Cécile Decugis(1930-2017)

Cécile Decugis was a French editor, film maker and director. In the 1950s, Cécile Decugis took part in support of the struggle for independence in Algeria and made Les Refugiés1 (1957), a short film about the displacement of people into Tunisia. At the same time, she set up the first short and feature films by François Truffaut and Jean-Luc Godard. On March 9, 1960, while starting work with Truffaut on Shoot the Piano Player (1960), Cécile Decugis was arrested in Paris. Sentenced to five years imprisonment for renting an apartment to FLN2 militants, she spent two years in La Roquette prison. During this time François Truffaut provided her with financial assistance. In the late 1960s, Cécile Decugis became, the official editor of director Éric Rohmer for about fifteen years. During her life she edited numerous important films and directed five of her own.