Gerard Jugnot

Born: May 4 1951
Where: Paris, France

Know as the French Steve Martin, the actor is best known outside his home country as the bumbling music teacher in The Chorus.

Nominated for a best actor Cesar (French Oscar) three times, he made his feature debut in the comedy L'An 01 in 1973.

In 1984 he made his directing debut (and starred in) the comedy Pinot Simple Flic in 1984 and has gone on to make almost 100 movies.

Highlights include his Cesar-nominated turn in Tandem in 1987 and the Capra-esque Une Epoque Formidable, which he also wrote and directed in 1991.

For 1998's Marthe he was nominated for a best supporting actor Cesar and he received plaudits for his work on the WWII comedy drama Monsieur Batignole in 2002.

In 2004, he received his third best actor Cesar nomination for Christophe Barratier's Oscar-winning The Chorus.