My Top 1,000 Directors: Honourable Mentions

1. Sean Baker

Writer | Tangerine

Sean Baker is a graduate of NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. He is an award-winning writer/director/producer known for Take Out (2004), Prince of Broadway (2008), Starlet (2012) and Tangerine (2015). Sean's latest feature, The Florida Project, premiered at Cannes -- Director's Fortnight 2017. The ...

2. Saul Bass

Director | Why Man Creates

Saul Bass was born in New York City in 1920 and is a widely acclaimed graphic designer with a career spanning over 40 years. Among his most famous works are the title sequences for such classic films as The Man with the Golden Arm (1955), North by Northwest (1959), and Psycho (1960). Bass used his ...

3. J.A. Bayona

Director | El orfanato

J.A. Bayona was born on May 9, 1975 in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain as Juan Antonio García Bayona. He is a director, known for The Orphanage (2007), The Impossible (2012) and A Monster Calls (2016).

4. Jean Becker

Director | La tête en friche

Jean Becker was born on May 10, 1933 in Paris, France. He is a director and writer, known for My Afternoons with Margueritte (2010), Conversations with My Gardener (2007) and Love Me No More (2008).

5. Richard Benjamin

Actor | Westworld

Although his actress wife Paula Prentiss became a star by the early 1960s, it took Richard Benjamin almost fifteen years to establish his screen persona, but the wait was rewarding. After extensive work in theatre as actor and director, and his participation in the cult TV series He & She (1967)...

6. Don Bluth

Director | Anastasia

Don Bluth was one of the chief animators at Disney to come to the mantle after the great one's death. He eventually became the animation director for such films as The Rescuers (1977) and Pete's Dragon (1977). Unfortunately, the quality of animation that Disney was producing at this point was not ...

7. Chris Buck

Director | Frozen

Chris Buck was born on February 24, 1958 in Wichita, Kansas, USA as Christopher James Buck. He is known for his work on Frozen (2013), Surf's Up (2007) and Frozen II (2019). He is married to Shelley Rae Hinton. They have three children.

8. Steve Buscemi

Actor | Fargo

Steve Buscemi was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Dorothy (Wilson), a restaurant hostess, and John Buscemi, a sanitation worker. He is of Italian (father) and English, Dutch, and Irish (mother) descent. He became interested in acting during his last year of high school. After graduating, he moved to...

9. Adam Buxton

Actor | Stardust

Adam Buxton was born on June 7, 1969 in Hammersmith, London, England as Adam Offord Buxton. He is an actor and writer, known for Stardust (2007), Hot Fuzz (2007) and The Adam and Joe Show (1996). He is married to Sarah Buxton. They have three children.

10. Fred Cavayé

Writer | The Next Three Days

Fred Cavayé is a writer and director, known for The Next Three Days (2010), Anything for Her (2008) and Point Blank (2010).

11. Simon Cellan Jones

Director | Our Friends in the North

Simon Cellan Jones is known for his work on Our Friends in the North (1996), The Expanse (2015) and Some Voices (2000).

12. Les Claypool

Actor | Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey

Les Claypool was born on September 29, 1963 in Richmond, California, USA as Leslie Edward Claypool. He is known for his work on Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey (1991), Pig Hunt (2008) and Zack and Miri Make a Porno (2008). He has been married to Cheney since 1995. They have two children.

13. Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre

Director | The Mustang

Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre was born as Laure Marsa Frédérique de Clermont-Tonnerre. She is an actress and director, known for The Mustang (2019), Rabbit (2014) and Atlantic Avenue (2013).

14. Émile Cohl

Director | L'agent de poche

Pioneering animator Emile Cohl was born Emile Eugène Jean Louis Courtet in Paris, France, in 1857. He began his career as a caricaturist, cartoonist and writer in his 20s, and in 1908 he was hired by the Gaumont film company as a writer. He soon also became a director, turning out comedies and ...

15. Scott Cooper

Director | Crazy Heart

Scott Cooper was born in 1970 in Abingdon, Virginia, USA. He is an actor and director, known for Crazy Heart (2009), Out of the Furnace (2013) and Hostiles (2017).

16. Joe Cornish

Writer | Attack the Block

Joe Cornish was born on December 20, 1968 in London, England as Joseph Murray Cornish. He is a writer and director, known for Attack the Block (2011), Ant-Man (2015) and The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn (2011).

17. Chris Cottam

Director | The Misadventures of Romesh Ranganathan

18. John Crowley

Director | Boy A

John Crowley was born on August 19, 1969 in Cork, Ireland. He is a director and producer, known for Boy A (2007), Brooklyn (2015) and Intermission (2003). He is married to Fiona Weir. They have one child.

19. Massimo Dallamano

Cinematographer | Per un pugno di dollari

Massimo Dallamano was born on April 17, 1917 in Milan, Lombardy, Italy. He was a cinematographer and writer, known for A Fistful of Dollars (1964), Tierra mágica (1959) and What Have You Done to Solange? (1972). He died on November 14, 1976 in Rome, Lazio, Italy.

20. Johnny Depp

Actor | Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Johnny Depp is perhaps one of the most versatile actors of his day and age in Hollywood.

He was born John Christopher Depp II in Owensboro, Kentucky, on June 9, 1963, to Betty Sue (Wells), who worked as a waitress, and John Christopher Depp, a civil engineer.

Depp was raised in Florida. He dropped ...

21. Nick Donkin

Director | Hubcap

Nick Donkin is known for his work on Hubcap (2001), Bill and Tony (2016) and Alice in Chains: Music Bank - The Videos (1999).

22. John Dower

Director | Thrilla in Manila

John Dower is a director and writer, known for Thrilla in Manila (2008), Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos (2006) and The Mystery of D.B. Cooper (2020).

23. Bill Duke

Actor | Predator

Duke Media Entertainment, led by actor, director, producer, writer and humanitarian, Bill Duke, is dedicated to bringing quality Edutainment to audiences around the globe. Formerly Yagya Productions, Duke Media has successfully produced critically acclaimed film and television content for more than...

24. Ewald André Dupont

Writer | Varieté

German film director E.A. Dupont was an influential critic and newspaper columnist before breaking into the film industry. He wrote several screenplays and worked as a story editor for Richard Oswald before turning to directing in 1917. Over the next eight years Dupont became a respected exponent ...

25. Xiaogang Feng

Actor | Lao pao er

Xiaogang Feng was born on March 18, 1958 in Beijing, China. He is a writer and director, known for Mr. Six (2015), A World Without Thieves (2004) and Assembly (2007).

26. Xiaoning Feng

Director | Hong he gu

Xiaoning Feng was born in November 1954 in Jiangsu Province, China. He is a director and writer, known for Red River Valley (1997), Heart of China (1999) and Purple Sunset (2001).

27. Todd Field

Director | Little Children

William Todd Field was born in Pomona, California, and began acting after graduating from high school in Portland, Oregon, where he was raised. A budding jazz musician as well, he skipped college in favor of a move east to New York to study acting. Once there, he began performing with the Ark ...

28. James Foley

Director | At Close Range

James Foley was born on December 28, 1953 in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA. He is a director and writer, known for At Close Range (1986), After Dark, My Sweet (1990) and Glengarry Glen Ross (1992).

29. Howard J. Ford

Director | Never Let Go

Howard J. Ford was born on January 9, 1973 in Hazlemere, Surrey, England. He is a director and writer, known for Never Let Go (2015), The Dead (2010) and The Dead 2: India (2013).

30. Norman Foster

Director | Letter to Loretta

Norman Foster was born on December 13, 1903 in Richmond, Indiana, USA as Norman Foster Hoeffer. He was a director and actor, known for The Loretta Young Show (1953), Mr. Moto Takes a Vacation (1939) and I Cover Chinatown (1936). He was married to Sally Blane and Claudette Colbert. He died on July 7...

31. Rodrigo García

Writer | Nine Lives

Rodrigo García was born on August 24, 1959 in Bogotá, Colombia. He is a producer and writer, known for Nine Lives (2005), In Treatment (2008) and Mother and Child (2009).

32. Tay Garnett

Director | China Seas

Following his service as a naval aviator in WW I, Tay Garnett entered films in 1920 as a screenwriter. After a stint as a gag writer for Mack Sennett and Hal Roach he joined Pathe, then the distributor for both competing comedy producers, and in 1928 began directing for that company. Garnett ...

33. Drew Goddard

Producer | The Martian

Drew Goddard was raised in Los Alamos, New Mexico. He attended Los Alamos High School in Los Alamos, New Mexico and graduated in 1993. He then attended the University of Colorado, and worked as a production assistant in L.A. after graduation. A spec script Drew wrote based on Six Feet Under (2001) ...

34. Bob Godfrey

Director | Great (Isambard Kingdom Brunel)

Bob Godfrey was born on January 27, 1921 in West Maitland, New South Wales, Australia as Roland Frederick Godfrey. He is known for his work on Great (Isambard Kingdom Brunel) (1975), Henry's Cat (1983) and And Now for Something Completely Different (1971). He was married to Beryl. He died on ...

35. Alice Guy

Director | The Woman of Mystery

The world's first motion picture director, French-born Alice Guy entered the film business in 1896 as a secretary at Gaumont, a manufacturer of movie cameras and projectors who had purchased the invention from the Lumiere brothers. The next year Gaumont became the world's first motion picture ...

36. Mikael Håfström

Writer | Ondskan

Mikael Håfström was born on July 1, 1960 in Lund, Skåne län, Sweden as Jan Mikael Håfström. He is a writer and director, known for Evil (2003), 1408 (2007) and The Rite (2011).

37. John Halas

Producer | Heavy Metal

John Halas was born on April 16, 1912 in Budapest, Austria-Hungary. He was a producer and director, known for Heavy Metal (1981), Automania 2000 (1963) and Animal Farm (1954). He was married to Joy Batchelor. He died on January 21, 1995 in London, England.

38. Robin Hardy

Director | The Wicker Man

Robin Hardy was born on October 2, 1929 in Surrey, England as Robin St. Clair Rimington Hardy. He was an actor and writer, known for The Wicker Man (1973), The Fantasist (1986) and The Bulldance (1988). He was married to Victoria. He died on July 1, 2016 in Reading, Berkshire, England.

39. Owen Harris

Director | Black Mirror

Owen Harris is a director and producer, known for Black Mirror (2011), Brave New World (2020) and Holy Flying Circus (2011).

40. Toby Haynes

Director | Sherlock

Toby Haynes is working on the as yet un-named Star Wars: Cassian Andor series for Disney+. In 2020, he was nominated by BAFTA for his work on Brexit: The Uncivil War for both Best Director and Best Single Film. Brexit written by James Graham and starring Benedict Cumberbatch was also nominated for ...

41. Sean Hogan

Writer | Little Deaths

Sean Hogan is a writer and director, known for Little Deaths (2011), The Devil's Business (2011) and Isle of Dogs (2010).

42. Nicole Holofcener

Director | Enough Said

Nicole Holofcener was born on March 22, 1960 in New York City, New York, USA. She is a director and writer, known for Enough Said (2013), Can You Ever Forgive Me? (2018) and Friends with Money (2006). She was previously married to Benjamin Allanoff.

43. Seth Holt

Producer | The Ladykillers

Seth Holt began as an assistant editor at Ealing in 1944, graduating to editor (1949), producer (1955) and director (1958).He returned to editing for Charles Crichton's The Battle of the Sexes (1960) and for Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1960). Probably his best known film is The Nanny (1965),...

44. Tobe Hooper

Director | The Texas Chain Saw Massacre

Honored with many awards for his films and achievement in the horror genre, Tobe Hooper is truly one of the Masters of Horror (2005).

Tobe Hooper was born in Austin, Texas, to Lois Belle (Crosby) and Norman William Ray Hooper, who owned a theater in San Angelo. He spent the 1960s as a college ...

45. Paul Hunter

Director | Bulletproof Monk

Paul Hunter's inventive style has arguably elevated the standard of music video production. Having worked with celebrated musical artists including Jennifer Lopez, Lenny Kravitz, Christina Aguilera, Eminem, D'Angelo, Courtney Love, Marilyn Manson, Sean 'Diddy' Combs, Mariah Carey, Will Smith and ...

46. Aaron Hymes

Director | Parkway Drive: Wild Eyes

47. Joe Johnston

Director | Captain America: The First Avenger

Joe Johnston was born on May 13, 1950 in Austin, Texas, USA as Joseph Eggleston Johnston II. He is a director, known for Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and The Rocketeer (1991).

48. Mike Judge

Writer | Beavis and Butt-Head Do America

Mike Judge is an American actor, animator, film director, screenwriter, and television producer.

In 1962, Judge was born in Guayaquil, the largest city of Ecuador and the country's main port. His parents were expatriate Americans. His father was archaeologist William James Judge and his mother was ...

49. Joseph Kahn

Director | Bodied

Joseph Kahn was born on October 12, 1972. He is a director and cinematographer, known for Bodied (2017), Detention (2011) and Torque (2004).

50. Dagur Kári

Director | Voksne mennesker

Dagur Kári was born on December 12, 1973 in Paris, France as Dagur Kári Pétursson. He is a director and writer, known for Dark Horse (2005), The Good Heart (2009) and Noi the Albino (2003).

51. Asif Kapadia

Director | The Warrior

Academy award and four time BAFTA award winning Director / Writer / Producer Asif Kapadia is known for his visually striking films exploring characters living in timeless, extreme and unforgiving landscapes. His films have been box office successes around the world as well as being critically ...

52. Tim Kirkby

Director | Fleabag

Tim Kirkby was born on November 13, 1970 in Sidcup, Kent, England. He is a director and producer, known for Fleabag (2016), Don't Forget the Driver (2019) and Brockmire (2017).

53. Nadine Labaki

Actress | Et maintenant on va où?

Nadine Labaki was born on February 18, 1974 in Beirut, Lebanon. She is an actress and director, known for Where Do We Go Now? (2011), Capernaum (2018) and Caramel (2007). She has been married to Khaled Mouzanar since October 2007.

54. Max Lang

Writer | The Gruffalo

Max Lang was born in 1982 in Duisburg, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. He is known for his work on The Gruffalo (2009), Room on the Broom (2012) and Smallfoot (2018).

55. Bart Layton

Writer | American Animals

Bart is a multi-award winning writer, director and executive producer known for creating ground-breaking work and pushing the boundaries of conventional story-telling techniques.

Bart has been the Creative Director of leading British production company RAW for the past 14 years where he has created ...

56. Sebastián Lelio

Director | Disobedience

Born in 1974, Sebastián Lelio is one of the leading figures (along with Pablo Larraín, Andrés Wood and a few others) of the post-dictatorship Chilean cinema. After graduating from the "Escuela de Cine de Chile" in Santiago, Lelio started by making shorts (he made five from 1995 to 2003, as well as ...

57. Daniel Levi

Director | Henry

58. Henry Levin

Director | April Love

A former stage actor and director, Henry Levin had a long and prolific career in films. Entering the business in 1943 as a dialogue director, he graduated to directing features the next year, and turned out films in just about every genre over the next 36 years. His heyday was in the 1960s, when he...

59. Graham Linehan

Writer | Father Ted

Graham Linehan was born on May 22, 1968 in Dublin, Ireland. He is a writer and director, known for Father Ted (1995), Motherland (2016) and The IT Crowd (2006). He has been married to Helen Linehan since 2004. They have two children.

60. Alison Maclean

Director | Jesus' Son

Alison Maclean was born in 1958 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. She is a director, known for Jesus' Son (1999), Kitchen Sink (1989) and The Rehearsal (2016).

61. José Mojica Marins

Actor | Encarnação do Demônio

José Mojica Marins was born on March 13, 1936 in San Paulo, Brazil, to a family of simple means. José's love of movies began at an early age. He spent a great deal of his time with his family at the local movie house, which his father helped manage. By the time he was eighteen, he had completed ...

62. Melina Matsoukas

Director | Queen & Slim

Melina Matsoukas was born on January 14, 1981. She is a director and producer, known for Queen & Slim (2019), Insecure (2016) and Beyoncé: Formation (2016).

63. Albert Maysles

Cinematographer | Grey Gardens

Albert Maysles was born on November 26, 1926 in Dorchester, Boston, Massachusetts, USA as Albert Harry Maysles. He was a cinematographer and director, known for Grey Gardens (1975), Salesman (1969) and Gimme Shelter (1970). He was married to Gillian Walker. He died on March 5, 2015 in Manhattan, ...

64. Colm McCarthy

Director | The Girl with All the Gifts

Colm McCarthy is a director best known for his work on Peaky Blinders, Sherlock and Endeavour. He was born in Edinburgh and has lived there as well as in Dublin and London. He is happily married and plays a grand total of eight musical instruments all appallingly badly.

He did not formally train in ...

65. Todd McFarlane

Writer | Venom

Todd McFarlane was born on March 16, 1961 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada as Todd Dean McFarlane. He is a writer and producer, known for Venom (2018), Spawn and Spawn (1997). He has been married to Wanda since July 27, 1985. They have three children.

66. Adam McKay

Producer | The Other Guys

Adam McKay (born April 17, 1968) is an American screenwriter, director, comedian, and actor. McKay has a comedy partnership with Will Ferrell, with whom he co-wrote the films Anchorman, Talladega Nights, and The Other Guys. Ferrell and McKay also founded their comedy website Funny or Die through ...

67. Norman McLaren

Producer | Neighbours

Norman McClaren is one of the most awarded filmmakers in the history of Canadian cinema, and a pioneer in both animation and filmmaking. Born in Scotland, he entered the Glasgow School of Fine Arts in 1932 to study set design. His early experiments in animation included actually scratching and ...

68. Leslie Megahey

Writer | Diario para un cuento

Leslie Megahey was born on December 22, 1944 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. He is a producer and director, known for Diary for a Tale (1998), The Advocate (1993) and Artists and Models (1986).

69. Paul Merton

Self | Have I Got News for You

Paul Merton was born on July 9, 1957 in Parsons Green, London, England as Paul Martin. He is known for his work on Have I Got News for You (1990), Rex the Runt (1991) and The Suicidal Dog (2000). He has been married to Suki Webster since 2009. He was previously married to Sarah Parkinson and ...

70. Claude Miller

Director | Garde à vue

Claude Miller was born on February 20, 1942 in Paris, France. He was a director and writer, known for The Grilling (1981), The Little Thief (1988) and A Secret (2007). He was married to Annie Miller. He died on April 4, 2012 in Paris.

71. Rob Minkoff

Director | The Lion King

Rob Minkoff was born on August 11, 1962 in Palo Alto, California, USA as Robert Ralph Minkoff. He is a producer and director, known for The Lion King (1994), Stuart Little 2 (2002) and The Forbidden Kingdom (2008). He has been married to Crystal Kung since September 29, 2007.

72. Mike Mitchell

Actor | Monsters vs. Aliens

Mike Mitchell was born in Oklahoma city to parents, Robert Mitchell, and Julia Baker. He graduated from Putnam City North High School, having been deeply involved with their arts programs. He then left behind his small town and moved to Las Angeles to attend the California Institute of the Arts. ...

73. Michael Moore

Director | Bowling for Columbine

Michael Francis Moore was born in Flint, Michigan on April 23, 1954, and was raised in its Davison suburb. He is the son of Helen Veronica (Wall), a secretary, and Francis Richard Moore, who worked on an auto assembly line. He has Irish, as well as English and Scottish, ancestry.

Moore studied ...

74. Hiro Murai

Director | Atlanta

Hiro Murai is a director and producer, known for Atlanta (2016), Guava Island (2019) and Childish Gambino: This Is America (2018).

75. Bharat Nalluri

Director | Little America

Bharat Nalluri was born in 1965 in Guntur, India. He is a director and writer, known for Little America (2020), The Man Who Invented Christmas (2017) and The 100 (2014).

76. Yoshihiro Nishimura

Make_up_department | Tôkyô zankoku keisatsu

Yoshihiro Nishimura was born on April 1, 1967 in Asakusa, Tokyo, Japan. He is known for his work on Tokyo Gore Police (2008), Meatball Machine Kodoku (2017) and The ABCs of Death (2012).

77. Marcus Nispel

Director | Friday the 13th

Marcus Nispel was born on May 26, 1963 in Frankfurt am Main, Hesse, Germany. He is a director and producer, known for Friday the 13th (2009), The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003) and Pathfinder (2007).

78. George Nolfi

Writer | The Bourne Ultimatum

George Nolfi is an American writer-director best known for Bourne Ultimatum, Oceans Twelve, and The Adjustment Bureau. His most recent film, The Banker, starring Sam Jackson and Anthony Mackie won the 2021 NAACP Image Award for Best Independent Motion Picture.

Nolfi's first screenwriting credit was ...

79. Joris Oprins

Director | A Single Life

Joris Oprins is a director and writer, known for A Single Life (2014), (Otto) (2015) and Kop Op (2017).

80. Nam June Paik

Soundtrack | Shutter Island

Nam June Paik was the first video artist who experimented with electronic media and made a profound impact on the art of video and television. He coined the phrase "Information Superhighway" in 1974, and has been called the "father of video art."

He was born Nam June Paik on July 20, 1932 in Seoul, ...

81. Ho-Cheung Pang

Writer | Chi Ming yi Chun Kiu

In 1994, Pang Ho-cheung started his career in the media industry by working as a variety show scriptwriter for Asia Television. By this time, Pang was active in several media. He was working as a scriptwriter, a host for radio and television shows, a columnist, a magazine editor and a copywriter. ...

82. Erik Parker

Producer | L.A. Burning: The Riots 25 Years Later

Erik Parker is a producer and director, known for L.A. Burning: The Riots 25 Years Later (2017), Hip Hop: The Songs That Shook America (2019) and Smoke: Marijuana + Black America (2020).

83. Tony Petrossian

Director | Kenna: Freetime

Tony Petrossian is an acclaimed director of music videos and television commercials. His work has garnered MTV Video Music Awards nominations for Best Director & Best Editor, the Audience Award at the SXSW Film Festival, nominations for Video Of The Year at the Much Music Video Awards & Rock Video ...

84. Simon Pummell

Director | Brand New-U

Retrospective at the 42nd Gijón International Film Festival, Spain.

85. Philip Ridley

Writer | The Reflecting Skin

Philip was born in the East End of London where he still lives and works. He studied painting at St Martin's School of Art and has exhibited widely throughout Europe. As a novelist his credits include Crocodilia (1988), In The Eyes Of Mr. Fury (Penguin, 1989), Flamingoes In Orbit (Hamish Hamilton, ...

86. Boots Riley

Soundtrack | Sorry to Bother You

Boots Riley was born on April 1, 1971 in Chicago, Illinois, USA as Raymond Lawrence Riley.

87. The Sacred Egg

Assistant_director | Bohemian Rhapsody

88. Pierre Salvadori

Writer | En liberté!

Born on November 8, 1964 in Tunisia, Pierre Salvadori studied literature and cinema at the Censier site of the New Sorbonne University of Paris. He also followed a training in drama. He wrote his first screenplay in 1989 which, four years later, became the basis of Wild Target (1993), his first ...

89. Dan Scanlon

Writer | Onward

Dan Scanlon joined Pixar Animation Studios in September 2001 as a storyboard artist on Pixar's award-winning feature films "Cars" and "Toy Story 3." During the initial production stages for both films, he worked closely with the directors to bring their ideas to the screen.

Scanlon went on to ...

90. David Schmoeller

Director | Little Monsters

Raised and educated in Texas, David Schmoeller began his career as a young playwright and was awarded the Texas Good Neighbor Scholarship for studies in Mexico, attending the Universidad De Las Americas from 1967-1968. In Mexico he studied theater with Alejandro Jodorowsky (El Topo (1970)) and was ...

91. Henry Scholfield

Producer | Gozo

92. George Albert Smith

Director | As Seen Through a Telescope

Along with his better-known French counterpart Georges Méliès George Albert Smith was one of the first filmmakers to explore fictional and fantastic themes, often using surprisingly sophisticated special effects. His background was ideal--an established portrait photographer, he also had a ...

93. Juan Solanas

Writer | L'homme sans tête

Born in Buenos Aires on November 4th 1966, Juan Diego Solanas is the son of one of Argentina's most important directors, Fernando E. Solanas. In 1977, he followed his father to France when the latter fled his country where dictatorship was rife. There, he studied art history and gave free rein to ...

94. Mauritz Stiller

Director | Erotikon

Moshe "Mauritz" Stiller, born July 17, 1883, in Helsinki, Finland, was a director, writer and actor. He began his artistic activity in the theatre, as an actor at 16. Mauritz Stiller portrayed 87 roles from 1899-1916 and directed 16 productions 1911-28. Together with Viktor Sjöström ( director, ...

95. Don Taylor

Actor | Stalag 17

Born in Freeport, Pennsylvania, Don Taylor studied law, then speech and drama at Penn State University, where as a freshman he began taking part in college stage productions. Hitchhiking to Hollywood in 1942, the youthful Taylor screen-tested at Warner Brothers but was rejected because of his draft...

96. Rhys Thomas

Actor | 2017: A Year in the Life of a Year

Rhys Thomas is an Emmy award, Rose D'or winning, BAFTA nominated English actor, comedian, writer, producer and director best known for starring in a wealth of hit British comedy shows like 'The Fast Show,' 'Star Stories,' 'Sirens', 'Down The Line', 'Nathan Barley' and the critically acclaimed BBC ...

97. Éric Toledano

Director | Intouchables

Éric Toledano was born on July 3, 1971 in Paris, France. He is a producer and director, known for The Intouchables (2011), C'est la vie! (2017) and The Specials (2019).

98. Sam Wood

Director | A Night at the Opera

Following a two-year apprenticeship under Cecil B. DeMille as assistant director, Samuel Grosvenor Wood had the good fortune to have assigned to him two of the biggest stars at Paramount during their heyday: Wallace Reid (between 1919 and 1920) and Gloria Swanson (from 1921 to 1923). By the time ...

99. Chuck Workman

Editor | Precious Images

Chuck Workman's theatrical short, "Precious Images," made for the Directors Guild of America, won an Academy Award for Best Live Action Short and has become the most widely shown short in film history. It was recently selected as a landmark film for preservation by the Library of Congress National ...

100. Yuan Zhang

Director | Kan shang qu hen mei

Yuan Zhang was born in October 1963 in Nanjing, China. He is a director and producer, known for Little Red Flowers (2006), Seventeen Years (1999) and East Palace, West Palace (1996).