[1][4] After studying at the Ecole des Arts Décoratifs in Nice, where he directed his first short films, Jan Kounen began work as assistant operator and director of music videos and documentaries.

[5][8] In the 2000s, Jan Kounen traveled across Mexico and Peru, where he immersed in shaman culture, and participated in ayahuasca ceremonies around a hundred times.

[9] His next film was Blueberry (2004), an adaptation of the famous comic strip by Jean-Michel Charlier and Jean Giraud, better known as Moebius, with Vincent Cassel in the title role.

[8][10] After making his film Darshan - The Embrace (2005),[8][11] Kounen staged the Comedy 99 F in 2007, a satire of the world of advertising adapted from the bestseller by Frédéric Beigbeder and produced by Jean Dujardin.

[5][6] After participating in the Project 8 where he campaigned to improve maternal health in the world, he made Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky (2009), a biographical film about the relationship between Chanel, the French fashion designer, and Stravinsky, the Russian composer,[8] starring Anna Mouglalis and Mads Mikkelsen.