Sarah Biasini (b. 1978) is a French stage and screen actress, and the daughter of the legendary Romy Schneider (1938-1982) and her second husband, journalist Daniel Biasini (b. 1949). She’s also the granddaughter of German actress Magda Schneider (1909-1996); that makes her a third generation actress in her family.

She first studied art and history at the Sorbonne in Paris, then studied acting at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute in Los Angeles, and at the Actor’s Studio in New York.

As an author, she wrote “La beauté du ciel” (2021), reflecting on her mother and stating that ‘my mother is the beauty in the sky.’ She wrote the book at age 43—the age her mother had when she passed away after a cardiac arrest in her Paris apartment. By that time, Romy Schneider had worked and lived there for many years and proved that she had long since emerged from the candyfloss world of the “Sissi” films that made her a celebrity in the 1950s when she was still a teenager.

Sarah Biasini, now an actress in her own right, was invited to Brussels to introduce one of her mother’s French screen classics, Claude Sautet’s “César et Rosalie” (1972), during a retrospective at the Cinema Palace where the Romy Schneider Exhibition, which runs until June 25, 2023, displays many items and memorabilia from her professional and private life.

Ms. Biasini and Eric Franssen, the theater’s managing director, appeared on stage to introduce the film; their conversation, in French, that you can find here, has been slightly edited and condensed.

“César et Rosalie” (1972, trailer)

Why is “César et Rosalie” your favorite film in your mother’s entire body of work?

It’s the film that I’ve seen the most, and it’s the first one of her films that I saw as an adult. In the film, there’s no violence and no sex; after seeing the film maybe ten or fifteen times now, I know it by heart. The music is excellent, the dialogues are marvelous, and all the supporting roles are flawless. After the Exhibition of her work in Paris and the many screenings of her films on French television—on Arte, for example—her work and this film, in particular, were easily accessible. And when I watched “César et Rosalie” again, and I was amazed by the character of César, played by Yves Montand. I rediscovered it, and he is incredible in the film. When I used to watch my mother’s work, I always focused on the characters she played and didn’t pay too much attention to the other performances. But the role of César is compelling and very funny, and because of the way Yves Montand plays his character, I highly recommend this film for anyone to see. The film gives you an excellent idea of what life was like in France during the 1970s and what it was like to be a woman in that era.

After “Les choses de la vie” [1970] and “Max et les ferailleurs” [1971], this is the third film your mother made with Claude Sautet. She became a symbol for French women.

That’s right. Her collaboration with Claude Sautet was unique because they had found common ground. The roles he offered her were very substantial; she got to play women that made a difference, and that was something the audience could quickly identify with.

The Exhibition shows that your mother was in charge; she was in control, and she was an independent woman. So is her character in “César et Rosalie.”

Yes. Her character has a way of handling things that happen to her; it’s a very human character with its strength and shortcomings.

Are you currently involved with new projects?

I just finished touring with a play in France; I am writing, and for next year, I have another play coming up.

Cinema Palace, Brussels
April 4, 2023

FILMS

MON PETIT DOIGHT M’A DIT… (2005) DIR Pascal Thomas PROD Pascal Thomas, Alain Cadier SCR Pascal Thomas, Nathalie Lafaurie, François Caviglioli (novel “By the Pricking of My Thumbs” [1968] by Agatha Christie) CAM Renan Pollès ED Catherine Dubeau MUS Reinhardt Wagner CAST Catherine Frot, André Dussollier, Geneviève Bujold, Laurent Terzieff, Valérie Kaprisky, Bernard Verley, Alexandra Stewart, Sarah Biasini (Marie-Christine), François Bettens

UN HOMME ET SON CHIEN (2008) DIR Francis Huster PROD Jean-Louis Livi SCR Cesare Zavattini (adaptation by Francis Huster) CAM Vincent Jeannot ED Luciana Reali MUS Philippe Rombi CAST Jean-Paul Belmondo, Hafsia Herzi, Sarah Biasini (Young Woman), Sophie Bouilloux, Rachida Brakni, Nicole Calfan

BLIND TEST (2010) DIR – SCR Georges Ruquet CAM Christophe Blémon [Christophe Dewarne] CAST Sarah Biasini (Joyce), Manuel Blanc, Johan Libéreau

ASSOCIÉS CONTRE LE CRIME: L’OEUF D’AMBROISE (2012) DIR Pascal Thomas PROD Nathalie Lafaurie SCR Pascal Thomas, Clémence de Biéville, Nathalie Lafaurie (adaptation by Pascal Thomas, Clémence de Biéville, Nathalie Lafaurie; short story “The Case of the Missing Lady” in the collection “Partners in Crime” [1929] by Agatha Christie) ED Catherine Dubeau MUS Reinhardt Wagner CAST André Dussollier, Catherine Frot, Linh-Dan Pham, Nicolas Marié, Agathe de la Boulaye, Éric Nagger, Bernard Verley, Sarah Biasini (Marie-Christine), François Bettens

RECON: A FILMMAKER’S QUEST (2012) DIR – MUS – ED Mattia Ballerini PROD Mariana Ortega CAM Nicolas Beauchamp, Clyde Baxter CAST Stevie Guttman, Johnny Acero, Bobby Smith, Sarah Biasini, Simon Abkarian, Matthia Ballerini

DORS MON LAPIN (2013) DIR – SCR Jean-Pierre Mocky CAM Jean-Paul Sergent MUS Vladimir Cosma CAST Frédéric Diefenthal, Richard Bohringer, Sarah Biasini (Claire), Maxence Boulmé, Philippe Phaeton de Lasserre, Idriss, Karine Dogliani, Dominique McCormick

TV MOVIES

NOUS NOUS SOMMES TANT HAÏS (2007) DIR Franck Apprederis PROD Wolfgang Rest SCR Frank Apprederis, Jacqueline Cauët, Jean-Michel Gaillard, Sébastien Ossard CAM Flore Thulliez ED Hugues Orduna MUS Jean Musy CAST Sarah Biasini (Marie Destrade), Pawel Delag, Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu, François Marthouret, Christine Boisson

LE TEMPS DU SILENCE (2011) DIR Franck Apprederis PROD Sylvette Frydman, Jean-François Lepetit SCR Franck Apprederis, Jorge Semprún CAM Yves Dahan ED Laurence Leininger MUS Jean Musy CAST Loïc Corbery, Audrey Marnay, Barbara Cabrita, Arnaud Appréderis, Bernard Le Coq, Sarah Biasini (Julie), Anne Loiret

LE GÉNÉRAL DU ROI (2014) DIR Nina Companeez PROD Alain Bessaudou SCR (adaptation by Lina Companeez; novel “The King’s General” [1946] by Daphne Du Maurier) CAM Dominique Brabant ED Michèle Hollander CAST Louise Monot, Samuel Le Bihan, Natacha Lindinger, Jean-Pierre Lorit, Sarah Biasini (Marie-Anne), Christian Brendel

COULEUR LOCALE (2014) DIR Coline Serreau, Samuel Tasinaje PROD Philippe Schirrer, Serge Hugon SCR Coline Serreau (original idea by Samuel Tasinaje) CAM Bruno Privat ED Catherine Renault MUS Samuel Tasinaje, Philippe Begin CAST Isabelle Nanty, Valentin Bellegarde-Chappe, Alexandre Medvedev, Juliette Meyniac, Diego Bordonaro, Sarah Biasini (Charlotte)

TV SERIES

JULIE, CHEVALIER DE MAUPIN (2004), 2 episodes
SUITE NOIRE (2009), 1 episode