Avant-garde filmmaker of the late teens whose works incorporated the talents of renowned artists from other fields, including painter Fernand Leger and architect Mallet Stevens. L'Herbier's silent films and theoretical writing inspired a generation of cinéastes, such as directors Alberto Cavalcanti and Claude Autant-Lara, although his critical reputation ebbed with the advent of sound. He founded the noted film school, IDHEC, in 1943.