Fabienne Babe

Adventurous actress Fabienne Babe has always been on the move. Born in France, she decamped with her family to Tripoli, Libya, and spent the majority of her childhood in that port city before relocating to the suburbs of Paris as a teenager. After graduating from high school, she traveled to the United States and embarked on a cross-country trip, after which she ended up settling in Hollywood, where she began taking acting classes. Returning to France, Babe quickly scored a role in Ariel Zeitoun's "Souvenirs souvenirs" (1984). Soon afterward, French New Wave auteur Jacques Rivette cast her as the lead in "Wuthering Heights" (1985). After collaborating with Rivette, Babe had the chance to work with another cinematic master, Ken Loach, for whom she acted in his 1986 drama, "Fatherland." Her characteristic wanderlust then attracted her to productions in a variety of countries, including Italy, Poland, Germany, Portugal, and Belgium (where she appeared in "Je pense à vous," a 1992 drama directed by the Dardenne brothers). In 1995, Babe appeared alongside Gérard Depardieu in acclaimed director Maurice Pialat's final film, "Le garçu." In 1997, the Cinémathéque Française in Paris honored Babe with a retrospective of her work, a rarity for an actress who was then still quite young.