Former elementary school teacher who began collaborating on films with director Bo Widerberg in the early 1960s. Troell made his own feature directing debut in 1965 and went on to become one of his country's leading filmmakers. His best known work outside Sweden is the sweeping dyptich The Emigrants (1971) and The New Land (1972), based on novels by Vilhelm Moberg and starring Liv Ullmann and Max von Sydow. He has made two US films, the disappointing Zandy's Bride (1974) and Hurricane (1979).