Swedish director Roy Andersson has enjoyed a career that has spanned over forty years and yet in this time he had made just four feature films and six shorts.Just twelve months after graduating from the Swedish Institute of Film in 1969 Andersson made his debut feature length film, A Swedish Love Story.When Pär (Rolf Sohlman) meets Annika (Ann-Sofie Kylin) something magical happens! At first the two teens do not quite know what it is - they have never been in love before, they do not know how to react. They try to remain hopeful in a cynical world of adults that discourage them. Their parents are weary from life's constant problems and fail to take the young couple seriously when they speak of love and hope for the future. But as time goes by it becomes apparent that Pär and Annika were meant for each other.

Slowly but surely their parents also begin to see what everyone else already knows.

When it was released Andersson's debut effort was compared to the early films of Ingmar Bergman and was nominated for the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival in 1970.

A Swedish Love Story is regarded by many to be Andersson's finest piece of work.

Riding high on the success of The Swedish Love Story Andersson went straight into making Gailiap, which was released in 1975.

This love triangle involves a young man, who takes a temporary job in the restaurant of the run-down Hotel Busarewski.

Waitress Anna falls in love with him, but he doesn't return her interest. Gustav, who is in love with Anna, gives the newcomer the nickname Giliap and drags him and Anna into a shady scheme, promising to make them all rich.

But the film was plagued by trouble: going over budget and being delayed in post production. Gilip was not filled with the soft humour that had won over so many in A Swedish Love it used instead dark humour.

The film did not enjoy the success of it's predecessor and was a critical and commercial disaster.

After the disaster of Gilip Andersson would not make another feature film for twenty five years and concentrated on commercial work.

In 1981 he set up an independent film company, Studio 24, and began making short movies including Something has Happened in 1987 and World of Glory in 1991.

He returned to the big screen in 2000 with Songs From the Second Floor, he had been working on the project since 1996.

In a city, somewhere in the far north, a strange series of events take place: a clerk is made redundant in a degrading manner; a lost immigrant is violently attacked in a busy street; a magician makes an error in his act....

In the midst of this mayhem one person stands out: Karl.

Whilst the new millennium is casting its web and creating a vast mental breakdown, Karl gradually becomes conscious of the absurdity of the world and realises just how difficult it is to be human....

The film was widely recognised winning the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival as well as being nominated for the Golden Palm at Cannes and Best Foreign Independent Film at the British Independent Film Awards.

Another eight year hiatus and Andersson is returning with his new project You, the Living.

Comical portrait of city life, stitching together unconnected stories of love, longing and desire in a community heading for disaster.

A man dreams about pulling out the tablecloth from beneath a full dinner service without moving any of the crockery, and a lonely husband annoys his wife by playing his drums loudly in their tiny apartment.

A primary school teacher suffers an emotional breakdown in front of her inquisitive pupils and an Arab hairdresser gives one racist customer a close shave he will never forget, especially with an important board meeting to prepare for.

You, the Living is released 28th March

FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw