To celebrate the tenth anniversary of its Trophy, Chopard is rewarding Astrid Bergès-Frisbey, the bewitching mermaid in the fourth episode of Pirates of the Caribbean (Rob Marshall) and Niels Schneider, the enigmatic object of desire in Les Amours imaginaires (Xavier Dolan), two talented young actors with promising careers.
Astrid Bergès-Frisbey
At the age of 25, the enchanting Astrid Bergès-Frisbey is undoubtedly the new “rising French star”. She made her big-screen debut in Un barrage contre le pacifique (2007), an adaptation of Marguerite Duras’s novel of the same name, in which she starred alongside established actors such as Gaspar Ulliel and Isabelle Huppert. The young woman went on to showcase the full extent of her talent in both comedy with La Première Etoile (2009) – which won the Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Prize at the 2009 Alpe d’Huez Film Festival – and historical productions such as the TV film La Reine morte (2009) and the Spanish feature Bruc. La llegenda (2010) with Vincent Perez. 2011 marks a turning point in her budding career. She plays the lead role in La Fille du puisatier, actor Daniel Auteuil’s directorial debut – and remake of Marcel Pagnol’s film – and makes a name for herself on the other side of the Atlantic. After discovering photos of the young woman in a magazine, Rob Marshall cast her as a mermaid in the blockbuster Pirates of the Caribbean, Fountain of Youth, presented at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, where she co-stars with Johnny Depp and Penélope Cruz.
Niels Schneider
Born in Paris in 1987, but living in Quebec for many years, Niels Schneider comes from a family of actors. After several stage appearances, he found his first film role in 2009, playing Sacha in Yves-Christian Fournier’s Everything is fine. Then the young Xavier Dolan cast him in his first film, J’ai tué ma mère (I Killed My Mother). Presented in 2009 at the 41st Directors’ Fortnight, a parallel section of the Cannes Festival, this feature film about the tense, passionate relationship between a mother and her son won three awards. Building on this success, Xavier Dolan naturally offered the role of Nicolas to his friend Niels in his second film, Les Amours imaginaires, a strange love story for three. The young actor plays a handsome, unapproachable and ambiguous young man who stirs up trouble between two friends. Unanimously acclaimed by critics and much appreciated by audiences, the film was awarded the Prix Regards Jeunes in the “Un certain regard” competition at Cannes in 2010. Niels Schneider is currently starring in Clash, a French adaptation of the hit British series Skins.
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