From left, actress Marine Vacth, director Francois Ozon and actress Geraldine Pailhas poses for photographers during a photo call for the film Young & Beautiful at the 66th international film festival, in Cannes, southern France, Thursday, May 16, 2013. (AP Photo/Lionel Cironneau)
May 16, 2013 - 7:39 AM
CANNES, France - Cannes has been the birthplace of many a star, and the latest candidate to shine is Marine Vacth, who plays a teenager confronting the complexities of adolescent sexuality in Francois Ozon's "Jeune et Jolie" ("Young and Beautiful.")
The 23-year-old model lives up to the film's title as Isabelle, a 17-year-old whom the movie follows from a summer fling to work as an emotionally detached Parisian prostitute.
Ozon says he knew Vacth was right for the challenging role despite her lack of acting experience.
He said that "in her eyes I could see there was a whole inner world, a mystery, and that is exactly what I was looking for in my film."
"Jeune et Jolie" premiered Thursday at Cannes, where it is among 20 films competing for the Palme d'Or.
News from © The Associated Press, 2013