Jowan Le Besco

Jowan Le Besco is a director, cinematographer, screenwriter, editor and actor.

Family Le Besco was born to a Franco-Algerian mother, the actress Catherine Belkhodja, and Patrick Le Besco, a linguist specializing in the Breton language. His maternal grandfather, Abdelkader Belkhodja, a former FLN moudjahid based in France, was then in charge of emigration at the Ministry of Labor from 1965 to 1972, then at the Ministry of Former Moudjahidines until 1975 (Algeri); his grandmother, Jeanne Mauborgne, a nurse and then a social worker, was, like her husband, a very active communist activist. He is the brother of two directors and actresses, Maïwenn and Isild Le Besco; he also has a third sister, Leonor Graser, and a brother, Kolia Litscher.

Career Le Besco shoots his first professional film as director of photography, with Demi-tarif released in 2004 and directed by his younger sister Isild Le Besco. The film won many awards in France and internationally and allowed them to produce the next film of Isild Le Besco: Charly (2006). He then worked with directors and cinematographers such as Caroline Champetier, Romain Winding, Claire Mathon, Benoît Jacquot and Emmanuelle Bercot. At the same time as shooting, he followed training courses at the École nationale supérieure Institut Louis Lumière and the École de l'Image Les Gobelins. In 2006, he wrote and directed his first feature film, Yapo (documentary filmed in India, in the Sikkim region) which earned it a selection at the 29th edition of the Cinéma du Réel Festival. A shorter version of the film was broadcast in 2008 on the television channel Arte, in the documentary slot La Lucarne, under the title Les béquilles du Lama Yapo.

Le Besco has worked as a director of photography and cameraman for films such as Polisse, Mon roi, Connemara, Lomepal: 3 jours à Motorbass, Les Deux Amis, The Untouchable, Bas-fonds, La Belle Occasion, and Confinés. He also works regularly in the field of music and performing arts, notably as a director and cinematographer, with collaborators including the Opéra National de Paris, Pédro Kouyaté, the Orchestre national de Barbès, Tartit, Bania, Farees, Ghassen Fendri, and Senny Camara.

Filmography Cinematographer

Feature films 2004: Demi-tarif by Isild Le Besco 2007: Charly by Isild Le Besco 2007: Childhoods coproduced by Safy Nebbou, Isild Le Besco, Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige, Corinne Garfin, Ismaël Ferroukhi and Yann Le Gal 2008: Bas-Fonds by Isild Le Besco 2013: Manhattan Romance by Haik Kocharian 2014: Little boy (short), in the choral film Bridges of Sarajevo 2017: La Belle Occasion by Isild Le Besco 2020: Confinés by Isild Le Besco 2021: Connemara by Isild Le Besco

Cameraman Feature films 2006: L'Intouchable by Benoît Jacquot 2006: Gaspard le Bandit by Benoît Jacquot 2010: Polisse by Maïwenn 2015: Mon roi by Maïwenn 2015: Les Deux Amis by Louis Garrel 2019: Lomepal – 3 jours à Motobass by Christophe Charrier

Writer, director, cinematographer, editor Documentary 2007 : Yapo (présenté au Festival Cinéma du Réel), by Jowan Le Besco 2008 : Les béquilles du Lama Yapo (Arte-La Lucarne), by Jowan Le Besco 2011: On va à Cannes !!! (Le Making of de Polisse) by Jowan Le Besco and Douglas Attal

Fiction 2002: Narada

Actor Cinema 1999: La Puce by Emmanuelle Bercot 2002: A Moment of Happiness by Antoine Santana with Isild Le Besco 2011: I am Kalam by Nila Nadhab Panda

Television 1989: The Owl's Legacy by Chris Marker 2004 : Princesse Marie by Benoît Jacquot, Pierre de Grèce

Other Feature films 2002: Mods by Serge Bozon (1st assistant director) 2004: À tout de suite by Benoît Jacquot (Making of) 2006: L'Intouchable by Benoît Jacquot (1st assistant director)

Short films 2009: Some kinda fuckery by Nadia Szold (Cinematographer) 2014: *Me There de Majaajyia Silberfeld (Cinematographer) 2019: 22 Min d'Isild Le Besco (Cinematographer) 2020: En mon cœur by Isild Le Besco (Cinematographer) 2020: Independence # D, Farees (Cinematographer) 2021: Foudroyer en bien by Isild Le Besco (Cinematographer) 2022: Le viol du pouvoir by Deborah De Robertis (Cinematographer)

Theater 2004 : Le Pois chiche de et avec Maïwenn au Café de la Gare (captation)

Awards and recognition 2000 : Junior prize for best screenplay at the Paris Film Festival for her first screenplay: Demi-tarif 2004 : Special Jury Prize at the European First Film festival of Angers for Demi-tarif 2004 : Procirep Prize Premiers plans. Angers for Demi-tarif 2004 : Special Jury Prize at the Seoul International Women's Film Festival for Demi-tarif 2004 : Nominated for the award Louis Deluc for Demi-tarif 2005 : Grand Prize of the Jury Crossing Europe Festival Linz for Demi-tarif 2007 : Selection at the Festival Cinéma du Réel pour Les Béquilles du Lama Yapo