Kiki of Montparnasse
Biography: Alice Prin born in 1901 as an illegitimate child and was raised in poverty by her grandmother. At age twelve, she was sent by train to live with her mother, a linotypist, in Paris in order to help earn an income for her family. By 14, she started posing as a nude model for various artists, this created discord with her mother, who finally disowned her. The teenage Kiki determined to make her living exclusively by posing for artists, but she soon became a local celebrity who symbolized the Montparnasse quarter's nonconformity and its rejection of the social norms of the petite bourgeoisie. In Autumn 1921, Prin met the American visual artist Man Ray, and the two soon entered into a stormy eight-year relationship. She lived with Man Ray in his studio on rue Campagne-Première until 1929 during which time he made hundreds of portraits of her. She became his muse at the time and the subject of some of his best-known images. By 1929, Prin had reached the zenith of her fame. A symbol of bohemian and creative Paris and of the possibility of being a woman and finding an artistic place, she was elected the Queen of Montparnasse at the age of twenty-eight. Despite her local fame, she continued to live a hand-to-mouth existence. Even during difficult times, she maintained her positive attitude, saying "all I need is an onion, a bit of bread, and a bottle of red [wine]; and I will always find somebody to offer me that." She died at the age of fifty-one on after collapsing outside her flat in Montparnasse, apparently of complications of alcoholism or drug dependence.
Place of Birth: Not available
Birthday: October 02, 1901
Deathday: April 29, 1953
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Known For
L'Inhumaine
1924-12-12
L'Inhumaine
Overview: A famous singer Claire Lescot, who lives on the outskirts of Paris, is courted by many men, including a maharajah, Djorah de Nopur, and a young Swedish scientist, Einar Norsen. At her lavish parties she enjoys their amorous attentions but she remains emotionally aloof and heartlessly taunts them. When she is told that Norsen has killed himself because of her, she shows no feelings. At her next concert she is booed by an audience outraged at her coldness. She visits the vault in which Norsen's body lies, and as she admits her feelings for him she discovers that he is alive; his death was feigned. Djorah is jealous of their new relationship and causes Claire to be bitten by a poisonous snake. Her body is brought to Norsen's laboratory, where he, by means of his scientific inventions, restores Claire to life.
Genres: Drama Science Fiction
Original Language: fr
Release Date: 1924-12-12
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The Yellow Captain
1930-12-19
The Yellow Captain
Overview:
Genres: Drama
Original Language: fr
Release Date: 1930-12-19
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Emak-Bakia
1926-07-26
Emak-Bakia
Overview: Emak-Bakia (Basque for Leave me alone) is a 1926 film directed by Man Ray. Subtitled as a cinépoéme, it features many techniques Man Ray used in his still photography (for which he is better known), including Rayographs, double exposure, soft focus and ambiguous features. The film features sculptures by Pablo Picasso, and some of Man Ray's mathematical objects both still and animated using a stop motion technique.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: fr
Release Date: 1926-07-26
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The Gallery of Monsters
1924-09-23
The Gallery of Monsters
Overview: The whimsical Riquet's has kidnapped and married a well-born young girl, Ralda. They travel around Spain performing their act in a circus but Ralda's beauty arouses the director's lust. Furious at being rejected, he opens a lion's cage during Ralda's act, leaving her seriously injured. With Ralda's family on their trail, the young people set off to find a better life elsewhere.
Genres: Drama
Original Language: fr
Release Date: 1924-09-23
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Walking on Air
1946-11-01
Walking on Air
Overview: Shaw is the south end of a horse for an ice show, but she longs to be a ballerina. It looks like she will achieve that goal, but will her oversized ego get in her way?
Genres: Music Drama
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1946-11-01
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Return to Reason: Four Films by Man Ray
2024-05-03
Return to Reason: Four Films by Man Ray
Overview: An immersion into the surreal and dreamlike world of painter, photographer and filmmaker Man Ray (1890-1976), one of the most prolific American visual artists, through four of his short films, brought to life by the atmospheric music of SQÜRL.
Genres: Drama
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2024-05-03
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Return to Reason
1923-09-06
Return to Reason
Overview: Experimental film, white specks and shapes gyrating over a black background, the light-striped torso of Kiki of Montparnasse (Alice Prin), a gyrating eggcrate. One of the first Dadaist films.
Genres: Drama
Original Language: fr
Release Date: 1923-09-06
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The Starfish
1928-04-20
The Starfish
Overview: The romantic relationship between a man and a woman.
Genres: Romance
Original Language: fr
Release Date: 1928-04-20
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Ballet Mécanique
1924-09-24
Ballet Mécanique
Overview: A pulsing, kaleidoscope of images set to an energetic soundtrack. This is a world in motion, dominated by mechanical and repetitive images, with a few moments of solitude in a garden.
Genres: Documentary Fantasy
Original Language: fr
Release Date: 1924-09-24
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The Old Devil
1933-01-01
The Old Devil
Overview: Vautier, a wealthy surgeon in his fifties, falls in love with Hélène, a young woman from a modest background. He allows her to have a string of short-lived lovers - but when Jean Trapeau, an old boyfriend, resurfaces, things get complicated.
Genres: Drama
Original Language: fr
Release Date: 1933-01-01
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The Lion of the Moguls
1924-12-12
The Lion of the Moguls
Overview: In the kingdom of the Moguls, Prince Roudghito-Sing, a young officer of the palace, falls in love with Zemgali, a captive princess held prisoner and coveted by the Grand Khan. Fleeing the country, he takes refuge in Paris and his presentability allows him to be hired as an actor by a French film company. The trouble is that Anna, the star of the movie, is attracted to him. Which displeases banker Morel, the producer and Anna's lover... Written by Guy Bellinger
Genres: Drama Romance
Original Language: fr
Release Date: 1924-12-12
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Souvenir de Paris
1928-01-01
Souvenir de Paris
Overview:
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: fr
Release Date: 1928-01-01
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Les Films de Man Ray
2012-01-01
Les Films de Man Ray
Overview: In the 1920s, Man Ray directed four films which, although largely unknown by the general public, made him into a major figure in avant-garde cinema. His films were to be as radical as his images or objects. Included: Le Retour à la Raison, Les Mystères du Château du Dé, Emak-Bakia, L'étoile de Mer and collected shorts.
Genres: Animation Fantasy
Original Language: fr
Release Date: 2012-01-01
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