Legendary French filmmaker Agnes Varda passed away today at the age of 90, following a long battle with cancer. A key figure in the French New Wave of the 1950’s and 60’s, she was an artist in many realms, beginning with photography, but soon moving into film with 1954’s La Pointe Courte (which was edited by fellow French filmmaker Alan Resnais). One of the earliest female auteurs, her filmography included Cleo From 5 to 7 (1962), Le Bonheur (1965), Vagabond (1985), and most recently Faces Places (2017), which was nominated for the Best Documentary Oscar. From 1962 until his death in 1990, she was married to Jacques Demy, another French New Wave filmmaker (The Umbrellas of Cherbourg), with whom she had a son, Mathieu, and made a film about his life called Jacques de Nantes in 1991. An icon in film history, for women and all artists, in 2017 she received an Honorary Oscar for life achievement and is survived by her two children, Rosalie and Mathieu.
Trailer for 1962’s Cleo From 5 to 7:
