The daughter of a French schoolteacher, Brigitte Fossey made her auspicious film bow, before she reached the age of eight, in Rene Clement's Forbidden Games (1952). Fossey remained a successful child actress until she reached the age of 10, at which time she voluntarily retreated to private life. After studying dance, piano and philosophy, she worked as an interpreter/translator in Geneva, then returned to films in 1967. Her credits as an adult performer include Francois Truffaut's The Man Who Loved Women (1977) and Robert Altman's Quintet (1979).