Filmmaker Barbet Schroeder (b. 1941) began his career as a producer in French cinema during the 1960s, working with directors Éric Rohmer and Jean-Luc Godard and producing some of the best-known films of the French New Wave movement. By the time he started collaborating with Jacques Rivette in the early 1970s, he had already debuted as a film director with “More” (1969) which showcased the music from Pink Floyd. His latest and most personal feature to date was “Amnesia” (2015), starring Marthe Keller.

Over the years, Mr. Schroeder became a highly respected filmmaker of world cinema with an impressive body of work, ranging from several low-budget independent features he did in Europe and documentaries (including his renowned trilogy of evil) to his films for major Hollywood studios. The latter include “Reversal of Fortune” (1990) which earned Jeremy Irons an Academy Award, his remake of the film noir classic “Kiss of Death” (1995), the intense crime drama “Before and After” (1996) starring Meryl Streep and Liam Neeson, and the Hitchcockian thriller “Murder by Numbers” (2002) with Sandra Bullock and Ryan Ghosling in the leading roles.

As the guest of honor at the latest and 38th edition of the Festival International du Film d’Amiens, I got to meet Mr. Schroeder for a one-on-one and talk about his career.

Mr. Schroeder, you direct, produce, write and act…

…well, the acting doesn’t really count because I’m not interested in acting myself. I only do it for a few friends who ask me to, and it enables me to learn more about how to direct. So this is just a part of training for me. When I am on a set as an actor, I can see and feel what a director should or shouldn’t say to an actor and how he tries to explain what he wants. It is interesting to find a good system—if it exists at all—and see how important it is to treat an actor to the best of your abilities. So in order to be aware of all that, you have to experience it, and then I think you become a much better director.

You began your career as a filmmaker in the 1960s, in the midst of the French New Wave. Looking back now, how important was this movement to French and international cinema?

It was a revolution in France, pretty scary even for the older filmmakers. From one year to another, they didn’t have any work anymore. There was a new generation that started, and suddenly, it was not the fashion to do the kind of movies that were so respected and well-done. Sometimes it was not justified, it was even a loss, but that’s what happens when you have a revolution. And from France, it spread all over the world. The New Wave was a mixture of technology and of art transforming itself. It was like a painting at the time of the expressionists: you could go out and start painting under the sky. There were new possibilities, and those were reflected in the paintings. The technique has a lot to do with the aesthetical changes.

It’s not a coincidence that the New Wave had its roots in France because France was and still is one of the most cinephile countries in the world, isn’t it?

Yes, but the main reason was the existence of Henri Langlois, an extraordinary man who started the preservation of movies very early, and he was showing everything at the [French] Cinematheque. Generations of French filmmakers were all formed at that informal school, because they were just spectators who became film buffs and eventually filmmakers who were going to see movies that they couldn’t see anywhere else. This really influenced all the French filmmakers: they were so passionate about the cinema that they became critics, and they were defending the things that they loved—there weren’t there to attack movies. Very often when you hear the word ‘critic,’ you think of the bad things, but working as a critic can also be an art of loving, and that’s all Cahiers du Cinéma did, except for a few attacks by François Truffaut on the old cinema, the cinéma de qualité that he didn’t agree with. But otherwise, they wanted to show what they had discovered, that the style of the movie was important, and that the directing was more important than the screenplay—while the classic French cinema was renowned for its very brilliant dialogue. So that’s it, it all started at the Cinematheque.

That’s where it also began for you?

Absolutely. From the age of thirteen or fourteen, I was at the Cinematheque every night.

When you started working in America in the late 1980s, did you have the same creative freedom you had experienced in Europe?

Yes, I like to think so; I even had more freedom because I was allowed to do things that I couldn’t do in France. So it was very exhilarating to be able and do the movies exactly the way I wanted to with extraordinary actors. The Americans have a different approach, so you have to learn how to deal with a studio. But other than that, the freedom is there, you only have to know how to operate when you work with and for a powerful studio. I was very well protected because I produced all of my movies—the name producer means nothing, but it does imply that you have more power. In the American system, a producer is not the same as in Europe because here he is someone without whom the movie wouldn’t exist: he puts up his own money, or he creates a financial structure so the movie can be made. In America, the studio hires someone to do this work. The main thing in America is that you have to go through the system of previews, and they are very important for a film director. You get to see your movie with an audience; you can see how people react, where you want them to laugh, or you have a gripping scene, and everybody starts moving on their seats… You know right away if something you wanted to achieve did or didn’t work, and you can correct it if necessary. It’s like a play: first, they go it all over the country before it opens on Broadway. In the beginning, they keep fixing things, so there’s no reason why we shouldn’t be able to do the same with movies. But if you don’t have enough power as a film director, or if the studio has too much power, and if they have too many ideas on how to fix the movie, then it becomes difficult.

Did you enjoy working in the studios, shooting on the sound stages and back lots?

Of course, everything is possible. It’s magic; you can do all the shots you need, you work with the best set designers, best lightning… There are so many things you don’t have to worry about. So if the money is there, it’s a wonderful place to work, and I’ve always been more than happy to do it. And especially today, with the blue screen, you can create absolutely anything in a studio.

I always considered you as an actor’s director. How do you manage to get the best performances out of them?

I have to be convinced that he or she is the best for that particular part. And suppose the studio suggests hiring someone else, or he starts working on another project and is no longer available, then I don’t do the movie. That has happened a lot to me. But if it works out and I get who I want, then the actors are the most important people to me, because they are the ones in front of the camera the whole time. You can see their psychology, their emotions, what they give in a scene, is like the birth of life, the most important magical moment. That’s also why I also take enormous care of every little part; that’s the key. I’m very closely involved in my casting, and for a supporting role, I sometimes see up to fifty people. And when you’re casting, seeing them one after the other, it happens that you change the character slightly because you get new ideas.

Do you sometimes have to make compromises when you’re working for the studios?

Certainly not about the casting. When I started working on “Single White Female” [1992], I wanted Bridget Fonda and Jennifer Jason Leigh. It was very important that each one of them was playing the part I had in mind for either one of them. They were both young enough to play characters whose personalities were not formed completely in order to be able for one character to influence the other, take over her personality and become the other. Then it’s believable. Most studios, however, want to make films with stars, and actors often become stars when they are well in their thirties. So when I had the screenplay of “Single White Female,” I talked about it to the studio, but they wanted big stars—and they were really interested [laughs]. But I didn’t want any big names; I wanted Bridget Fonda and Jennifer Jason Leigh, both young and fresh new actresses. And now, I don’t remember exactly how I did it, but I think I postponed everything, the meetings with the studio, the appointments, until they said after about six months, ‘Okay, you can do your movie with your two actresses.’ So without Bridget and Jennifer, there was no movie. And the film worked fine: when you get the right actors, you just know it will work. We all knew what we wanted, and Bridget and Jennifer were simply fabulous.

Did you ever have to fight for a movie?

“Barfly” [1987] took me seven years [laughs]. Nobody believed that it could be entertaining or life-affirming. I guess I had the same problem as they had with “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” [1975]. Nobody wanted to believe that you could make a heartwarming film, set in a mental hospital, and so for years, nobody wanted to finance that film. And I had a similar problem. “Barfly” was about alcoholism; it was too depressing, so that was a tough one to pull out. But I knew it would be great, I wanted to do it, and I kept trying. Actually, there’s also a dark side to it. At one point, nobody in Los Angeles wanted to do it because one month before we started shooting, the producer didn’t want to do it any longer, and so I asked him, ‘Can I take this screenplay, these two actors [Mickey Rourke and Faye Dunaway], and the budget—which was only $1.7 million—to fifty-five people in this town who are in a situation of financing a project overnight? Maybe one of them is interested, and we can save the movie.’ And then nobody wanted to do it [laughs]. The film was all set, ready to go, and nobody wanted it. That was a very good lesson for me, but then you also need to be lucky: though the producer didn’t want to finance it any longer, the project was kept alive for some time, and then somebody said, ‘Yes, I am interested.’ So they started negotiating, and since the film was still in preparation and being paid for, for any new producer, it wouldn’t cost that much to do the movie.

But then “Reversal of Fortune” [1990] came along, earning Jeremy Irons an Academy Award as Best Actor, and you were nominated as Best Director. This film gave a boost to your Hollywood career?

Absolutely, that was a turning point in my career. After that, I could easily have picked up prestigious Hollywood projects with big stars. But then “Single White Female” came along, and so I did something that no normal director would do in a situation like that. But I honestly don’t like those big Hollywood movies; I’m not too attracted to those projects, I’d prefer, for example, the B movies that I always liked so much, and I liked the theme of “Single White Female.” It was a thriller, and for that type of film, you won’t get Oscars or a big reputation. Besides it wasn’t a prestigious project at all. But it was very important for me, and I’m very proud of the way it was done.

Are there any filmmakers influenced you in your formative years?

There are so many. Roberto Rossellini, Alfred Hitchcock, Howard Hawks, Samuel Fuller, Nicholas Ray, Yasujiro Ozu,… the list is long.

Festival International du Film d’Amiens, Amiens (France)
November 13, 2018

The 63rd Academy Awards ceremony on March 25, 1991, at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. Tom Cruise announces the five nominees for the Academy Award for Best Director. They are Francis Ford Coppola (“The Godfather, Part III”), Martin Scorsese (“Goodfellas”), Stephen Frears (“The Grifters”), Barbet Schroeder (“Reversal of Fortune”) and Oscar winner Kevin Costner (“Dances With Wolves”)

FILMS

LES CARABINIERS, a.k.a. THE CARABINEERS (1963) DIR Jean-Luc Godard PROD Carlo Ponti, Georges de Beauregard SCR (adaptation by Jean-Luc Godard, Roberto Rossellini, Jean Gruault; play by Beniamino Joppolo) CAM Raoul Coutard ED Agnès Guillermot MUS Philippe Arthuys CAST Marino Masé, Albert Juross, Geneviève Galéa, Catherine Ribero, Barbet Schroeder (Car salesman)

LA CARRIÈRE DE SUZANNE, a.k.a. SUZANNE’S CAREER and MORAL TALES II: SUZANNE’S CAREER (1963) DIR – SCR – ED Éric Rohmer PROD Barbet Schroeder CAM Daniel Lacambre CAST Catherine Sée, Philippe Beuzen, Christian Charrière, Diane Wilkinson, Patrick Bauchau, Jean-Claude Biette

PARIS VU PAR…, a.k.a. SIX IN PARIS (1965) DIR Éric Rohmer, Jean-Luc Godard, Jean Douchet, Claude Chabrol, Jean-Daniel Pollet, Jean Rouch PROD Barbet Schroeder SCR Éric Rohmer, Jean-Luc Godard, Jean Douchet, Georges Keller, Claude Chabrol, Jean-Daniel Pollet, Jean Rouch CAM Néstor Almendros, Étienne Becker, Alain Levent, Jean Rabier, Albert Maysles ED Jackie Raynal, Dominique Villain CAST Jean-Pierre Andréani, Stéphane Audran, Claude Chabrol, Barbet Schroeder (Jean-Pierre), Joanna Shimkus

LA COLLECTIONNEUSE, a.k.a. THE COLLECTOR (1967) DIR Éric Rohmer PROD Barbet Schroeder, Georges de Beauregard SCR Éric Rohmer, Patrick Bauchau, Haydée Politoff, Daniel Pommereulle CAM Néstor Almendros ED Jackie Raynal MUS Giorgio Gomelsky, Blossom Toes CAST Patrick Bauchau, Haydée Politoff, Daniel Pommereulle, Alain Jouffroy, Mijanou Bardot, Annik Morice, Néstor Almendros

MA NUIT CHEZ MAUD, a.k.a. MY NIGHT AT MAUD’S (1969) DIR – SCR Éric Rohmer PROD Barbet Schroeder, Pierre Cottrell CAM Néstor Almendros ED Cécile Decugis CAST Jean-Louis Trintignant, Françoise Fabian, Marie-Christine Barrault, Antoine Vitez, Léonide Kogan, Guy Léger, Anne Dubot

MORE (1969) DIR – PROD Barbet Schroeder SCR Barbet Schroeder, Paul Gégauff (original story by Barbet Schroeder) CAM Néstor Almendros ED Rita Roland, Denise de Casabianca MUS Pink Floyd CAST Mimsy Farmer, Klaus Grünberg, Heinz Egelmann, Michel Chanderli, Henry Wolfe, Louise Wink

LA GENOU DE CLAIRE, a.k.a. CLAIRE’S KNEE and SIX MORAL TALES V: CLAIRE’S KNEE (1970) DIR – SCR Éric Rohmer PROD Barbet Schroeder, Pierre Cottrell CAM Néstor Almendros ED Cécile Decugis CAST Jean-Claude Brialy, Aurora Cornu, Béatrice Romand, Laurence de Monaghan, Michèle Montel, Gérard Falconetti, Fabrice Luchini

OUT 1, NOLI ME TANGERE, a.k.a. OUT 1 (1971) DIR Jacques Rivette, Suzanne Schiffman PROD Danièle Gégauff, Stéphane Tchalgadjieff SCR (inspired by the novels “L’histoire des Treize” by Honoré de Balzac [uncredited]) CAM Pierre-William Glenn ED Nicole Lubtchansky, Carole Marquand MUS Jean-Pierre Drouet CAST Françoise Fabian, Michèle Moretti, Hermine Karagheuz, Karen Puig, Jean-Pierre Léaud, Michael Lonsdale, Éric Rohmer, Barbet Schroeder (Gian-Reto), Bulle Ogier, Bernadette Lafont

LA VALLÉE, a.k.a. THE VALLEY (1972) DIR Barbet Schroeder PROD Mike Kaplan SCR Barbet Schroeder, Paul Gégauff CAM Néstor Almendros ED Denise de Casabianca MUS Pink Floyd CAST Jérôme Beauvarlet, Monique Giraudy, Michael Gothard, Jean-Pierre Kalfon, Bulle Ogier

L’AMOUR L’APRÈS-MIDI, a.k.a. LOVE IN THE AFTERNOON and SIX MORAL TALES VI: LOVE IN THE AFTERNOON (1974) DIR – SCR Éric Rohmer PROD Barbet Schroeder, Pierre Cottrell CAM Néstor Almendros ED Cécile Decugis MUS Arié Dzierlatka CAST Zouzou, Bernard Verley, Françoise Verley, Daniel Ceccaldi, Malvina Penne, Elisabeth Ferrier, Tina Michelino, Françoise Fabian, Marie-Christine Barrault, Béatrice Romand

LA PALOMA, a.k.a. LA PALOMA: THE TIME FOR A LOOK (1974) DIR – SCR Daniel Schmid PROD Barbet Schroeder [uncredited], Yves Peyrot CAM Renato Berta ED Ila von Hasperg MUS Gottfried Hüngsberg CAST Ingrid Caven, Peter Kern, Peter Chatel, Jérôme Nicolin, Béatrice Stoll, Ludmilla Tucek, Manon, Bulle Ogier, Barbet Schroeder

CÉLINE ET JULIE VONT EN BATEAU, a.k.a. CÉLINE AND JULIE GO BOATING (1974) DIR Jacques Rivette PROD Barbet Schroeder SCR Jacques Rivette, Juliet Berto, Dominique Labourier, Bulle Ogier, Marie-France Pisier CAM Jacques Renard ED Nicole Lubtchansky MUS Jean-Marie Sénia CAST Julie Berto, Dominique Labourier, Bulle Ogier, Marie-France Pisier, Barbet Schroeder (Olivier), Marie-Thérèse Saussure

MAÎTRESSE, a.k.a. MISTRESS (1976) DIR Barbet Schroeder PROD Pierre Andrieux SCR Barbet Schroeder, Paul Voujargol CAM Néstor Almendros ED Denise de Casabianca MUS Carlos D’Alessio CAST Gérard Depardieu, Bulle Ogier, André Rouyer, Nathalie Keryan, Roland Bertin, Tony Taffin, Holger Löwenadler

DIE MARQUISE VON O…, a.k.a. THE MARQUISE OF O (1976) DIR Éric Rohmer PROD Barbet Schroeder, Klaus Hellwig SCR Éric Rohmer (story by Heinrich von Kleist) CAM Néstor Almendros ED Cécile Decugis CAST Edith Clever, Bruno Ganz, Edda Seippel, Peter Lühr, Otto Sander, Eduard Linkers, Ruth Drexel

CHINESISCHES ROULETTE, a.k.a. CHINESE ROULETTE (1976) DIR – SCR Rainer Werner Fassbinder PROD Barbet Schroeder, Michael Fengler CAM Michael Ballhaus ED Ila von Hasperg MUS Peer Raben CAST Anna Karina, Margit Carstensen, Brigitte Mira, Ulli Lommel, Alexander Allerson, Volker Sprengler, Andrea Schober

PERCEVAL LE GALLOIS, a.k.a. PERCEVAL (1978) DIR Éric Rohmer PROD Barbet Schroeder, Margaret Ménégoz SCR Éric Rohmer (novel by Chrétien de Troyes) CAM Néstor Almendroz ED Cécile Decugis MUS Guy Robert CAST Fabrice Luchini, André Dussollier, Solange Boulanger, Catherine Schroeder, Francisco Orozco, Deborah Nathan, Jean-Paul Racodon, Pascale Ogier, Marie-Christine Barrault

ROBERTE (1979) DIR Pierre Zucca PROD Hubert Niogret SCR (adaptation by Pierre Zucca, Pierre Klossowski; novel by Pierre Klossowski) CAM Paul Bonis ED Nicole Lubtchansky MUS Éric Demarsan CAST Denise Morin-Sinclaire, Pierre Klossowski, Martin Loeb, Barbet Schroeder (Vittorio), Michel Berto, Juliet Berto, Alain Cuny

LA MÉMOIRE COURTE, a.k.a. SHORT MEMORY (1979) DIR Eduardo de Gregorio PROD Alain Dahan SCR Eduardo de Gregorio, Edgardo Cozarinsky CAM William Lubtchansky ED Nicole Lubtchansky MUS Michel Portal CAST Nathalie Baye, Philippe Léotard, Bulle Ogier, Xavier Saint-Macary, Jacques Rivette, Claire Wauthion, Benoit Jacquot, Barbet Schroeder

LE PONT DU NORD, a.k.a. THE NORTH BRIDGE (1981) DIR Jacques Rivette PROD Barbet Schroeder, Jean-Pierre Mahot SCR Bulle Ogier, Pascale Ogier, Jacques Rivette, Suzanne Schiffman CAM Caroline Champetier, William Lubtchansky ED Nicole Lubtchansky, Catherine Quesemand CAST Bulle Ogier, Pascale Ogier, Pierre Clémenti, Jean-François Stévenin, Benjamin Baltimore, Steve Baës, Joe Dann, Mathieu Schiffman

FLÜGEL UND FESSELN, a.k.a. THE FUTURE OF EMILY (1984) DIR Helma Sanders-Brahms PROD Christoph Holch CO-PROD Barbet Schroeder, Helma Sanders-Brahms, Ursula Ludwig, SCR Helma Sanders-Brahms, Sylvie Ponsard, Suzanne Schiffman CAM Sacha Vierny ED Ursula West MUS Jürgen Knieper CAST Brigitte Fossey, Hildegard Knef, Ivan Desny, Herman Treusch, Camille Raymond, Mathieu Carrière

TRICHEURS, a.k.a. CHEATERS (1984) DIR Barbet Schroeder PROD Margaret Ménégoz SCR Barbet Schroeder, Steve Baës, Pascal Bonitzer (book by Steve Baës) CAM Robby Müller ED Denise de Casabianca MUS Peer Raben CAST Jacques Dutronc, Bulle Ogier, Leandro Vale, Roger Serbib, Steve Baës, Virgilio Teixeira, Kurt Raab, Robby Müller, Barbet Schroeder

L’AMOUR PAR TERRE, a.k.a. LOVE ON THE GROUND (1984) DIR Jacques Rivette PROD Arthur Cohn SCR Jacques Rivette, Suzanne Schiffman, Marilù Parolini, Pascal Bonitzer CAM William Lubtchansky ED Nicole Lubtchansky CAST Jane Birkin, Geraldine Chaplin, André Dussollier, Jean-Pierre Kalfon, Isabelle Linnartz, Sandra Montaigu, Barbet Schroeder

BARFLY (1987) DIR Barbet Schroeder PROD Barbet Schroeder, Fred Roos, Tom Luddy SCR Charles Bukowski CAM Robby Müller ED Éva Gárdos MUS Jack Baran CAST Mickey Rourke, Faye Dunaway, Alice Krige, Jack Nance, J. C. Quinn, Frank Stallone, Sandy Martin, Roberta Bassin, Gloria LeRoy, Charles Bukowski

THE GOLDEN BOAT (1990) DIR Raoul Ruiz PROD James Schamus, Jordi Torrent SCR Raoul Ruiz, Federico Muchnik CAM Maryse Alberti ED Sylvia Waliga MUS John Zorn CAST Michael Kirby, Federico Muchnik, Brett Alexander, Mary Hestand, Michael Stumm, Jim Jarmusch, Barbet Schroeder

REVERSAL OF FORTUNE (1990) DIR Barbet Schroeder PROD Oliver Stone, Edward R. Pressman SCR Nicholas Kazan (book by Alan M. Dershowitz) CAM Luciano Tovoli ED Lee Percy MUS Mark Isham CAST Jeremy Irons, Glenn Close, Ron Silver, Annabella Sciorra, Uta Hagen, Fisher Stevens, Jack Gilpin, Christine Baranski

SINGLE WHITE FEMALE (1992) DIR – PROD Barbet Schroeder SCR Don Roos (novel by John Lutz) CAM Luciano Tovoli ED Lee Percy MUS Howard Shore CAST Bridget Fonda, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Steven Weber, Peter Friedman, Stephen Tobolowsky, Jessica Lundy, Frances Bay

LA REINE MARGOT, a.k.a. QUEEN MARGOT (1994) DIR Patrice Chéreau PROD Claude Berri SCR Patrice Chéreau, Danièle Thompson (adaptation by Patrice Chéreau, Danièle Thompson; novel by Alexandre Dumas) CAM Philippe Rousselot ED Hélène Viard, François Gédigier MUS Goran Bregovic CAST Isabelle Adjani, Daniel Auteuil, Jean-Hughes Anglade,Vincent Perez, Virna Lisi, Dominique Blanc, Asia Argento, Jean-Claude Brialy, Johan Leysen, Barbet Schroeder (Counsellor)

BEVERLY HILLS COP III (1994) DIR John Landis PROD Mace Neufeld, Robert Rehme SCR Steven E. de Souza (characters created by Danilo Bach, Daniel Petrie Jr.) CAM Mac Ahlberg ED Dale Beldin MUS Nile Rodgers CAST Eddie Murphy, Jon Tenney, Joey Travolta, Eugene Collier, Jimmy Ortega, Ousaun Elam, Ray Lykins, Tim Gilbert, Rick Avery, Hector Elizondo, George Lucas, John Saxon, Joe Dante, Arthur Hiller, Barbet Schroeder (Man in Porsche)

KISS OF DEATH (1995) DIR Barbet Schroeder PROD Barbet Schroeder, Susan Hoffman SCR Richard Price (screenplay KISS OF DEATH [1947] by Ben Hecht, Charles Lederer; story by Eleazar Lipsky) CAM Luciano Tovoli ED Lee Percy MUS Trevor Jones CAST David Caruso, Samuel L. Jackson, Nicolas Cage, Helen Hunt, Kathryn Erbe, Stanley Tucci, Michael Rapaport, Ving Rhames, Philip Baker Hall

NEVER TALK TO STRANGERS (1995) DIR Peter Hall PROD Jeffrey R. Neuman, Andras Hamori EXEC PROD Barbet Schroeder, Rebecca De Mornay, Robert Lantos SCR Jordan Rush, Lewis A. Green CAM Enemér Ragályi ED Roberto Silvi MUS Pino Donaggio CAST Rebecca De Mornay, Antonio Banderas, Dennis Miller, Len Cariou, Harry Dean Stanton, Eugene Lipinski, Martha Burns, Beau Starr

BEFORE AND AFTER (1996) DIR Barbet Schroeder PROD Barbet Schroeder, Susan Hoffman SCR Ted Tally (book by Rosellen Brown) CAM Luciano Tovoli ED Lee Percy MUS Howard Shore CAST Meryl Streep, Liam Neeson, Edward Furlong, Julia Weldon, Alfred Molina, Daniel von Bargen, John Heard, Ann Magnuson, Alison Folland

MARS ATTACKS! (1996) DIR Tim Burton PROD Tim Burton, Larry Franco SCR Jonathan Gems (also story; trading card series by Norman Saunders, Len Brown, Bob Powell, Woody Gelman, Wally Wood) CAM Peter Suschitzky ED Chris Lebenzon MUS Danny Elfman CAST Jack Nicholson, Glenn Close, Annette Bening, Pierce Brosnan, Danny DeVito, Martin Short, Sarah Jessica Parker, Michael J. Fox, Rod Steiger, Tom Jones, Lukas Haas, Natalie Portman, Jim Brown, Lisa Marie, Sylvia Sidney, Paul Winfield, Pam Grier, Jack Black, Christina Applegate, Jerzy Skolimowski, Barbet Schroeder (Maurice, French President)

DESPARATE MEASURES (1998) DIR Barbet Schroeder PROD Barbet Schroeder, Susan Hoffman, Gary Foster, Lee Rich SCR David Klass CAM Luciano Tovoli ED Lee Percy MUS Trevor Jones CAST Michael Keaton, Andy Garcia, Brian Cox, Marcia Gay Harden, Erik King, Efrain Figueroa, Joseph Cross

SHATTERED IMAGE (1998) DIR Raoul Ruiz PROD Barbet Schroeder, Suzanne Hoffman, Lloyd A. Silverman SCR Duane Poole CAM Robby Müller ED Michael J. Duthie MUS Jorge Arriagada CAST William Baldwin, Anne Parillaud, Lisanne Falk, Grahame Greene, Bulle Ogier, Billy Wilmott, O’Neil Peart, Leonie Forbes

LA VIRGEN DE LOS SICARIOS, a.k.a. OUR LADY OF THE ASSASSINS (2000) DIR Barbet Schroeder PROD Barbet Schroeder, Margaret Ménégoz SCR Fernando Vallejo (also novel) CAM Rodrigo Lalinde ED Elsa Vásquez MUS Jorge Arriagada CAST Germán Jaramillo, Anderson Ballesteros, Juan David Restrepo, Manuel Busquets, Wilmar Agudelo, Juan Carlos Álvarez, Barbet Schroeder

MURDER BY NUMBERS (2002) DIR Barbet Schroeder PROD Barbet Schroeder, Susan Hoffman, Richard Crystal SCR Tony Gayton CAM Luciano Tovoli ED Lee Percy MUS Clint Mansell CAST Sandra Bullock, Ben Chaplin, Ryan Gosling, Michael Pitt, Agnes Bruckner, Chris Penn, R. D. Call, Tom Verica

NE FAIS PAS ÇA! (2004) DIR Luc Bondy PROD Dimitri de Clercq SCR Luc Bondy, Philippe Djian CAM Christian Berger ED Monika Willi MUS Alain Wisniak CAST Nicole Garcia, Natacha Régnier, Predrag ‘Miki’ Manojlovic, Fabrizio Rongione, Rüdiger Vogler, Barbet Schroeder (Client in Restaurant)

UNE AVENTURE (2005) DIR Xavier Giannoli PROD Edouard Weil SCR Xavier Giannoli, Jacques Fieschi (original idea by Sophia Burnett) CAM Yorick Le Saux ED Philippe Kotlarski MUS Alexandre Desplat CAST Ludivine Sagnier, Nicolas Duvauchelle, Bruno Todeschini, Florence Loiret Caille, Barbet Schroeder (Dr. Idelman)

PARIS, JE T’AIME (2006) DIR segment “Quartier des enfants rouges” (DIR Olivier Assayas), “Place des Victoires” (DIR Nobuhiro Suwa), “Montmartre” (DIR Bruno Podalydès), “Quais de Seine” (DIR Gurinder Chadha), “Le Marais” (DIR Gus Van Sant), “Tuileries” (DIR Ethan Coen, Joel Coen), “Lion du 16ème” (DIR Walter Salles, Daniela Thomas), “Porte de Choisy” (DIR Christopher Doyle), “Bastille” (DIR Isabel Coixet), “Tour Eiffel” (DIR Sylvain Chomet), “Parc Monceau” (DIR Alfonso Cuaró), “Place des Fêtes” (DIR Oliver Schmitz), “Pigalle” (DIR Richard LaGravenese), “Quartier de la Madeleine” (DIR Vincenzo Natali), “Père Lachaise” (DIR Wes Craven), “Faubourg Saint-Denis” (DIR Tom Tykwer), “Quartier Latin” (DIR Gérard Depardieu), “14me Arrondissement” (DIR Alexander Payne) PROD Claudie Ossard, Emmanuel Benbihy CAST Fanny Ardant, Juliette Binoche, Willem Dafoe,  Gérard Depardieu, Marianne Faithful, Ben Gazzara, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Yoalnde Moreau, Emily Mortimer, Nick Nolte, Natalie Portman, Miranda Richardson, Gena Rowlands, Ludivine Sagnier, Barbet Schroeder (Mister Hunny, segment “Porte de Choisy”), Elijah Wood

NE TOUCHEZ PAS LA HACHE, a.k.a. DON’T TOUCH THE AXE and THE DUCHESS OF LANGEAIS (2007) DIR Jacques Rivette PROD Roberto Cicutto, Martine Marignac, Luigi Musini, Maurice Tinchant, Ermanno Olmi SCR Jacques Rivette, Christine Laurent, Pascal Bonitzer (novel by Honoré de Balzac) CAM William Lubtchansky ED Nicole Lubtchansky MUS Pierre Allio CAST Jeanna Balibar, Guillaume Depardieu, Bulle Ogier, Michel Piccoli, Anne Cantineau, Marc Barbé, Barbet Schroeder (Duc de Grandlieu)

THE DARJEELING LIMITED (2007) DIR Wes Anderson PROD Wes Anderson, Roman Coppola, Scott Rudin, Lydia Scott Pilcher SCR Wes Anderson, Roman Coppola, Jason Schwartzman CAM Robert D. Yeoman ED Andrew Weisblum CAST Owen Wilson, Jason Schwartzman, Adrien Brody, Anjelica Huston, Amara Karan, Wallace Wolodarsky, Barbet Schroeder (The Mechanic), Bill Murray

INJÛ, a.k.a. INJU: THE BEAST IN THE SHADOW (2008) DIR Barbet Schroeder PROD Franck Ribière, Vérane Frédiani, Kanjirô Sakura SCR Barbet Schroeder, Jean-Armand Bougrelle, Frédérique Henri [Franck Ribière] CAM Luciano Tovoli ED Luc Barnier MUS Jorge Arriagada CAST Benoît Magimel, Lika Minamoto, Shun Sugata, Maurice Bénichou, Yuna Abe, Shinpei Asanuma

L’AVOCAT, a.k.a. THE COUNSEL (2010) DIR – SCR Cédric Anger PROD Thomas Klotz CAM Guillaume Schiffman ED Simon Jacquet MUS Grégoire Hetzel CAST Benoît Magimel, Gilbert Melki, Aïssa Maïga, Éric Caravaca, Samir Guesmi, Barbet Schroeder (Jacques Meco), Olivier Loustau, Grégoire Aubert

PAR EXAMPLE, ELECTRE (2013) DIR – SCR Jeanne Balibar, Pierre Léon PROD Martine Marignac CAM Sébastien Buchmann ED Pierre Léon, Martial Salomon CAST Jeanne Balibar, Pierre Léon, Emmanuelle Béart, Evelyne Didi, Pierre-Yves Genob, Barbet Schroeder, Edith Scob

LE DOS ROUGE, a.k.a. PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST (2014) DIR – SCR Antoine Barraud PROD Antoine Barraud, Cédric Walter, Vincent Wang CAM Antoine Parouty ED Catherine Libert, Frédéric Piet MUS Bertrand Bonnello CAST Bertrand Bonello, Jeanne Balibar, Géraldine Pailhas, Joanna Preiss, Barbet Schroeder (The Doctor), Pascal Greggory, Charlotte Rampling

AMNESIA (2015) DIR Barbet Schroeder PROD Ruth Waldburger, Margaret Ménégoz SCR Barbet Schroeder, Susan Hoffman, Peter F. Steinbach, Emilie Bickerton CAM Luciano Tovoli ED Nelly Quettier MUS Lucien Nicolet CAST Marthe Keller, Max Riemelt, Bruno Ganz, Corinna Kirchhoff, Fermi Reixach, Marie Leuenberger, Fèlix Pons