Agnés Varda Biography

Agnes Varda was a French filmmaker and one of the key figures in cinema’s New Wave movement.

Born in Belgium, Varda moved to France in her teens and later studied photography at the École des Beaux-Arts; she ended up photographing actors and members of the theater.

Her film career started with her first feature film La Pointe Courte (1954), sometimes considered a precursor to the French New Wave.

Varda gained international recognition with her 1962 film Cléo from 5 to 7, a character study of a singer running around town while waiting for medical test results.

Varda blended fiction and documentary elements, and used film to explore feminist and social issues.

During her career, Varda also worked in photography and other visual arts. In 2017, she received an honorary Academy Award for her contributions to cinema.

Her other films include Le Bonheur (1965), Lions Love (…and Lies) (1969), Vagabond (1985), The Gleaners and I (2000) and Faces Places with Muralist J.R. (2017).