# Mona Achache

Mona Achache (born 18 March 1981) is a French-Moroccan film director, screenwriter, and actress. She wrote and directed the feature films The Hedgehog (2009), Les Gazelles (2014), Valiant Hearts (2021), and Little Girl Blue (2023). She also directed the Netflix documentary The Women and the Murderer (2021). In 2024, she was nominated for the César Award for Best Documentary Film for Little Girl Blue.

## Early life

Achache was born in Paris, France on 18 March 1981. Her mother was French writer and photographer Carole Achache, and her father is French director and screenwriter Jean Achache. She has a brother. Her maternal grandparents were French writer Monique Lange, and French science historian Jean-Jacques Salomon. Her maternal grandmother was born Jewish and later converted to Catholicism. Her maternal great-grandfather, Robert Lange, was a French journalist and politician. Spanish writer Juan Goytisolo was her maternal step-grandfather. Her paternal grandmother, Suzanne Achache–Wiznitzer, was an Austrian-Jewish psychoanalyst who survived the Holocaust as a child while hidden in the Château de Chambord in France during World War II.
Achache received a literary and theatrical education.

## Career

Achache worked as an assistant director for Michel Boujenah in his 2003 film Father and Sons, and later began screenwriting for fictional and documentary films. She became a mother at the age of 20 and directed a documentary film about childbirth, Alma et les autres, released in 2004, which became a reference in more than 500 maternity wards in France during birth preparation sessions.
In 2005, she wrote and directed the short film Suzanne, based on the story of her grandmother, who witnessed her father being arrested by the Nazis when she was 13 years old.
In 2009, Achache wrote and directed her first feature film, The Hedgehog, based on the novel The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery. That same year, she had a small part in the French-Greek drama film Eden Is West, directed by Costa-Gavras. In 2013, she co-wrote the screenplay of the comedy film Les gamins, directed by Anthony Marciano.
In 2014, Achache wrote and directed her second feature film, the comedy Les Gazelles.
In 2021, she wrote and directed her third feature film, the World War II drama Valiant Hearts, starring Camille Cottin, based on the real-life story of her grandmother, Suzanne Achache–Wiznitzer, who was a Jewish child placed in foster care to escape the Holocaust. That same year, she also directed the Netflix documentary The Women and the Murderer, about French serial killer Guy Georges.
In 2023, Achache wrote, directed, and played herself in the French docudrama Little Girl Blue. The film tells the story of her mother, Carole Achache, who was portrayed by Marion Cotillard. The film made its world premiere at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival in the Special Screenings section and was nominated for the L'Œil d'or award, and for the César Award for Best Documentary Film.

## Personal life

In the early 2000s, Achache was in a relationship with director Christophe Ruggia. She later revealed that their relationship ended after he confessed to her that he had fallen in love with and inappropriately touched actress Adèle Haenel, who was at that time underage. This confession corroborated Haenel's account of sexual abuse at the hands of Ruggia.
Achache is married to French cinematographer Patrick Blossier. She has three children, two daughters and one son.
Achache is a member of the French gender equality group Collectif 50/50.

## Filmography
### Feature films

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2003 | Father and Sons | Assistant director | Directed by Michel Boujenah |
| 2009 | The Hedgehog | Director and screenwriter |
| 2013 | Les gamins | Screenwriter | Directed by Anthony Marciano |
| 2014 | Les Gazelles | Director and screenwriter | |
| 2021 | Valiant Hearts | Director and screenwriter | |
| 2023 | Little Girl Blue | Director, screenwriter and actress | |

### Short films

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2005 | Suzanne | Director and screenwriter | Based on the story of Suzanne Achache-Wiznitzer |
| 2008 | Wawa | Director and screenwriter | |
| 2016 | Speed Dating | Director | Campaign against domestic violence for France's Fondation des Femmes |

### Documentaries

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2004 | Alma et les autres | Director | |
| 2016 | Grandmas Project | Director and cinematographer | Documentary web-series; episode "Marillenknödel" |
| 2021 | The Women and the Murderer | Director | Netflix documentary |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2012 | Bankable | Director | Television film |
| 2015–2016 | Defendant | Director | Television series (3 episodes) |
| 2015–2017 | Marjorie | Director | Television series (3 episodes) |
| 2019 | Osmosis | Director | Television series (2 episodes) |
| 2019–2020 | Balthazar | Director | Television series (4 episodes) |
| 2022 | Champion | Director | Television film |
| 2022–2023 | HPI Haut Potentiel Intellectuel | Director | Television series (4 episodes) |

### Actress

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2009 | Eden Is West | Marie-Lou | Directed by Costa-Gavras |
| 2011 | Dans la tourmente | Charlier's wife | Directed by Christophe Ruggia |
| 2023 | Little Girl Blue | Herself | Also director and screenwriter |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award / Festival | Category | Work | Result |
| 2005 | Avanca Film Festival | Best Film - International Competition | Suzanne | Nominated |
| 2005 | Giffoni Film Festival | Best Short Film | Suzanne | Nominated |
| 2006 | Ebensee Festival of Nations | Silver Bear | Suzanne | Won |
| 2009 | Cairo International Film Festival | Best Director | The Hedgehog | Won |
| 2009 | Cairo International Film Festival | FIPRESCI Prize | The Hedgehog | Won |
| 2009 | Cairo International Film Festival | Silver Pyramid | The Hedgehog | Won |
| 2009 | Cairo International Film Festival | Special Award | The Hedgehog | Won |
| 2009 | Cairo International Film Festival | Golden Pyramid | The Hedgehog | Nominated |
| 2009 | Valladolid International Film Festival | Best Film - Audience Award | The Hedgehog | Won |
| 2009 | Valladolid International Film Festival | Golden Spike - Best Film | The Hedgehog | Nominated |
| 2009 | Women Film Critics Circle | Best Foreign Film by or About Women | The Hedgehog | Won |
| 2010 | Seattle International Film Festival | Best Film | The Hedgehog | Won |
| 2010 | Seattle International Film Festival | Best Director | The Hedgehog | Runner-up |
| 2011 | Palm Springs International Film Festival | Best Narrative Feature | The Hedgehog | Runner-up |
| 2011 | Washington DC Filmfest | Audience Award | The Hedgehog | Won |
| 2012 | Chlotrudis Award | Best Adapted Screenplay | The Hedgehog | Nominated |
| 2023 | Cannes Film Festival | L'Œil d'or | Little Girl Blue | Nominated |
| 2023 | CineLibri | Best Documentary | Little Girl Blue | Nominated |
| 2023 | Rencontres du cinéma francophone en Beaujolais | Jury Award | Little Girl Blue | Nominated |
| 2023 | Festival international du cinéma francophone en Acadie | Best Medium or Feature-Length Documentary | Little Girl Blue | Nominated |
| 2023 | Prix Louis-Delluc | Best Film | Little Girl Blue | Nominated |
| 2024 | Lumières Award | Best Documentary | Little Girl Blue | Nominated |
| 2024 | Paris Film Critics Association Awards | Best Documentary | Little Girl Blue | Nominated |
| 2024 | César Awards | Best Documentary Film | Little Girl Blue | Nominated |
| 2024 | Trophées du Film français | Scam Award for Best Documentary | Little Girl Blue | Nominated |