Philippe Garrel

Born in France in 1948, Philippe Garrel came from a family that already had a place in film history. His father, Maurice Garrel, was an actor who appeared in more than a hundred films throughout his career. That allowed Garrel to be exposed to the world of cinema at a young age, which led to his career as a writer and director kicking off at an early age.

At the age of 16, Garrel created the short film "Les Enfants Désaccordés" (1964). By the time he was 20 years old, he wrote and directed his first longer project, the made-for-TV movie "Anémone" (1968). However, the film was rejected after completion so it was never aired. Garrel held onto a copy and passed it around, which was the first and not only time he had to deal with a banned film.

Following his lost TV movie, Garrel made many films in a short span, writing and directing four movies over the course of about two years. At the end of that run, he met the singer Nico during her contribution to his film "The Virgin's Bed" (1969). The pair hit it off and began living together shortly after.

Over the next decade, Nico played a role in nearly every single one of Garrel's works as he continually created new films, shorts, and even a documentary. Following the end of their drug-laden relationship, Garrel released "L'enfant secret" (1979), one of his most notable films that mixed a peculiar narrative structure that told the story of a woman dealing with an unplanned child (or secret child, as the film's name says). At the time of its release, "L'enfant secret" was banned, and like "Anémone," Garrel had one of the few of the finished work copies and circulated it over the ensuing years.

In the 1980s, Garrel's film-making pace slowed down, but his recognition grew. "Liberté, la nuit" (1983), which came out the same year his son Louis Garrel was born to actress Brigitte Sy, ended up winning an award at Cannes.

From the 1990s onward, Garrel continued to receive critical acclaim, with "J'entends plus la guitare" (1991), "Wild Innocence" (2001), and "Regular Lovers" (2005) all winning awards at the Venice Film Festival amidst a slew of other nominations. The latter film even starred Garrel's son Louis, who quickly became a frequent collaborator with his father.

After "Regular Lovers," all of Garrel's films starred his son, including "A Burning Hot Summer" (2011) and "Jealousy" (2013), both of which were nominated for awards at the Venice Film Festival.