[1] At the age of seventeen, he directed a short 35-mm film in black and white, for which he composed the music, asking Vladimir Cosma to help him with the orchestration.
The experience established his career direction and initiated a long partnership with Sautet that spanned twenty-five years and eleven films.
[1] Sarde also established close associations with directors Bertrand Tavernier, Pierre Granier-Deferre, Georges Lautner, André Téchiné, and Jacques Doillon.
[1] Sarde also collaborated with Roman Polanski on The Tenant and Tess, which garnered an Academy Award nomination, Bertrand Blier's on Beau-Père, Alain Corneau on Fort Saganne, and Marshall Brickman on Lovesick, The Manhattan Project, and Sister Mary Explains It All.
According to Yuri German, writing in the All Music Guide, Sarde's soundtracks are "masterfully and unconventionally arranged" and are often performed by such world-class musicians as Chet Baker, Stan Getz, Stéphane Grappelli, and Maurice Vander.