Sylvie Testud

Acting

Sylvie Testud

Born 1971-01-17 · Lyon, Rhône, France

Sylvie Testud was born on January 17, 1971 in Lyon. Her parents separated when she was two years old. She spent her youth in the Lyon district of Croix-Rousse, raised by her mother, an accountant. In high school, she learned Chinese. Very early fascinated by the cinema, the young girl identifies in particular with the complexed teenager character embodied by Charlotte Gainsbourg in L'Effrontée. Having moved to Paris to study history, she soon embarked on acting by joining the free class at Cours Florent and then the Conservatory, where her teachers were Jacques Lassalle and Catherine Hiegel. She made her first screen appearance in 1994 in Couples et amants. She decided to become an actress during her youth, after having admired actresses in films. She then took acting lessons in Lyon with the actor and director Christian Taponard. In 1989, she moved to Paris to study history, as well as drama lessons in free classes at Cours Florent, then at the National Conservatory of Dramatic Art for three years, with Jacques Lassalle and Catherine Hiegel for teachers. In the early 1990s, she obtained her first small roles in the cinema, then in feature films such as The Story of the Boy Who Wanted to Be Kissed by Philippe Harel (1994), Le Plus Bel Age..., by Didier Haudepin (1995) or even Love, etc. by Marion Vernoux (1996). In 1997, Sylvie Testud experienced her first great success at the cinema in Germany with the film Beyond Silence by Caroline Link, for which she learned German, the clarinet and sign language. She is rewarded as best actress by the German Film Prize (the equivalent of the César for best actress). In 1998, she played her first major role in French cinema and enjoyed great success in France with the role of Béa in Karnaval, the first feature film by Thomas Vincent, for which she was nominated for the César for best female hope and received the Michael Simon Prize. She then began an important acting career with a preference for auteur cinema. In 2000, her performance in La Captive by Chantal Akerman (adaptation of the novel La Prisonnière by Marcel Proust) earned her a nomination as best actress at the European Film Prize. In 2001, she obtained, for her second nomination, the César for best female hope for the remarkable interpretation of Christine Papin, one of the Papin sisters, in Les Blessures assassines by Jean-Pierre Denis, based on a news item from 1933.

Acting credits

Suspiria poster
6.9

A darkness swirls at the center of a world-renowned dance company, one that will engulf the artistic director, an ambitious young dancer, and a grieving psychotherapist. Some will succumb to the nightmare. Others will finally wake up.

Suspiria

2018

La Vie en Rose poster
7.4

From the mean streets of the Belleville district of Paris to the dazzling limelight of New York's most famous concert halls, Edith Piaf's life was a constant battle to sing and survive, to live and love. Raised in her grandmother's brothel, Piaf was discovered in 1935 by nightclub owner Louis Leplee, who persuaded her to sing despite her extreme nervousness. Piaf became one of France's immortal icons, her voice one of the indelible signatures of the 20th century.

La Vie en Rose

2007

Cocorico 2 poster
5.2

DNA tests before Alice and François's wedding reveal their fathers - an aristocrat and car dealer - aren't as French as they thought.

Cocorico 2

2026

Final Portrait poster
6.0

Paris, 1964. The Swiss sculptor and painter Alberto Giacometti, one of the most accomplished and respected artists of his generation, asks his friend, the American writer James Lord, to sit for a portrait, assuring him that it will take no longer than two or three hours, an afternoon at the most.

Final Portrait

2017

LOL 2.0: Anne’s Golden Hour poster
6.1

At 55, Anne is finally enjoying her freedom after her children leave home. But everything changes when her 23-year-old daughter, Louise, moves back in with her after a professional and romantic failure. And to make matters worse, her son, Théo, announces that she's going to be a grandmother! Anne realizes that life never goes as planned and that, at any age, we are still learning to grow up.

LOL 2.0: Anne’s Golden Hour

2026

The Visitors: Bastille Day poster
4.2

Stuck in the corridors of time, Godefroy de Montmirail and his faithful servant Jacquouille are projected to a time of profound political and social upheavals: the French Revolution... specifically, The Terror, time of great dangers, during which the descendants of Godefroy and Jacquouille had their castle and all their property confiscated by arrogant aristocrats, fleeing and lifes hanging by a thread.

The Visitors: Bastille Day

2016

Too Close to the Sun poster
5.8

A magistrate investigating a fraud case discovers the woman is the biological mother of her adopted child. Instead of recusing herself, the magistrate pursues the case further.

Too Close to the Sun

2015

Vengeance poster
6.6

A French chef swears revenge after a violent attack on his daughter's family in Macau, during which her husband and her two children are murdered. To help him find the killers, he hires three local hit-men working for the mafia.

Vengeance

2009

Simone: Woman of the Century poster
7.9

Simone Veil's life story through the pivotal events of Twentieth Century. Her childhood, her political battles, her tragedies. An intimate and epic portrait of an extraordinary woman who eminently challenged and transformed her era defending a humanist message still keenly relevant today.

Simone: Woman of the Century

2022

Wedding Unplanned poster
6.1

When she discovers a wedding planer's business card, Alexia instantly says, "YES" to Mathias unaware that it belongs to his mistress. The groom is now trapped between his bride, and his lover who in charge of his unwanted marriage.

Wedding Unplanned

2017

À votre bon cœur, mesdames poster
5.0

The story of a septuagenarian, recently divorced, which in its reconstruction desire and quest for a new companion will rediscover the small pleasures of life and the art of seduction.

À votre bon cœur, mesdames

2013

The Round Up poster
7.5

A faithful retelling of the 1942 "Vel' d'Hiv Roundup" and the events surrounding it.

The Round Up

2010

Beyond Silence poster
6.9

Beyond Silence is about a family and a young girl’s coming of age story. This German film looks into the lives of the deaf and at a story about the love for music. A girl who has always had to translate speech into sign language for her deaf parents yet when her love for playing music grows strong she must decide to continue doing something she cannot share with her parents.

Beyond Silence

1996

Cocorico poster
5.6

The Bouvier-Sauvages, a large aristocratic family, meet the much more modest Martin family when their children's wedding is announced. For the occasion, the future bride and groom offer their parents DNA tests, which will reveal their true origins. The results are totally unexpected and will make the effect of a bomb.

Cocorico

2024

No artwork available
6.0

In Paris, a young Argentine screenwriter attempts to escape his daily routine through a fictional story set in Argentina. This attracts the attention of those around him, including Alice, a young actress. But his story gradually escapes him and he becomes inextricably entangled in dreams and reality.

Stolen Tangos

2002

Lucky Luke poster
4.5

Fearless gunslinger, Lucky Luke, is ordered by the President to bring peace to Daisy Town.

Lucky Luke

2009

Spiderwebhouse poster
5.9

When 12-year-old Jonas’ mother leaves to “fight her demons”, he steps up as head of the household, becoming the unofficial guardian to his younger siblings. With food and money running out, the children retreat into a world of their own where, cloaked eerily in black-and-white, their home turns into one of bugs and mysticism – they make saucepan gardens, they take on insects as pets and spiderwebs encroach. Only the friendship of an odd young homeless man gives Jonas hope to survive in an adult’s world.

Spiderwebhouse

2015

The Exchange Student poster
5.4

Malo and Stéphane are two students who are kind of losers and have just started high school. Their plan to become popular: to host a German exchange student with a lot of style. Too bad for Malo, who gets stuck with a Goth who will make his life hell.

The Exchange Student

2016

French Women poster
5.7

A story about 11 girls living in Paris. Each of them has its own problems: career, love life, children. Every girl has their complexes and virtues. They always look elegant, hiding their inner feelings. Will they reach all the goals and overcome all their difficulties?

French Women

2014

The Captive poster
5.7

Ariane lives with Simon in his large Paris flat. Simon is obsessed with her: he wants to know everything about her, secretly follows her when she goes out, asks questions all the time, even in the most intimate moments. Ariane seems to take it all in stride, but Simon realises that she's hiding something.

The Captive

2000

Tamara poster
6.4

Tamara, 15, complexed with her curves, decided its entry into second to get rid of the label of "big". To shut up the gossip, she made a bet with her best friend to go out with the first boy who pass the classroom door. No luck, the boy turns out to be Diego, the most handsome guy of high school. The bet is complicated for Tamara .... Between the dirty tricks of the mean girls of high school, a mother hen, boards "drag" his little sister, Tamara is a memorable year!

Tamara

2016

Arrête ton cinéma ! poster
4.6

Sybille, an accomplished actress, is given the chance to direct a film based on her own screenplay. Everything seems to go well at first. Her producers, two sisters, are two wacky but lovable characters, and Sybille dives into the adventure with them, putting aside her family life. But, from the unlikely choice of actresses, the successive rewrites of the script and the financial issues, the wonderful dream turns into a nightmare. Ever the optimist, Sybille will realise too late that her whimsical and totally crazy producers are going to drag her in their madness ... One thing is certain, nothing will happen as planned.

Arrête ton cinéma !

2016

24 Days poster
6.6

When Ilan Halimi is kidnapped for ransom because Jewish and supposedly rich, his family and the police start a race against time to save him from the tortures of the "gang of barbarians".

24 Days

2014

Meet the Malawas poster
4.5

A news anchor, a comedian, an actress, and a soccer player with big egos have to travel across the globe to meet the Malawa tribe for a TV show.

Meet the Malawas

2019

Behind the camera

Arrête ton cinéma ! poster
4.6

Sybille, an accomplished actress, is given the chance to direct a film based on her own screenplay. Everything seems to go well at first. Her producers, two sisters, are two wacky but lovable characters, and Sybille dives into the adventure with them, putting aside her family life. But, from the unlikely choice of actresses, the successive rewrites of the script and the financial issues, the wonderful dream turns into a nightmare. Ever the optimist, Sybille will realise too late that her whimsical and totally crazy producers are going to drag her in their madness ... One thing is certain, nothing will happen as planned.

Arrête ton cinéma !

2016

Another Woman's Life poster
6.2

When the fun loving Marie sets her eyes on brooding comic book artist Paul, it sets off the kind of romantic sparks that quickly culminate in the bedroom. But the next morning brings its share of surprises as Marie crawls out of bed to discover her life flash-forwarded fifteen years down the road: Not only has she been married to Paul all this time, but she’s now the mother of a little boy the head of a powerful multinational investment firm and the proprietor of a fabulous apartment overlooking the Eiffel Tower. Quickly Marie discovers that all her achievements have not brought happiness.

Another Woman's Life

2012

Another Woman's Life poster
6.2

When the fun loving Marie sets her eyes on brooding comic book artist Paul, it sets off the kind of romantic sparks that quickly culminate in the bedroom. But the next morning brings its share of surprises as Marie crawls out of bed to discover her life flash-forwarded fifteen years down the road: Not only has she been married to Paul all this time, but she’s now the mother of a little boy the head of a powerful multinational investment firm and the proprietor of a fabulous apartment overlooking the Eiffel Tower. Quickly Marie discovers that all her achievements have not brought happiness.

Another Woman's Life

2012

Maman, ne me laisse pas m'endormir poster
7.4

Juliette discovers that her teenage son, whom she thought was flourishing, is in reality undermined by a deep malaise and that he has become dangerously dependent on drugs. Determined to get him out of his deadly addiction, and driven by her unconditional love, she embarks on a long and painful fight, alongside her child, without ever giving up on saving him.

Maman, ne me laisse pas m'endormir

2022

No artwork available
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Tout un poème

No artwork available
NR

No synopsis available yet.

Tout un poème