Edmond Séchan (20 September 1919 in Montpellier – 7 June 2002 in Courbevoie) was a French cinematographer and film director.

Biography

Passionate about image, Séchan earned a reputation as an excellent director of photography and is credited in several notable films such as That Man from Rio, Tendre Voyou, La Carapate and La Boum. He worked with great directors (Jean Becker, Jean-Pierre Mocky, Philippe de Broca, Pierre Étaix), but most notably with Louis Malle and Jacques-Yves Cousteau on The Silent World. Attracted to directing, Séchan made two feature films in the 1960s, which were not successful. On the other hand, his short films earned him a harvest of prestigious prizes: Le Haricot, (Short Film Palme d'Or at Cannes in 1963)^[1] and Toine (César du meilleur court métrage in 1981). Most especially, he belongs to the small French circle to have won Oscars in Hollywood, in 1960 with The Golden Fish, produced by Cousteau, in the category Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film, and in 1975 with One-Eyed Men Are Kings, in collaboration with Michel Leroy, produced by Paul Claudon.

Edmond Séchan is the uncle of French singer Renaud. Renaud and his brother make an appearance in The Red Balloon, a movie in which Séchan worked as director of photography.^[2]

Select filmography

References