La Belle Noiseuse is a 1991 French epic art drama film directed by Jacques Rivette and starring Michel Piccoli, Jane Birkin and Emmanuelle Béart. Loosely adapted from the 1831 short story "Le Chef-d'œuvre inconnu" by Honoré de Balzac, and set in present-day France, it tells how a famous old artist is stimulated to come out of retirement and do one last painting of a beautiful young woman. The film won the Grand Prix at the 1991 Cannes Film Festival. It received widespread critical acclaim and it is widely considered to be the best movie about an artist's creative process and work, an artist and his muse's relationship and the impact of art in life.