The upcoming Cannes Film Festival will host a tribute to the French actor which will include the premiere of Vincent Perrot and Jeff Domenech’s documentary Belmondo, The Career.

French actor Jean-Paul Belmondo is to be honoured at the upcoming Cannes Film Festival, with a screening of the documentary Belmondo, The Career, followed by a tribute dinner (May 17).

One of the best loved personalities in French cinema, Belmondo made his breakthrough role in Jean-Luc Godard’s iconic French New Wave film Breathless (A Bout De Souffle) in 1960, going on to star in a string of films including Philippe de Broca’s That Man From Rio, Godard’s Pierrot Le Fou and Francois Truffaut’s Mississippi Mermaid.

Cannes heads Gilles Jacob and Thierry Fremaux said they were “delighted that he has agreed to attend this gala evening in celebration of his talent and career. His range and personal charisma, the precision of his acting, his cocky wit, the ease with which he carries himself have made him, along with Jean Gabin and Michel Simon, one of the greatest French actors of all time.”