Mylene Demongeot was one of a group of young French actors, directors and actresses who came to prominence in the late 1950s. The wave of new French actresses followed the highly successful Brigitte Bardot, who became an international star. The French motion picture industry stressed about what might happen if Bardot deserted Paris for Hollywood. Demongeot was first noticed by American film director Otto Preminger who cast her to play in the screen adaptation of Francoise Sagan's bestselling novel "Bonjour Tristesse".