Albert Lamorisse
Directing
Biography
Albert Lamorisse (13 January 1922 – 2 June 1970) was a French filmmaker, film producer, and writer, who is best known for his award winning short films which he began making in the late 1940s, and also for inventing the famous strategic board game Risk in 1957. He was born in Paris, France. He first came into prominence - just after Bim - for directing and producing White Mane (1953), an award winning short film that tells a fable of how a young boy befriends an untamable wild white stallion in the marshes of Camargue (the Petite Camargue). His best known work is the short film The Red Balloon (1956), which earned him the Palme d'Or Grand Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, and an Oscar for writing the best original screenplay in 1956. Lamorisse also wrote, directed and produced the well-regarded films Stowaway in the Sky (1960) and Circus Angel, as well as the documentaries Versailles and Paris Jamais Vu. In addition to films, he created the popular strategy board game Risk in 1957. Lamorisse and his wife had three children: Pascal, a son, and two daughters named Sabine and Fanny. Pascal and Sabine were featured in The Red Balloon. Albert Lamorisse died in a helicopter crash while filming the documentary Le Vent des amoureux (The Lovers' Wind), during a helicopter-tour of Iran in 1970. His son and his widow completed the film, based on his production notes, and released the film eight years later, in 1978. It was nominated for a posthumous Oscar for best documentary. Description above from the Wikipedia article Albert Lamorisse, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known For
No description available.
Reflets de Cannes
A young boy discovers a stray balloon, which seems to have a mind of its own, on the streets of Paris. The two become inseparable, yet the world’s harsh realities finally interfere.
The Red Balloon
Pascal Lamorisse is the son of filmmaker Albert Lamorisse. He is also the little hero of some of his father's films (White Mane, The Red Balloon and Stowaway in the Sky). Over the years, Albert Lamorisse, who took his son on all his shoots, sought to transmit his expertise and his passion for filmmaking, even on his last film, The Lover's Wind. There is something in the story of Pascal Lamorisse that touches on a fabulous story: it is the story of the transmission of cinema from father to child.
My Father Was a Red Balloon: Albert Lamorisse's Life Story
In the south of France, in a vast plain region called the Camargue, lives White Mane, a magnificent stallion and the leader of a herd of wild horses too proud to let themselves be broken by humans. Only Folco, a young fisherman, manages to tame him. A strong friendship grows between the boy and the horse, as the two go looking for the freedom that the world of men won’t allow them.
White Mane
The horses in Denys Colomb Daunant’s dream poem are the white beasts of the marshlands of the Camargue in South West France. Daunant was haunted by these creatures. His obsession was first visualized when he wrote the autobiographical script for Albert Lamorisse’s award-winning 1953 film White Mane. In this short the beauty of the horses is captured with a variety of film techniques and by Jacques Lasry’s beautiful electronic score.
Dream of the Wild Horses
A burglar joins the circus to escape the police. Yet, he continues his thefts during his off-hours and gets involved in the problems of people around him, while also romancing one of the other circus performers.
Circus Angel
A small child, fascinated by a lighter-than-air balloon, clambers aboard. The balloon takes flight, lifting the child upward to an amazing adventure. The land-bound adults have conniptions as the balloon wafts by; the child has nothing more than a great time.
Stowaway in the Sky
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The Stalking Moon
A 20-minute hymn to "unseen Paris" which incorporates soaring aerial shots of the Parisian skyline accompanied by commentary written by Roger Glachant and narrated by Jean Piat. Shot using Lamorisse's "Helivision," a technique involving fitting a camera to the front of a helicopter for smooth tracker of locations.
Paris Jamais Vu
An Arab boy, Abdullah, loves his donkey, Bim, but another boy, Massoud, who also happens to be a prince, is jealous of Abdullah and his relationship with Bim, so Massoud steals the donkey and plays mean tricks on him, such as painting him and trying to cut his ears off. Abdullah tries to rescue Bim but is caught by palace guards and is imprisoned. Realizing Abdullah's love for his donkey, Massoud becomes ashamed of his meanness and frees Bim and Abdullah. However, the donkey eats Massoud's father's lunch and is taken to a butcher. Abdullah and Massoud try to rescue Bim from the butcher, but robbers get there first and steal the donkey along with the butcher's goods. The robbers escape to the sea, and Abdullah and Massoud stage one last rescue attempt with all of their friends to try to save Bim.
Bim, the Little Donkey
A 1978 French documentary film directed by Albert Lamorisse about the landscape of Iran. Lamorisse was killed in a helicopter crash while filming the documentary, during a helicopter-tour of Iran. His widow completed the film, based on his production notes, and released the film eight years later in 1978.
The Lovers' Wind
Using a device to avoid vibration, Lamorisse employs a camera in a helicopter to capture the parks, gardens and Trianon building at Versailles.