Really? Claude Sautet is a relatively big name in France, about as well-known as Pialat or Tavernier for instance. I say this having seen none of his films though. Un cœur en hiver, Nelly et Monsieur Arnaud, César et Rosalie and Vincent, François, Paul et les autres... are titles I'm familiar with, though I don't really know what their reputations are exactly. Max et les Ferrailleurs and Garçon! both aired in the past few months on TV, I've got them lined up to watch... along with many, many other things, so who knows when that'll happen.