for Polanski in Repulsion (1965), for Demy again in The Young Girls of Rochefort (1967) and Donkey Skin (1970), and for Buñuel in Belle de Jour (1967) and Tristana (1970).

She was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Actress for Belle de Jour, and the Academy Award for Best Actress for Indochine. She also won the 1998 Volpi Cup for Best Actress at the Venice Film Festival for Place Vendôme. Other notable English-language films include The April Fools (1969), Hustle (1975), The Hunger (1983) and Dancer in the Dark (2000).