"I think photography was inside me. Once I found it, it became stronger than me and I took refuge in it." —Raymond Depardon

Celebrated photographer, photojournalist, and documentary filmmaker, Raymond Depardon was born in Villefranche-sur-Saône, France on July 6, 1942. His interest in photography began when he started taking pictures of his family’s farm at the age of 12. A prolific artist, Raymond Depardon has directed 20 feature-length films and published over 50 books.

In 1966, Depardon co-founded Gamma, a photojournalism agency. He became its director in 1973. In 1977, he received a Pulitzer Prize for his photographs of conflict zones in Chad. In 1979, he became a full member of the international photography cooperative, Magnum. In 2012, he took the official portrait of French President François Hollande.

In terms of filmmaking, Depardon’s style is influenced by the raw, unnarrated approach of cinéma vérité and direct cinema. Both Reporters (1981) and New York, N.Y. (1986) won the César Award for best short documentary. La Captive du Désert (1990) was nominated for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival. His 1994 film Délits Flagrants won best feature documentary at the César Awards, International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA), and Vancouver International Film Festival. In 2000, the Kraków Film Festival honored Depardon with the Dragon of Dragons Lifetime Achievement Award.

Together with Distrib Films US, Icarus Films is proud to co-distribute three of Raymond Depardon's films. Discover more of our featured filmmakers.