She met Jérémie Elkaïm at that time, who became her partner, both in life and at work, and who encouraged her to quit the conservatory and her job at the bakery to become an actress.

Donzelli's first film, The Queen of Hearts (La Reine des Pommes), in which she was the leading actress, was more successful than expected.

[3][4] In 2011, with the help of her now ex-partner Jérémie Elkaïm, Valérie Donzelli directed her second full-length feature film, Declaration of War.

"[6] The movie was selected for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 2012, but was not part of the final list.

She presents Que d'Amour!, a TV adaptation from the play The Game of Love and Chance (Le Jeu de l'Amour et du Hasard), by Marivaux, with Comédie-Française' sociétaires.