Few contemporary filmmakers hit the sweet spot of fantasy as accurately as French writer-director Jean-Pierre Jeunet. With an interest in animation that goes back to his teens, Jeunet won a pair of Cesar awards for animated shorts, and his love of the medium led him to comic book artist Marc Caro. The two would collaborate on a pair of delightfully surreal features: the cannibalistic black comedy DELICATESSEN (which brought Jeunet two more Cesars) and the ambitious mad-scientist tale THE CITY OF LOST CHILDREN.

A Cannes Film Festival entry, THE CITY OF LOST CHILDREN caught the attention of 20th Century Fox, and Jeunet was soon directing ALIEN RESURRECTION. Though the sci-fi sequel remains the director’s sole Hollywood film to date, his next project drew even greater attention. Starring Audrey Tautou in the title role, AMELIE was both a box office hit – it’s the highest-grossing French language film ever released in the U.S. – and a critical favorite, earning several Oscar nominations and four César Awards.

With much of the warm-hearted whimsy of that earlier romantic comedy, THE YOUNG AND PRODIGIOUS T.S. SPIVET accompanies a 10-year-old inventor on a cross-country journey. Shot in 3-D, Jeunet’s latest is a touching, visually imaginative film that further underlines his gift for grounding wondrous tales in emotional reality.

The tribute to Jean-Pierre Jeunet continues on Monday, May 6 at USC, with a free screening of ALIEN: RESURRECTION followed by a Q&A with the director; click here to RSVP.

Series compiled by Gwen Deglise. Program notes by John Hagelston.