Upon completing a degree in Art History, he entered La Fémis in Paris
and later sojourned in Rome and New York on a Villa Médicis grant in
1989. He directed his first film, Desolate Rome (Rome désolée, 1994),
while writing and lecturing at the Fémis and in art schools. His films,
which have garnered numerous awards, are equally documentary and
autobiographical; filled with music, paintings and his personal life, they
constantly explore the borders between cinema and contemporary art,
between theatrical screening and installation and radio creation. Nine
of his films were screened at this year’s Istanbul IFF in a retrospective,
including Desolate Rome, Tenebrae Lessons (Leçons de tenebre, Jury
Award at FID Marseille, 2000), Bonne Nouvelle (Jury Special Mention
at Locarno, 2001), My Winter Journey (Mon voyage d’hiver, 2003) and
Jaurès (2012).