Eric Rohmer, one of the founders of the French New Wave cinema died on Monday at the age of 89.
Along with Jean-Pierre Melville, Francois Truffaut, Jean-Luc Godard, Claude Chabrol, Agnes Varda, Alan Resnais, Jacques Rivette and Louis Malle, he helped usher in the age of modern cinema.
Rohmer wrapped various themes around his 27 films, including Moral Tales, Comedies And Proverbs and Tales Of The Four Seasons, with characters often caught on the horns of moral and romantic dilemmas.
He won respect and recognition for films such as 1970's Claire's Knee and 1969's My Night At Maude's, filling each of his works with genuine emotion and originality. While his output never reached box office heights, they didn't need to - he worked to move people, and succeeded brilliantly.
Originally born Maurice Henri Joseph Scherer, he forged a professional name for himself by joining those of Austrian director Erich von Stroheim and English writer Sax Rohmer.
His career before filmmaking was as editor of legendary French magazine Cahiers du Cinema, which catapulted several young critics behind the camera, and eventually prompted him to the move himself in 1963.
Around the world, he's best known for the likes of 1972's Chloe In The Afternoon, 1982's A Good Marriage, 1983's Pauline At The Beach and 1996's** Rendezvous In Paris**.
For a truly great look at his life and work, we recommend Roger Ebert's tribute.