Film history includes a few deeply emotional bicycle stories such as THE BICYCLE THIEF and  BREAKING AWAY.  Now joining that list is Guillaume Blanchet’s “Good Bye,Bike,” a modern love story sure to become a classic. For those not into love but eager to learn movie-making techniques, there’s plenty to see in Blanchet’s two and a half minute short. Of particular interest is his demonstration of the art of the flashback.

While some story coaches warn against the flashback technique, in the hands of a savvy filmmaker, dipping back into the past can be clarifying and moving. In this case, images of times gone by are drawn from the filmmaker’s own hugely popular film THE MAN WHO LIVED ON HIS BIKE.

Spoiler alert: While GOOD BYE, BIKE is a tear jerker, there is a surprise ending that would delight O. Henry.

The music is  James Blunt’s “Goodbye My Lover“