Claude Berri 1 July 1934 12 January 2009 was a French film director writer producer actor and distributor Born Claude Beri Langmann in Paris Berri was the son of Jewish immigrant parents His mother Beila née Bercu was from Romania and his father Hirsch Langmann was a furrier from Poland His sister was the screenwriter and editor Arlette Langmann Berri won the Best Film BAFTA for Jean de Florette and was also nominated for twelve César Awards though he never won Berri also won the Oscar for Best Short Film for Le Poulet at the 38th Academy Awards in 1966 and produced Roman Polanskis Tess which was nominated for Best Picture in 1981 Internationally however two films in 1986 overshadow all his other achievements Jean de Florette and its sequel Manon des Sources were huge hits In 1991 his film Uranus was entered into the 41st Berlin International Film Festival Six years later his film Lucie Aubrac was entered into the 47th Berlin International Film Festival In 2003 he was elected President of the Cinémathèque Française where he obtained enough state subsidies to cover the costs of its resurgence at its new site in the rue de Bercy Berris wife AnneMarie Rassam committed suicide in 1997 jumping from the apartment of Isabelle Adjanis mother Berri and Rassam had two children actor Julien Rassam and actor and film producer Thomas Langmann Berri died of a stroke in Paris aged 74 After his death a group of nine works by Robert Ryman Ad Reinhardt Giorgio Morandi Richard Serra and Lucio Fontana was promised to the Centre Pompidou in Paris in lieu of tax But the heirs of the film director finally sold them through French art dealer Philippe Ségalot for about 50 million to Qatar Source Article Claude Berri from Wikipedia in English licensed under CCBYSA 30