Roy Arne Lennart Andersson (born 31 March 1943) is an acclaimed
Swedish film director, best known for
A Swedish Love Story (1970) and his "Living trilogy," which includes
Songs from the Second Floor (2000),
You, the living (2007) and
A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (2014).
Songs from the Second Floor, more than any other, cemented and exemplified his personal style – which is characterized by long takes,
absurdist comedy, stiff caricaturing of Swedish culture and
Felliniesque grotesque. He has spent much of his professional life working on
advertisement spots, directing over 400 commercials and two
short films, but only directing six
feature-length films in six decades. His 2014 film
A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence won the
Golden Lion award at
71st Venice International Film Festival. Anderson is considered as one of the most important living European film directors, having four films officially submitted for
Academy award for best foreign language film as
Swedish entries.