Career
He has had producing roles on a number of Oscar-nominated films including The Constant Gardener (2005), City of God (2002), Central Station (1998) and Farewell My Concubine (1993). He is now best known for his work in the Latin American film industry, especially in Brazil and Bolivia. From 1976-1988, Ranvaud taught at the University of Warwick (English and comparative literature) and the University of East Anglia (film studies) and also at the College of South Wales (film theory).
During this time he also worked as a freelance journalist for MFB, Sight and Sound, The Guardian, Louisiana Repubblica, Cahiers du cinéma and American Film, as well as founding the independent cinema and media magazine Framework, which he edited until 1988.
He published several books on Italian cinema and directed documentary items for C4 magazine programmes and Radiotelevisione Italiana 1, including portraits of Paul Schrader, Raul Ruiz, Cui Jian, Laurie Anderson and David Mamet. In 1988 he established the European Script fund with Renee Goddard as part of the MEDIA Programme of the Commission of the European Community, where he stayed on for 18 months, during which time the Media Programme was fully integrated into European Commission policy.