Jean Cocteau

Born in Maisons-Laffitte, France, on July 5, 1889, Jean Cocteau built an unusually wide-ranging career as a poet, novelist, playwright, designer, visual artist, and filmmaker. He was closely connected to the Parisian avant-garde and became known for moving freely across artistic forms rather than staying in just one.

His best-known works include the novel Les Enfants terribles, the play Orphée, and films such as The Blood of a Poet, Beauty and the Beast, and Orpheus. Again and again, he returned to themes of transformation, fantasy, and classical myth, giving them a stylish modern edge.

Cocteau died on October 11, 1963, in Milly-la-Forêt. His reputation has lasted because his art feels both elegant and daring: literary, theatrical, and cinematic all at once.