Cyrano de Bergerac producer dies

Cyrano de Bergerac producer Rene Cleitman has died of an undisclosed illness in a Paris hospital, aged 64.

Cleitman produced over 20 feature films including The Horseman on the Roof, Monsieur Hire and Urga.

He also featured as himself in Lost in La Mancha, the documentary about Terry Gilliam's failed attempt to make his film, The Man Who Killed Don Quixote.

Cleitman's last film, Jerome Bonnel's Les Yeux Clairs, is due to be released in March.

Sad loss

The French culture minister, Renaud Donnedieu de Vabres, paid tribute to "a cultivated man, who was always concerned about protecting the culture of France".

Catherine Colonna, director general of CNC (National Centre for Cinematography), said: "French and European cinema have today lost one of their fiercest protectors and one of their most passionate artists, a producer with an eclectic talent."

Cleitman founded the Hachette Premiere film company and also formed a joint venture with Gerard Depardieu, star of 1990's Cyrano de Bergerac, to make independent US films.

These included Nick Cassavetes' Unhook The Stars and She's So Lovely.