Born in Tunis, Tunisia, Kechiche emigrated with his parents to Nice, France when he was six years old.[2] Passionate about theater, he took drama classes at the Antibes Conservatory. He performed several shows on the Cote d’Azur, most notably a play by Federico Garcia Lorca in 1978 and a play by Eduardo Manet the following year. He was equally dedicated to directing as he was to performing in theater; he presented The Architect at the Avignon Festival in 1981.
In film, his first acting role was in Abdelkrim Bahioul’s Mint Tea, where he played a young Algerian immigrant who moved to Paris to make his fortune.[3]
In 2003, he wrote and directed Games of Love and Chance (L’Esquive) with amateur actors and an extremely limited budget. The film follows a group of high school students from the Parisian suburbs who rehearse a Marivaux play for their French class. The film was an honorable success for an author’s film without known actors; it was hailed by critics as one of the biggest French films of the year 2004. The film won four awards at the, 30th César awards in 2005: Best film, best director, and best screenplay. Sara Forestier a lead actress won the César for most promising actress for her role in Games of Love and Chance.
Kechiche’s next film was selected at the Venice Film Festival 2010, titled Black Venus (Vénus Noire) in reference to the “Vénus Hottentote” (Saartjie Baartman). The film follows the life of Sarah Baartman, a Khoikhoi woman from the early 19th century who was exhibited in Europe for her voluptuous figure and objectified by European women. The film’s critical reception was positive, despite only receiving one nomination at the César Awards in 2011.[8]
His 2013 film Blue Is the Warmest Colour won the Palme d'Or and the FIPRESCI Prize at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival.[9][10][11] Several days later, a controversy erupted about Kechiche's work methods; technicians on the film accused him of harassment, unpaid overtime and violations of labour laws.[12] The two main actresses, Léa Seydoux and Adèle Exarchopoulos, who were also awarded the Palme d'Or, had complained about Kechiche's behavior during the shooting but later, in an extensive interview, claimed that although he was difficult to work with it had been worth it, as he was a great filmmaker.[13] The film also won Best International Independent Film at the British Independent Film Awards in 2013.[14]
Allegation of sexual assault
In October 2018, Kechiche was accused of sexual assault by an actress, whose name was withheld from official reports.[15] French prosecutors later dropped the probe, citing insufficient evidence.[16]
^Bahloul, Abdelkrim (6 March 1985), Le thé à la menthe (Comedy, Drama), Abdellatif Kechiche, Chafia Boudraa, Krimo Bouguetof, Malek Kateb, Les Entreprises Françaises de Productions, Films A2, Daska Films, retrieved 13 April 2021
^Kechiche, Abdellatif (12 December 2007), La graine et le mulet (Drama), Habib Boufares, Hafsia Herzi, Farida Benkhetache, Abdelhamid Aktouche, Pathé Renn Productions, Hirsch, France 2 Cinéma, retrieved 15 April 2021
