Linh Dan Pham

Linh Dan Pham (1974-    ) is an award-winning actress of French cinema.  Since her breakthrough role as Camille in the 1992 French film, Indochine, which had garnered the Academy Award for best foreign language film, she has acted in over a dozen films in three different languages:  French, Vietnamese and English.  Linh Dan Pham has been twice nominated for a Cesar Award, winning with her second nomination in 2006 as most promising actress for her performance in the French film, De Battre Mon Cœur S'est Arrêté.  

Born in Saigon, South Vietnam, Linh Dan Pham and her family moved to Paris, France in 1975 while she was just a year old.  At the age of 17, Linh Dan Pham landed the role of Camille in her debut film, Indochine, which had starred Catherine Deneuve, Vincente Perez and veteran cinema of Hanoi actress, Nhu Quynh.  Released in 1992, Indochine became a major international success and introduced Linh Dan Pham to movie audiences worldwide. Although the film had been made primarily as a Catherine Deneuve starring vehicle which had earned the veteran actress her first Oscar nomination, as well as her second Cesar Award for best actress, critics had also given high praise for all other members of the supporting cast, especially Linh Dan Pham.  Dominique Blanc had also won a Cesar Award for best supporting actress.  Jean Yanne was nominated for a Cesar Award for best supporting actor.  And Linh Dan Pham, the newcomer, was nominated for a Cesar Award for most promising actress.  

Following the success of Indochine, Linh Dan Pham's next motion picture was called Jamila, released in 1994.  Cast in the title role opposite accomplished actors Nikolai Kinski (Nastassia Kinski's half brother) and Jason Connery (Sean Connery's son), Jamila was intended to be Linh Dan Pham's first starring vehicle.  However, upon it's release the film's lackluster reception could not give Linh Dan Pham the career boost she had hoped for.  Disappointed, Linh Dan Pham then decided to put her career on a ten-year hiatus despite the fact that she was still being offered other film roles.  

During her ten years away from the spotlight, Linh Dan Pham focused primarily on her studies and personal life.  After she completed her studies in business, she moved to Vietnam and found work as a senior marketing manager.  In 2000, Linh Dan Pham got married to a British investment banker named Andrew Huntley, whom she had met while living in Ho Chi Minh City.  

Her portrayal of Miao Ling in De Battre Mon Cœur S'est Arrêté (The Beat That My Heart Skipped), released in 2005, officially marked Linh Dan Pham's return to films.  The film was both a critical and commercial success.  It picked up several major film awards for the year of 2005 which included a BAFTA Award for best foreign language film, a Lumières Award and a Cesar Award both for best film.  In total, De Battre Mon Cœur S'est Arrêté was honored with ten Cesar Award nominations, winning eight, making it one of the biggest sweeps in the history of Cesar Awards.  Once again, Linh Dan Pham was nominated for a Cesar Award in the category of most promising actress for her performance in De Battre Mon Cœur S'est Arrêté.  But this time around, she was able to take home the trophy.  

Linh Dan Pham accepting the Cesar Award
 for most promising actress in 2006

The resurgence of her acting career that had been brought on by the enormous success of De Battre Mon Cœur S'est Arrêté spawned her decision to return to Europe in 2005.  Since then, she has appeared in a string of successful films and television shows produced in France and abroad.  Among her most popular films in the last decade include Pars Vite et Reviens Tard (Have Mercy on Us) (2007), a film in which she was reunited with Indochine director Régis Wargnier, Dante 01 (2008), a science fiction film in which she costarred with actor Lambert Wilson, Le Bal des Actrices (All About Actresses) (2009), a mockumentary film directed by actress/director Maiwenn, Mr. Nobody (2009), her very first English-language film directed by Jaco Van Dormeal and costarring Breton-Vietnamese Eurasian teen actress Audrey Giacomini, Ninja Assassin (2009), a German-American martial arts film directed by James McTeigue, Tout Ce Qui Brille (2010), a starring vehicle for actress/director Géraldine Nakache and Divin Enfant (2014), a French comedy film written and directed by Olivier Doran.  

Despite her international success as a film actress, she has not forgotten her Vietnamese roots.  In 2005, Linh Dan Pham appeared on the popular overseas Vietnamese variety show by Asia Productions where she was honored for her contributions as an actress in world cinema.  In 2009, Linh Dan Pham starred in her first Vietnamese production film, Choi Voi (Adrift), along with Johnny Tri Nguyen, Do Thi Hai Yen and her former costar from Indochine, Nhu Quynh.  

Link(s):

Linh Dan Pham's Official Website
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