French pioneer director. Began at Gaumont in 1916 as an assistant to director Jacques Feyder. Came to prominence in the 1920's, after establishing the Société des Grands Films Historiques with the writers Henry Dupuis-Mazuel and Jean-José Frappa.
Studied drama at the age of fifteen and in 1913 he starred opposite Sarah Bernhardt in the stage play "Jeanne Doré", a part written for him by his father.
