British director Michael Apted died Thursday night at age 79. Apted was a prolific film director, perhaps best known for directing the Above series, a series of documentaries about fourteen 7-year-olds. Apted continued to make a new installment on group members who chose to participate every seven years. The series started in 1964 and lasted until 2019, when the themes of the film were 63. Apto was also famous for the direction Coal Miner’s Daughter, Gorillas in the mist and Gorky Park, among many other films. “A fearless visionary as a director and unrivaled guild leader, Michael saw the trajectory of things when others did not, and we were all the beneficiaries of his lifelong wisdom and dedication,” said Thomas Schlamme, head of the Directors Guild of America, where Apted was president for six years. The cause of Apted’s death is not yet known.
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