born June 24, 1930, Paris, France
French film director, screenwriter, and producer.
After working in public relations in 20th Century-Fox's Paris office, he directed The Cousins (1959), one of the first films of the New Wave movement. Among his many other films are Les Biches (1968), Violette (1978), The Story of Women (1988), and Merci pour la chocolat (2000). He admired Alfred Hitchcock and used a style similar to his in several mystery thrillers, including This Man Must Die (1969), Le Boucher (1970), and La Cérémonie (1995).