The Swedish director, known for his grotesque tragicomedies, his poetic reflections on the glory and misery of existence and on human vulnerability, was 26 when he made his debut with one of the most beautiful films ever made about the first teenage love.

13-year-old Annika and 15-year-old Pår meet by chance – what follows is a fiery summer where the youngsters only have eyes for each other. Their parents don’t take their children’s love seriously – they are too preoccupied with their own shattered illusions, hidden anxieties, and self-pity.

The film, critical of Sweden’s welfare society in the late 1960s, became hugely popular. Ruben Östlund, director of “Force Majeure”, “Triangle of Sadness” and “The Square”, still calls it one of his favourite films.

Tiit Tuumalu