The 400 Blows
by François Truffaut · film · 1959
unverified
truffaut's directorial debut, shot in dyaliscope and financed through his production company les films du carrosse, which was funded by his in-laws' windfall from distributing the russian film the cranes are flying in france. the financing deal came together after truffaut's in-laws made money buying french distribution rights to that film, which won the palme d'or at cannes. truffaut cast 14-year-old jean-pierre léaud after seeing him at audition, building a semi-autobiographical character directly from his own experience of juvenile detention and maternal neglect.
what shaped this
the makers, scenes, and predecessors this work came out of, grouped by how the influence reached it
scene and geography
- Les Mistons · François Truffaut
referenced · cahiers du cinéma critics becoming filmmakers
Truffaut's 1958 short established him as a practicing filmmaker rather than just a critic. The success of Les Mistons validated his theoretical writings about auteur cinema and created the platform for his first feature. Both films share the same critical circle and directorial approach.
“Truffaut's initial creative effort, the short piece Les Mistons (1958; The Mischief Makers), depicted a gang of boys who thoughtlessly persecute two young lovers. It met with sufficient appreciation to facilitate his first feature-length film, Les Quatre Cents Coups.”
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what’s downstream
later work that traces back to this one