Here’s a nice surprise before TIFF kicks off this weekend! Mélanie attended a party for Vogue Magazine yesterday evening in Paris and I’ve added some pictures of the appearance to the gallery.

Hello, all! I have a bit of news regarding Mélanie’s debut full-length feature film as a director: she’s chosen more of her cast! The title is still up on the air, as some sources report it as “Putain de pluie !”, others as having returned to the original title “Les Adoptés”, and others still report the project is untitled.

Mélanie will be co-starring as a young mother alongside actress and friend Marie Denarnaud, as previously reported, but added to the bunch are Clémentine Célarie and Denis Menochet (Perrier LaPadite, “Inglourious Basterds”.) No news on characters’ names or who Clémentine and Denis will be playing, but I’m guessing Clémentine may be playing Mélanie’s mother, the role she was hoping to snag Isabelle Adjani for.

Lastly, a “Beginners” tidbit, thanks to Magdalena: Mélanie’s character is named Anna!

An expanded synopsis for “Beginners” is finally available, and we learn a little more about Mélanie’s character, though unfortunately she’s one of the few still without a name! Check it out below.

Following his father’s death, a bereaved Oliver becomes somewhat of a shut-in. As Beginners takes us through his personal journey, the film flashes forward, intercutting a budding relationship between Oliver and a young French actress (Inglourious Basterd’s Mélanie Laurent) whom he meets at a costume party that he attends under duress. The twin narratives gradually reveal subtle associations about how Oliver reacts to both these unpredictable relationships, and how his father and girlfriend motivate him to surpass his self-prescribed limitations.

First of all, thank you to a couple of you for the heads-up that Mélanie is on the list of expected guests at TIFF — very good news! She also has her first bit of English press in a while in the September issue of InStyle magazine. The article is very short, but the photos are both brand new and lovely. Along with those scans, I’ve also added several older features donated by Marine and her friend Élodie. Take a look!

Now for something I’m sure many of us have been waiting for: some news and our first peek at Mélanie’s first English-language American movie, Mike Mills’ “Beginners.” The film is set to have its world premiere at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, which runs from September 9 – 19. I’m not sure whether Mélanie will be there to attend the premiere or any press events, since the festival overlaps with her filming of “Et soudain, tout le monde me manque”, but I’m hoping she’ll be able to make it at least for a day. This also means we get our first official glimpse of Mélanie in the film! Here you can see her alongside co-star Ewan McGregor. Thank you to the people at ioncinema for the still!

Now that “Le Concert” is in a limited US theatrical run, the English speaking press has taken some time to speak with Mélanie again. I plan on updating the press archive some time soon with new French and English press alike, but in the meantime, check out this new interview. What’s special about it? She mentions she’d like to tour the United States with her debut album! While the album itself isn’t even predicted before 2011, that’s still exciting news for American Mélanie fans — myself included!

Most of us know Mélanie Laurent as one of Quentin Tarantino’s Inglorious Basterds, but Laurent had a lengthy resume even before then. But being that they were all foreign films, very few in the US experienced her work. With her new international star status that’s all changing and now we’ve got the chance to see her latest release, the French film The Concert.

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Mélanie’s 2009-filmed, 2010-released World War II film “La Rafle” has been available via Video on Demand in France for a couple weeks now, even though the DVD is not due to be released til September. I’ve made screencaptures of the film, which you can now view on the gallery! When I get my hands on a copy of the DVD later on, I’ll cap any extra features available.

And we’re back again! Hopefully you barely noticed the downtime, but as compensation Merveilleuse Mélanie Laurent now has beautiful new layouts for both the main page and gallery, designed by the lovely Laura. I hope you like them!