Directing

Céline Sciamma

Born November 12, 1978 · Pontoise, Val-d'Oise, France (age 47)

Céline Sciamma is a French screenwriter and film director. Sciamma's work is strikingly minimalist. She is known for her transformational work with themes of gender fluidity, sexual identity among girls and women, and the female gaze. Sciamma's considers her first three feature films, Water Lilies (2007), Tomboy (2011) and Girlhood (2014) to constitute a coming-of-age trilogy. Her 2019 film, Por…

Known For

Portrait of a Lady on Fire

Portrait of a Lady on Fire · 2019

Portrait of a Lady on Fire

MovieDramaRomance

On an isolated island in Brittany at the end of the eighteenth century, a female painter is obliged to paint a wedding portrait of a young woman.

Petite Maman

Petite Maman · 2021

MovieDramaFantasy

After the death of her beloved grandmother, eight-year-old Nelly meets a strangely familiar girl her own age in the woods. Instantly forming a connection with this mysterious new friend, Nelly embarks on a fantastical journey of discovery which helps her come to terms with this newfound loss.

Being 17

Being 17 · 2016

Damien lives with his mother Marianne, a doctor, while his father, a pilot, is on a tour of duty abroad with the French military. At school, Damien is bullied by Thomas, who lives in the farming community up in the mountains. The boys find themselves living together when Marianne invites Thomas to come and stay with them while his mother is ill in hospital. Damien must learn to live with the boy who terrorized him.

My Life as a Zucchini

My Life as a Zucchini · 2016

My Life as a Zucchini

MovieAnimationComedy

After his mother’s death, Zucchini is befriended by a kind police officer, Raymond, who accompanies him to his new foster home filled with other orphans his age. There, with the help of his newfound friends, Zucchini eventually learns to trust and love as he searches for a new family of his own.

Paris, 13th District

Paris, 13th District · 2021

Paris, 13th District

MovieDramaRomance

Émilie meets Camille who is attracted to Nora, who crosses paths with Amber. Three girls and a boy – They're friends, sometimes lovers and often both.

The Balconettes

The Balconettes · 2024

The Balconettes

MovieComedyHorror

As a heat wave brings a Marseille neighborhood to a boil, three roommates gleefully meddle in the lives of their neighbors from their balcony. Until a late night drink turns into a bloody affair.

Tomboy

Ten-year-old Laure isn't like most girls. She prefers football to dolls and sweaters to dresses. When Laure and her family move to a new neighbourhood, local girl Lisa mistakes Laure for a boy. Indulging in this exciting new identity, Laure becomes Mickaël, and so begins a summer of long sunny afternoons, playground games and first kisses. Yet with the school term fast approaching, and with suspicions arising amongst friends and family, Laure must face up to an uncertain future.

Girlhood

Girlhood · 2014

Oppressed by her family setting, dead-end school prospects and the boys law in the neighborhood, Marieme starts a new life after meeting a group of three free-spirited girls. She changes her name, her dress code, and quits school to be accepted in the gang, hoping that this will be a way to freedom.

Filmography

Sort

Portrait of a Lady on Fire

Portrait of a Lady on Fire · 2019

Portrait of a Lady on Fire

MovieDramaRomance

On an isolated island in Brittany at the end of the eighteenth century, a female painter is obliged to paint a wedding portrait of a young woman.

Director

Petite Maman

Petite Maman · 2021

MovieDramaFantasy

After the death of her beloved grandmother, eight-year-old Nelly meets a strangely familiar girl her own age in the woods. Instantly forming a connection with this mysterious new friend, Nelly embarks on a fantastical journey of discovery which helps her come to terms with this newfound loss.

Costume Designer

Being 17

Being 17 · 2016

Damien lives with his mother Marianne, a doctor, while his father, a pilot, is on a tour of duty abroad with the French military. At school, Damien is bullied by Thomas, who lives in the farming community up in the mountains. The boys find themselves living together when Marianne invites Thomas to come and stay with them while his mother is ill in hospital. Damien must learn to live with the boy who terrorized him.

Writer

My Life as a Zucchini

My Life as a Zucchini · 2016

My Life as a Zucchini

MovieAnimationComedy

After his mother’s death, Zucchini is befriended by a kind police officer, Raymond, who accompanies him to his new foster home filled with other orphans his age. There, with the help of his newfound friends, Zucchini eventually learns to trust and love as he searches for a new family of his own.

Screenplay

Paris, 13th District

Paris, 13th District · 2021

Paris, 13th District

MovieDramaRomance

Émilie meets Camille who is attracted to Nora, who crosses paths with Amber. Three girls and a boy – They're friends, sometimes lovers and often both.

Writer

The Balconettes

The Balconettes · 2024

The Balconettes

MovieComedyHorror

As a heat wave brings a Marseille neighborhood to a boil, three roommates gleefully meddle in the lives of their neighbors from their balcony. Until a late night drink turns into a bloody affair.

Writer

Tomboy

Ten-year-old Laure isn't like most girls. She prefers football to dolls and sweaters to dresses. When Laure and her family move to a new neighbourhood, local girl Lisa mistakes Laure for a boy. Indulging in this exciting new identity, Laure becomes Mickaël, and so begins a summer of long sunny afternoons, playground games and first kisses. Yet with the school term fast approaching, and with suspicions arising amongst friends and family, Laure must face up to an uncertain future.

Director

Girlhood

Girlhood · 2014

Oppressed by her family setting, dead-end school prospects and the boys law in the neighborhood, Marieme starts a new life after meeting a group of three free-spirited girls. She changes her name, her dress code, and quits school to be accepted in the gang, hoping that this will be a way to freedom.

Costume Designer

Water Lilies

Water Lilies · 2007

MovieDramaRomance

Set during a sultry summer in a French suburb, Marie is desperate to join the local pool's synchronized swimming team, but is her interest solely for the sake of sport or for a chance to get close to Floriane, the bad girl of the team? Sciamma, and the two leads, capture the uncertainty of teenage sexuality with a sympathetic eye in this delicate drama of the angst of coming-of-age.

Screenplay

Bird People

Bird People · 2014

MovieDramaFantasy

An overstressed American businessman and a French chambermaid make a connection at an airport hotel in Paris.

Script Consultant

With the Wind

With the Wind · 2018

An isolated farm in a remote part of the Jura region: this is where Pauline and Alex are living in complete self-sufficient harmony with nature. Their life project is sealed by their love, their ideals and their work. The couple is now ready to take the step towards total independence, and start producing their own electricity. The arrival of Samuel, who comes to install a wind turbine, deeply troubles Pauline, upsetting their relationship and their values.

Writer

Pauline

Pauline · 2009

A young woman chronicles her childhood of neglect and isolation.

Director

Tutti Frutti

Tutti Frutti · 2026

MovieDocumentary

Since 2022, Céline Sciamma has been shooting her own footage: documentary archives born from the desire of a useful camera. Fiction, for its part, has once again become a dream. Tutti Frutti is a journey through all these fragments brought together by editing, and an exploration of the hope of a solo filmmaking practice.

Director

Ivory Tower

Ivory Tower · 2010

MovieComedyDrama

The film revolves around a sibling rivalry between two brothers, Hershell and Thadeus Graves (played by Gonzales and Tiga, respectively), as they compete during a game of chess. Peaches plays Marsha Thirteen, a former performance artist and the shared love interest of both brothers.

Writer

Brume

MovieAdventureAnimation

Brume, a feisty 7-year-old girl, dreams of becoming a powerful witch. When a thick fog envelops her village, she sets out, accompanied by her best friend Hugo and her pet pig Hubert, on an adventure into the heart of the forbidden forest.Through this coming-of-age journey, Brume uncovers a mysterious bond with Naïa, a legendary witch, and realizes she must face Ankou, a haunting figure tied to death itself.

Screenplay

Young Tiger

Young Tiger · 2015

Bébé Tigre is Many, a 17-year-old Indian boy who has been living in France for two years. A teenager like any other, he divides his time between school, friends, and his girlfriend. But the pressures placed on him by his parents in India force him to put his own life at risk...

Script Consultant

This Is How a Child Becomes a Poet

This Is How a Child Becomes a Poet · 2023

This Is How a Child Becomes a Poet

MovieDocumentary

The last day of Patrizia Cavalli’s home. Before it’s all gone.

Director

La Coupe Bernard Tapine

La Coupe Bernard Tapine · 2018

La Coupe Bernard Tapine

MovieDocumentary

A football team wins La Coupe Bernard Tapine. A story told via two minute montage.

Writer

Mademoiselle

Mademoiselle · 2014

“I can’t remember the last time a guy got vulgar with me. When was the last time a guy did that thing… you know, with his lips, like damn girl, you’re hot. Of course I used to hate it. But Lady, c’mon, that’s a whole other ballgame! The little prick called me Lady.”

Fille boîte