# Tonie Marshall

Tonie Marshall (29 November 1951 – 12 March 2020) was a French-American actress, screenwriter, and film director. In 2000, she became the first female director to win a César award for her film Venus Beauty Institute.

## Life and career

Marshall was the daughter of American actor, director, and bandleader William Marshall and French actress Micheline Presle. She was also the aunt of model and actress Sarah Marshall, and the half-sister of actor Mike Marshall, son of the actress Michèle Morgan.
Before becoming a director, Tonie Marshall was an actress, first in drama and then in television and film, where she played several little parts in the 1970s and 1980s. As she recalls on his beginning on-screen: "I was an actress because it was what seemed the more natural for me, but I was interested a lot in writing and production. I was quite afraid not to make it [directing films]. Because I was a little actress, that I did not attend a specialized school, that I did not have any technique". During her childhood, she also developed her experience of films thanks to the arthouse cinema of the Ursulines in the 5th arrondissement of Paris, near which she grew up.
After performing minor parts in several of Jacques Demy's films, including A Slightly Pregnant Man (1973) and La Naissance du Jour (1980), Marshall directed her first film, Pentimento (1990), offering the radio and television host Antoine de Caunes his first role in cinema.
In 1994, her film Pas très Catholique was selected as part of the 44th Berlin International Film Festival.
Tonie Marshall's 1999 film Venus Beauty Institute (Vénus beauté (Institut)) won four César Awards during the 2000 competition including Best Director, making her the first female filmmaker to receive this distinction. The César Academy also awarded Venus Beauty Institute with Best Film, Best Writing - Original or Adaptation, as well as Most Promising Actress for Audrey Tautou, whose career was launched by the film.
This romantic comedy centers on the search for love and happiness of three employees of a Parisian beauty salon "Vénus Beauté Institut": Angèle (Nathalie Baye), Marie (Audrey Tautou), Samantha (Mathilde Seigner), and their manager Nadine (Bulle Ogier). Tonie Marshall's mother Micheline Presle also appears in the film where she plays the part of Aunt Maryse. In a 2001 interview for the film magazine Cinéaste, Tonie Marshall recalls the genesis of the film and how she was inspired by an existing beauty salon:
"My first idea was to write a part for Nathalie Baye because I wanted to do something with her that she had not done before: a woman with a very nice appearance, very banal, but who is, in fact, very mixed up and complicated. But I hadn't decided what she would do for a living in the film. Then one day I was passing by a small beauty salon on my street - the light was pink and there was a girl, a beautician I suppose, dressed in pink; and she was closing the shop very, very slowly. Her movement, absolutely like she was dancing, but very slowly, struck me as being an entirely cinematic image. I went back to this beauty parlor as a customer, and when I was there I heard so many incredible things."
Tonie Marshall has been mostly influenced by Jacques Demy's films throughout her career, the most famous ones being The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964) and The Young Girls of Rochefort (1967). Venus Beauty emerged from this influence, as well as an additional source of inspiration: the French film Belle de Jour (1964) directed by Luis Bunuel and starring Catherine Deneuve.
In 2002 her film Au plus près du Paradis was nominated for the Golden Lion Award as best film at the Venice Film Festival.
Marshall was a signatory of the "Free Roman Polanski" petition following film director Roman Polanski's arrest in Switzerland in 2009, which read: "We demand the immediate release of Roman Polanski. Film-makers in France, in Europe, in the United States and around the world are dismayed by this decision… It seems inadmissible to them that an international cultural event, paying homage to one of the greatest contemporary film-makers, is used by police to apprehend him.”
In 2017, Marshall released Number One (also released as Woman Up! in the UK and the US), her last feature film, which is based on her conversation with various female corporate executives. The film relates the story of Emmanuelle Blachey (Emmanuelle Devos), an engineer who tries to reach the manager position in a company with the help of her female counterparts and despite the misogynistic atmosphere that rules over the firm.
On March 12, 2020, she died from lung cancer at the age of 68.

### Activism

Although Tonie Marshall would not label herself as a feminist, many of her films involve an underlying fight against sexism, especially the later ones including Number One in which she overtly advocates gender equality in the professional sphere.
Off-set, she was one of the members of the French 50/50 Collective, founded in 2018 and which promotes gender diversity and equality in the film industry. The same year, she also joined the Fondation des femmes, founded in March 2016, which aims to raise funds for feminist organizations. During the 2018 César Awards Ceremony and in association with the foundation, Tonie Marshall participated in the #MaintenantOnAgit movement as part of which she called diverse personalities to wear a white ribbon as a symbol of the struggle against violence against women.
In an interview given to the French newspaper La Tribune in 2017 for the release of Number One, Marshall addressed her young female spectators, saying: "For the world to evolve, and to reach true modernity, 45-50% of women should get to decision-making professional positions in order to finally experience a different organization in work and business. If I could help with it, I would be very glad. And if people who watched my film get out of the theater telling themselves "this made me want the same", it is an absolute joy."
In 2001, Marshall was asked a question about the role played by women filmmakers in France, to which she answered: "Toscan du Plantier, the president of Unifrance, says that French cinema will be saved by women. This may be just a formule, pretty words, I don't know. But I do think that maybe the way we shoot a scene of two people making love is pretty different."

## Work
### Filmography (films and TV)

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1970 | Les Saintes chéries | Actress | TV series (1 episode) Created by Nicole de Buron and directed by Jean Becker |
| 1971 | Les Dossiers du professeur Morgan | Actress | TV series (1 episode) |
| 1971 | Un enfant dans la ville | Actress | TV film Directed by Pierre Sisser |
| 1971 | Côté cour, côté champs | Actress | Short Directed by Guy Gilles |
| 1972 | What a Flash! | Actress | Directed by Jean-Michel Barjol |
| 1973 | L'Oiseau rare | Actress | Directed by Jean-Claude Brialy |
| 1973 | A Slightly Pregnant Man | Actress | Directed by Jacques Demy |
| 1975 | Une Suédoise à Paris | Actress | TV series (1 episode) Directed by Patrick Saglio |
| 1975 | Vous ne l'emporterez pas au Paradis | Actress | Directed by François Dupont-Midy |
| 1975 | La fleur des pois | Actress | TV film Directed by Raymond Rouleau |
| 1976 | Les Cinq Dernières Minutes | Actress | TV series (1 episode) Directed by Claude Loursais |
| 1976 | Mords pas, on t'aime | Actress | Directed by Yves Allégret |
| 1976 | Le Cheval évanoui | Actress | TV film Directed by Alain Dhénaut |
| 1976 | Les Infidèles | Actress | TV film Directed by Alain Dhénaut |
| 1977 | Au théâtre ce soir | Actress | TV series (1 episode) Directed by Pierre Sabbagh |
| 1978 | Le Mutant | Actress | TV mini-series Directed by Bernard Toublanc-Michel |
| 1978 | Les Deux élèves préférés du professeur Francine Brouda | Actress | Short Directed by Danièle Dubroux |
| 1979 | Les Amours de la belle époque | Actress | TV series (1 episode) Directed by René Lucot |
| 1979 | Rien ne va plus | Actress | Directed by Jean-Michel Ribes |
| 1980 | Cinéma 16 | Actress | TV series (1 episode) Directed by Eric Le Hung |
| 1980 | Tout dépend des filles | Actress | Directed by Pierre Fabre |
| 1980 | Les Sous-doués | Actress | Directed by Claude Zidi |
| 1980 | La Naissance du jour | Actress | TV film Directed by Jacques Demy |
| 1981 | Les Amours des années folles | Actress | TV series (1 episode) Directed by Marion Sarraut |
| 1981 | Le Petit théâtre d'Antenne 2 | Actress | TV series (1 episode) Directed by Michel Treguer |
| 1981 | Les Dossiers éclatés | Actress | TV series (1 episode) Directed by Alain Boudet |
| 1981 | La Gueule du loup | Actress | Directed by Michel Léviant |
| 1981 | Les Roses de Dublin | Actress | TV mini-series Directed by Lazare Iglesis |
| 1982 | Merci Bernard | Actress | TV series (10 episodes) Directed by Jean-Michel Ribes |
| 1983 | Archipel des amours | Actress | Directed by Jacques Davila |
| 1983 | Elle voulait faire du cinéma | Actress | TV film Directed by Caroline Huppert |
| 1984 | Paris vu par... vingt ans après | Actress | Sketches Film (1 sketch) Directed by Frédéric Mitterrand |
| 1984 | Batailles | Actress | TV movie Directed by Jean-Michel Ribes |
| 1985 | Classique | Actress | Short Directed by Christian Vincent |
| 1986 | Qui trop embrasse... | Actress | Directed by Jacques Davila |
| 1986 | Beau temps mais orageux en fin de journée | Actress | Directed by Gérard Frot-Coutaz |
| 1986 | Le Tiroir secret | Actress | TV mini-series Directed by Nadine Trintignant, Roger Gillioz, Michel Boisrond & Édouard Molinaro |
| 1987 | Coeurs croisés | Actress | Directed by Stéphanie de Mareuil |
| 1989 | Pentimento | Director / Writer | |
| 1989 | Palace | Actress | TV series (1 episode) Directed by Jean-Michel Ribes |
| 1990 | Le Champignon des Carpathes | Actress | Directed by Jean-Claude Biette |
| 1990 | La Campagne de Cicéron | Actress | Directed by Jacques Davila |
| 1992 | Chasse gardée | Actress | Directed by Jean-Claude Biette |
| 1993 | Point d'orgue | Actress | TV movie Directed by Paul Vecchiali |
| 1994 | Not Very Catholic /Something Fishy | Director / Writer | Bergamo Film Meeting – Golden Rosa Camuna Nominated – Berlin International Film Festival – Golden Bear |
| 1994 | 3000 scénarios contre un virus | Director | TV series (1 episode) |
| 1996 | Pour rire! | Actress | Directed by Lucas Belvaux |
| 1996 | Citron amer | Actress | Short Directed by Christiane Lack |
| 1996 | Enfants de salaud | Director / Writer | |
| 1999 | Venus Beauty Institute | Director / Writer | César Award for Best Director César Award for Best Film César Award for Best Writing Cabourg Film Festival – Golden Swann |
| 2000 | Tontaine et Tonton | Director | TV film |
| 2002 | Au plus près du Paradis | Director / Writer | Nominated – Venice Film Festival – Golden Lion |
| 2003 | France Boutique | Director / Writer | |
| 2004 | Les Falbalas de Jean-Paul Gaultier | Director / Writer / Cinematographer | Documentary |
| 2005 | Vénus & Apollon | Director / Writer / Producer | TV series |
| 2008 | Musée haut, musée bas | Actress | Directed by Jean-Michel Ribes |
| 2008 | Passe-passe | Director / Writer / Producer | |
| 2009 | X Femmes | Director / Writer | TV series (1 episode) |
| 2009 | Accomplices | Producer | Directed by Frédéric Mermoud |
| 2010 | HH, Hitler à Hollywood | Actress | Directed by Frédéric Sojcher |
| 2012 | Nuts | Producer | Directed by Yann Coridian |
| 2014 | The Missionaries | Director / Writer / Producer | |
| 2016 | Moka | Producer | |
| 2017 | Number One / Woman Up! | Director | |

### Drama

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1973 | Duos sur canapé | Actress | Written by Marc Camoletti Tournée Karsenty-Herbert |
| 1975 | Un jeu d'enfants | Actress | Written by Martin Walser Directed by Maurice Attias Théâtre Moderne |
| 1976 | Pour 100 briques t'as plus rien... | Actress | Written by Didier Kaminka Directed by Henri Garcin Théâtre La Bruyère |
| 1979 | Le Père Noel est une ordure | Actress | Written by members Le Splendid troupe Directed by Philippe Galland Le Splendid |
| 1979 | Essayez donc nos pédalos | Actress | Written by Alain Marcel |
| 1983 | Batailles | Actress | Written by Roland Topor, Jean-Michel Ribes Directed by Jean-Michel Ribes Théâtre de l'Athénée |
| 1987 | Crimes du coeur (Crimes of the Heart) | Actress | Written by Beth Henley Directed by François Bourgeat La Pépinière-Théâtre |
| 2008 | Batailles | Actress | Written by Roland Topor, Jean-Michel Ribes Directed by Jean-Michel Ribes Théâtre du Rond-Point |
| 2011 | L'Amour, la mort, les fringues | Actress | Written by Nora Ephron and Delia Ephron Directed by Danièle Thompson Théâtre Marigny |

## Recognition

Marshall achieved a prominent role in the French film industry, dominated mainly by men. In her most notable film, Venus Beauty Institute, Marshall touched on the theme of finding love from a female perspective, and how it can fundamentally be more difficult because of how it strays from the traditional dynamic of courtship. She explained how "in a practical sense, it’s complicated to have abandon [oneself] into a man’s arms and, at the same time, stay very tough because you have to work…". This expresses the vulnerabilities women endure when heavily committing to relationships, similar to much of Demy's work, including The Umbrellas of Cherbourg and The Young Girls of Rochefort.

### Honors

For her 1999 film Venus Beauty Institute :
* 2000 Cesar for Best Film
* 2000 Cesar for Best Director
* 2000 Cesar for Best Writing - Original or Adaptation
* 2000 Cesar for Most Promising Actress - Audrey Tautou

### Nominations

For her 1999 film Venus Beauty Institute :
* 2000 Cesar for Best Actress - Nathalie Baye
* 2000 Cesar for Best Supporting Actress - Bulle Ogier
* 2000 Cesar for Best Supporting Actress - Mathilde Seigner