Martin Meissonnier

Martin Meissonnier
Martin Meissonnier in the 1990s
Martin Meissonnier in the 1990s
Background information
OriginParis, France
OccupationsFilm director, musician, record producer,
InstrumentsGuitar, keyboards
Years active1975–present

Martin Meissonnier is a French musician, producer, journalist, and filmmaker. He is known for his work with African pop musicians such as Fela Kuti and King Sunny Adé and Khaled among other diverse artists. His producing and film directing credits include documentaries about finance, politics and history.

Biography

He began as a young reporter for the legendary French daily Libération. In the 1970s as young agent, he brought numerous jazz musicians to France, such as Don Cherry, the Art Ensemble of Chicago, John Lee Hooker. He also promoted concerts for artists such as Nass El Ghiwane, Franco & OK Jazz, Nana Vasconcelos, Turkish band Oriental Wind, Han Bennink & Peter Brötzmann, Art Blakey, Sun Ra, Chico & Von Freeman, Albert Collins, Lounge Lizards, Defunkt, Dizzy Gillespie, Old & New Dreams, Art Pepper, Moondog, The Slits, Taj Mahal, Pharoah Sanders, Gil Evans, Egberto Gismonti, Rashied Ali & Andrew Cyrille and others.

In the early 1980s, he became the manager/producer of Fela Kuti, King Sunny Ade; in 1984 Ray Lema, the Malopoets from South Africa, Manu Dibango; in 1986 Papa Wemba and Wasis Diop. In 1986, he organised the first raï festival in Bobigny. As music Producer, he also worked with Khaled, Safy Boutella, Amina, Arthur H, in 1994 Robert Plant & Jimmy Page, and Alan Stivell.

In 1989 to 1994, he directed the TV series Megamix for la Sept on France 3 and then Arte, world music magazine which ran for six years on French television and other countries. Later, he directed documentary films for Arte and Canal+, including several programmes about history, the Internet, digital art, rap, and the techno movement. In 2001, his book about depleted uranium entitled Uranium appauvri : la guerre invisible was published by Robert Laffont.

Martin Meissonnier's work as a filmmaker has a strong global flavor. His producing and directing credits include major documentaries and documentary series in finance, politics and history. They include, 'Web Site Story', 'McWorld', 'Music Is My Drug', 'On the Trail of the Queen of Sheba', 'The Life of Buddha', "Vraie Jeanne, Fausse Jeanne","On God's Right"'The Genie of Electricity' and "Waste your life" a film about recycling. Since 2015 he directed and produced two films on well being in the work place"Happiness at Work" and "What Women Want at Work". Today he concentrates on 'Happiness at School' or how to reinvent school in the digital age. Accompanied by a feature-length documentary of the same name made with Canal+, Happiness@School is also a web platform where best practices in education are shared through short films.

Since 2018, he remixes congolese street music for an album on Crammed Disks "Kinshasa 78" and he also performs as a DJ for music Festivals like The TransMusicales de Rennes, Tropisme, Les Suds Arles...

As for now, he is exploring the subjects of work and new company models, since he's made researches and directed his films Happiness at Work (2015) and What Women Want at Work (2017) and Happiness at School, a web platform and film project for October 2021.

Albums (as music producer)

Soundtracks (composer)

Collaborations on soundtracks

Documentary films (director)