Chantal Akerman: Belgian Film Director Found Dead At 65, Suicide Suspected (TWEET, PHOTO)

Belgian filmmaker Chantal Akerman, famed for films that closely examined women's lives, died in Paris Monday night at the age of 65.

The death was confirmed by Sylviane Akerman, her sister and only immediate survivor, who said that the cause was not immediately known. However, French newspaper Le Monde reported that Akerman committed suicide.

Chantal's friends said that she was in a dark emotional state following the death of her mother last year and had breakdowns. Akerman was also recently hospitalized for depression and had returned to her home in Paris 10 days ago, according to her sister, The New York Times reported.

Born to Polish Holocaust survivors, her latest film, "No Home Movie," is based on conversations between the film director and her late mother. The feature screened at Locarno last month and is currently showing at the New York Film Festival.

Brussels-born Akerman decided to become a filmmaker as a teenager after taking inspiration from Jean-Luc Godard's "Pierrot le Fou" (1965). She was best known for films like "Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles" (1975), "A Couch in New York" (1996) and "The Captive" (2000), according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) described Akerman as "one of the greatest filmmakers and artists of our time."

"Daring, original, uncompromising, and in all ways radical, Akerman revolutionized the history of cinema not only with her masterpiece 'Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles' but also with the sustained urgency of her brilliance," said the festival, according to the Associated Press. "Akerman created new formal languages and consistently expanded cinema's reach with her restless curiosity and willingness to wade into taboo subjects."

Film-maker/critic Mark Cousins and James Franco were among those who paid tribute to Akerman on social media.