In 2001 , Valérie Donzelli was the leading actress in '' Martha Martha '' , by Sandrine Veysset , which was presented at Directors ' Fortnight '' , '' Le Plus Beau Jour de ma vie '' , and also '' Entre ses mains '' . She achieved great success among French public thanks to the French TV show '' Clara Sheller '' ( 2005 ) , in which she plays Jeanne , best friend of the main character . Donzelli 's first film , '' The Queen of Hearts '' ( '' La Reine des Pommes '' , 2009 ) , in which she was the leading actress , was more successful than expected . Jérémie Elkaïm is also co-writer . The film was presented at Locarno International Film Festival . Despite of its low budget , the film can be considered as a success because of its 30 000 spectators . In 2011 , with the help of her now ex-partner Jérémie Elkaïm , Valérie Donzelli directed her second full-length feature film , '' Declaration of War '' . This movie , presented during the 2011 Cannes Festival , achieves great success , public and critic , in France . It is directly inspired by their private life , relating how their couple fought against their son 's cancer when he was 18 months . The movie was selected at the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 2012 , but was not part of the finalist
2011 Cannes Festival
2011 Cannes Film Festival
Valérie Donzelli