Luc Paul Maurice Besson (French: [lyk bɛsɔ̃]; born 18 March 1959) is a French film director, screenwriter, and producer. He directed or produced the films Subway (1985), The Big Blue (1988), and Nikita (1990). Besson is known for his distinctive filmmaking style and is associated with what the movement critics call Cinéma du look. He has been nominated for a César Award for Best Director and Best Picture for his films Léon: The Professional and The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc. He won Best Director and Best French Director for his sci-fi action film The Fifth Element (1997). He wrote and directed the 2014 sci-fi thriller film Lucy and the 2017 space opera film Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets.\n', '

In 1980, he founded his own production company, Les Films du Loup, and, later, Les Films du Dauphin, which were superseded in 2000 by his co-founding EuropaCorp film company with his longtime collaborator, Pierre-Ange Le Pogam (fr). As writer, director, or producer, Besson has so far been involved in the creation of more than 50 films.\n', '

Besson was born in Paris, to parents who both worked as Club Med scuba-diving instructors. Influenced by this milieu, as a child Besson planned to become a marine biologist. He spent much of his youth traveling with his parents to tourist resorts in Italy, Yugoslavia and Greece. The family returned to France when Besson was 10. His parents promptly divorced and each remarried.\n', '

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