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Angel-A
Background:
Danish fashion model, actress and film director Rie Rasmussen, who was
discovered at the age of 15 while vacationing in New York, broke the modeling
scene as Victoria's Secret model and the face of Gucci. The 5' 10" tall, reddish
brown-haired and blue-eyed beauty with 34-24-34 measurements hit the big screen
in 2002 when she appeared opposite Rebecca Romijn and Antonio Banderas in Brian
De Palma’s erotic thriller Femme Fatale. She has also been branching out in
filmmaking; and one of her short films, the 10-minute Thinning the Herd (2004),
was nominated a Golden Palm at the Cannes Film Festival. She will next be seen
as Angel-A, the tall, blonde stunner and femme fatale in Luc Besson's
black/white romantic drama comedy film with the same name. The film will be
coming out in limited release in America on March 23, 2007.
Danish Beauty
Childhood and Family:
In Copenhagen, Denmark, Rie Rasmussen was born on February 14, 1978. She speaks
French and has nine brothers and sisters. A best friend of Rebecca Romijn,
Rasmussen, whose future plans include directing movies as well as acting, is
attending film school to become a director.
Thinning the Herd
Career:
“Well you see, movies are our generation's folklore. It's our pop culture, our
reference point. I don't want it to sound arrogant but I felt that my passion
and love for the movies gave me enough guidance as to how I would present a
character by mixing elements of different actresses and performances that
inspired me. It's actresses like Sigourney Weaver who was so strong and amazing
in Alien and at the same time so feminine and fragile in something like The Year
Of Living Dangerously. It's Faye Dunaway, who is so completely a woman in her
films. Her eyes are so...she has very sorrowful eyes. The things you learn from
her face in Chinatown!” Rie Rasmussen.
Being discovered at the age of 15 while vacationing in New York, Rie Rasmussen,
who was managed by 1 Management in New York, broke the modeling scene at the
Victoria's Secret Lingerie Fashion Show in 2001. The 5' 10" tall, reddish
brown-haired and blue-eyed Danish beauty with 34-24-34 measurements was also the
face of internationally renowned Gucci under Tom Ford.
Rasmussen landed on her big break in the film industry in 2002 when her best
friend, fellow former supermodel Rebecca Romijn helped her to get a role, as
Veronica, in acclaimed director/screenwriter Brian De Palma’s erotic thriller
Femme Fatale, starring Romijn and Antonio Banderas. On working with De Palma,
Rasmussen recalled: “I spent two months on the set with Brian De Palma. I
watched everything. Even then I didn't have any scenes I'd hang around just to
be able to breathe the air. I loved acting and performing. I desired to make the
most of the experience. It was amazing.”
In 2004, Rasmussen tried her hand in filmmaking. She wrote, directed and starred
in the 10-minute French film called Thinning the Herd. The film received
applause at the Cannes Film Festival and was nominated a Golden Palm for Best
Short Film. That same year, she wrote, directed and starred in another short
project, the black-white, 14-minute Italian comedy film entitled Vestito, Il.
"Luc's been on a set since he was 17 years old. He's done everybody's job and he
can do it better than them. So when he is on set there is an immense respect,
because they know, ‘if I f*** up, Luc's going to come, take it out of my hands
and do it in front of everybody better than I can.’ So everybody's on their
toes. But not in a bad way, just for the fact that you've got to meet the
standards, and Luc's standards are high. You come and you're prepared and you do
your job and you do it well, because he can do it better than you." Rie
Rasmussen (on Angel-A (2005) director/screenwriter Luc Besson).
Next, in 2005, Rasmussen portrayed the title role of a tall, blonde stunner and
femme fatale who helps an inept scam artist (played by Jamel Debbouze) get his
game together in writer-director Luc Besson's black/white romantic drama comedy
Angel-A. The film will be coming out in limited release in America on March 23,
2007 and expanding throughout April.
"In the film everything is in contrast. She's a women, he's a man. She's tall,
he's small. Blonde, brown. Outside, she's everything from outside, he's inside
Ying and yang, black and white, light and dark. Everything is in a position, so
the black and white was perfect to match with it." Luc Besson (on the reason why
he decided to shoot Angel-A in black and white).
Awards:
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