He studied Economics at the University of Geneva, where he created the university film club of Geneva together with Claude Goretta. He worked as a writer on board in the merchant navy, at the British Film Institute and at BBC Television, as an assistant director. In 1957 he debuted as a director together with Goretta with the short film "Nice Time", in 1968 he filmed his first feature film: "Carlos, alive or dead", with which he imposed the original signature of the 'new Swiss cinema' which he confirmed with the following film: "The salamander", in 1971. It is followed by more than twenty films, some turned into mythical works such as "Jonah, who will be twenty-five years old in the year 2000" and "In the white city".