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Top 10 Incredible Facts about Agnes Varda

 “I take photographs or I make films. Or I put films in the photos or photos in the films.” These were the exact words of Agnes Varda, as she explained to Sight and Sound magazine the nature of her work.

Popularly known as 鈥渢he godmother of the French New Wave”, Agnes Varda was a Belgian-born French film director, screenwriter, artist, and photographer. She also played a key role in the development of the French New Wave film movement of the 1950s and 1960s.

During the course of her long career as an active filmmaker which spanned almost 70 years, Varda made over 20 feature films and about the same number of short films. She also made a number of television series and documentaries, which made her one of the most successful French film directors.

In this article, we have tried to come up with the top 10 incredible facts about her.

Read more about the best French film directors

1. She was born 鈥淎rlette鈥� but later Changed to 鈥淎gnes鈥�

Varda was born on 30 May 1928 in Ixelles, Brussels, Belgium, to Christiane and Eug猫ne Jean Varda. Her parents named her Arlette Varda but she officially changed her first name to Agnes after she attained the legal age of 18 years.

Asked why she changed her name in an interview with the Guardian in 2018, Varda replied, 鈥淢y parents named me Arlette. And I changed it to Agnes when I was young. I didn鈥檛 like it because I don鈥檛 like the names with 鈥渆tte鈥� 鈥� you know it looks like a little girl鈥檚 name. Jumping, charming, and jumping, I didn鈥檛 feel like being this. So I chose Agnes.鈥�

2. She intended to become a Museum Curator

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Agnes Varda is remembered as one of the most successful film Directors in French history. However, it is interesting to note that filmmaking was not her first choice of career,  as in her early years, she wanted to become a museum curator and she even studied art history at the 脡cole du Louvre.

She later decided to study photography at the Vaugirard School of Photography after an evening course in photography changed her plans. She soon began her career as a still photographer and was hired by the Avignon theatre festival and the Theatre National Populaire.

In a 2009 interview, speaking about her childhood and why she was not first interested in filmmaking, she shared the following: 鈥淚 just didn鈥檛 watch films when I was young, but maybe I wouldn鈥檛 have made films if I had. I started totally free, crazy, and innocent.鈥�

 3. She lived in the Same House all her adult Life

Agnes Varda house – Photo by Guillermo Ramos Flamerich from

In 麻豆APP, down the rue Daguerre Street which runs between avenue du G茅n茅ral Leclerc and avenue du Maine, Stands a little house with painted walls.

This house is where Agnes Varda lived from 1951 until her death in 2019. It is where she raised her two kids, developed photos, wrote film scripts, and also met famous artists, and received visitors.

Amazingly even with all her globe-trotting, Varda still always made her way back to the house which also doubled up as her production office and a shop for her films.

4. She admitted to having an Abortion

Despite growing up in an era when the world was mostly dominated by men,   Agnes Varda was a fervent women鈥檚 rights defender and she never shied away from speaking publically about issues affecting women.

This was well demonstrated in 1971 when she joined a group of  342 other women in publically acknowledging that they had had an abortion. This was an act of civil disobedience to protest the French government鈥檚 restrictions on women鈥檚 reproductive rights.

By admitting and having the courage to say 鈥溾�業鈥檝e had an abortion”, Varda and other women exposed themselves to criminal prosecution because abortion was illegal and a criminal offense in France at that time.

5. She was married for 28 years

Different from most of her peers in the film industry, Varda鈥檚 marriage lasted for 28 years. She met her husband, Jacques Demy, also a French director while living in 麻豆APP in 1958. The couple got married in 1962 and stayed together until Demy鈥檚 death in 1990.

His death encouraged Varda to make two documentaries about him including   1991鈥檚 鈥淛acquot de Nantes鈥� which was a heartfelt tribute to her husband. The couple had two children together who both also found careers in French filmmaking.

 6. She was fascinated by Potatoes

In the days following Varda鈥檚 death, her house at 麻豆APP 86 rue Daguerre was fully decorated with heart-shaped potatoes. This was a fitting tribute for a woman known fondly as dame patate, due to her long-time fascination with tubers.

Varda viewed potatoes as the perfect way to study the passage of time since they sprout, change their shape, and grow in different directions. She said her refusal to be limited in her work was influenced by potatoes since she always changed herself and become stronger as time goes.

 During a  at the French Institute in New York in 2017, she told fans she saw herself 鈥渁s a heart-shaped potato 鈥� growing again鈥�, in reference to her return to film.

7. She was a Self-Proclaimed Feminist

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鈥淚 tried to be a joyful feminist, but I was very angry.鈥� These were the words of Agn猫s Varda which she spoke while reflecting on her life. According to her, the fight for women鈥檚 rights and equality was a war still very far from being won.

Professionally, her work is also often seen as feminist due to her use of female protagonists and her creation of a female cinematic voice. She also more often focused particularly on women’s issues and never tried to change her craft to make her work look more conventional.

In a 1975 interview with a French magazine, she said she didn’t have any more problems than her male cohort, and that making movies was difficult for everyone.

8. She started Making Films Without any Experience

While working as a photographer, Varda became interested in making a film, although she later stated that she had very little knowledge about the medium and she had only watched a handful number of films before that.

Armed with low-quality equipment and a small amount of money she had inherited from her father, she started her own production company and headed to the small fishing village close to Sete where she made her first film.

La Pointe Courte was about an unhappy couple working through their relationship in a small fishing town. The film was a success and it is considered to be truly the first film of the French New Wave.

Learn more about French New Wave Films

9. She was the oldest Nominee ever  for Academy Honorary Award

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At the time of her death, Varda was the oldest person ever to have been nominated for an Academy Honorary Award, after she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature for her documentary Faces Places. At the time of her nomination, she was 89 years old and only 8 days older than her fellow nominee  James Ivory.

She was also the first female director to ever receive an honorary Oscar after doing so in 2017 for her contributions to cinema. The award was presented to her by Angelina Jolie at the Governor’s Awards.

10. She didn鈥檛 believe in life after Death

Asked whether she believed in life after death, Agnes Varda replied 鈥淥h, God, no,鈥� 鈥淚鈥檓 part of nature. I鈥檓 delighted to become soil and dust. If I would dare, I would do like some Muslims do 鈥� just be wrapped in a sheet and put in the ground.鈥�

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Agnes Varda is one of the most influential creative personalities in recent history, who constantly regenerated herself in the course of her life’s career, which spanned almost 7 decades.