 His father's side of the family were of Tuscan origin and part of the Ghibelline tradition, and they were hereditary Marquises of Javon.Though somewhat aristocratic, the family spoke Provençal, which was rather controversial at a time when it was considered to be a language of the common people.His older brother was Folco de Baroncelli-Javon,

He directed well over 80 films between 1915 and 1948 and in the 1940s released numerous films in the United States and Italy.