Favorite Directors, Cinematographers & Writers (contemporary)

1. Thomas Vinterberg

Director | Jagten

With Sidste omgang (1993) (Last Round), his graduation short from The National Film School of Denmark, Thomas Vinterberg got an early taste of critical success. He received the Jury's and Producers' Awards at the International Student Film Fest in Munich and won the 1st Prize at the Tel Aviv Film ...

The Celebration (1998) Festen Submarino (2010) The Hunt (2012) Jagten The Commune (2016) Kollektivet

2. Radu Muntean

Director | Hârtia va fi albastra

Radu Muntean was born on June 8, 1971 in Bucharest, Romania. He is a director and writer, known for Hârtia va fi albastra (2006), Tuesday, After Christmas (2010) and Summer Holiday (2008).

The Paper Will Be Blue (2006) Summer Holiday (2008) Tuesday, After Christmas (2010)

3. Michael Haneke

Writer | Caché

A true master of his craft, Michael Haneke is one of the greatest film artists working today and one who challenges his viewers each year and work goes by, with films that reflect real portions of life in realistic, disturbing and unforgettable ways. One of the most genuine filmmakers of the world ...

The Seventh Continent (1989) Funny Games (1997) Code Unknown (2000) The Piano Teacher (2001) Hidden (Caché) (2005) The White Ribbon (2009) Amour (2012) Happy End (2017)

4. Woody Allen

Writer | Annie Hall

Woody Allen was born on November 30, 1935, as Allen Konigsberg, in The Bronx, NY, the son of Martin Konigsberg and Nettie Konigsberg. He has one younger sister, Letty Aronson. As a young boy, he became intrigued with magic tricks and playing the clarinet, two hobbies that he continues today.

Allen ...

Love and Death (1975) Annie Hall (1977) Interiors (1978) Manhattan (1979) Hannah and Her Sisters (1986) Radio Days (1987) Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989) Husbands and Wives (1992) Match Point (2005) Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008) Midnight in Paris (2011) Blue Jasmine (2013)

5. Ken Loach

Director | I, Daniel Blake

Unlike virtually all his contemporaries, Ken Loach has never succumbed to the siren call of Hollywood, and it's virtually impossible to imagine his particular brand of British socialist realism translating well to that context.

After studying law at St. Peter's College, Oxford, he branched out into ...

Kes (1969) Riff-Raff (1991) Ladybird Ladybird (1994) Land and Freedom (1995) My Name Is Joe (1998) Sweet Sixteen (2002) The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006) I, Daniel Blake (2016)

6. Tobias Lindholm

Writer | Druk

Tobias Lindholm was born on July 5, 1977 in Næstved, Denmark. He is a writer and director, known for Another Round (2020), The Hunt (2012) and A Hijacking (2012).

Submarino (2010) R (2010) A Hijacking (2012) The Hunt (2012) Jagten A War (2015) Krigen he Commune (2016) Kollektivet

7. Cristian Mungiu

Producer | 4 luni, 3 saptamâni si 2 zile

Cristian Mungiu was born on April 27, 1968 in Iasi, Romania. He is a producer and writer, known for 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days (2007), Graduation (2016) and Beyond the Hills (2012).

Occident (2002) 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days (2007) Outbound (2010) Periferic Beyond the Hills (2012) Dupa dealuri Graduation (2016) Bacalaureat

8. Cristi Puiu

Director | Aurora

Cristi Puiu was born on April 3, 1967 in Bucharest, Romania. He is a director and writer, known for Aurora (2010), Sieranevada (2016) and The Death of Mr. Lazarescu (2005). He has been married to Anca Puiu since April 21, 1998. They have three children.

Stuff and Dough (2001) The Death of Mr. Lazarescu (2005) Sieranevada (2016)

9. Lars von Trier

Writer | Dancer in the Dark

Probably the most ambitious and visually distinctive filmmaker to emerge from Denmark since Carl Theodor Dreyer over 60 years earlier, Lars von Trier studied film at the Danish Film School and attracted international attention with his very first feature, The Element of Crime (1984). A highly ...

Europa (1991) Breaking the Waves (1996) Dancer in the Dark (2000) Dogville (2003) Antichrist (2009) Melancholia (2011) A Royal Affair (2012) Nymphomaniac (2013)

10. Anders Thomas Jensen

Writer | Retfærdighedens ryttere

Anders Thomas Jensen was born on 6th April 1972 in Frederiksværk on Sjælland in Denmark to Carl Benny Jensen and Kirsten Jensen (born Sørensen). He attended the high school in Frederiksværk from 1988 to 1991. In 1990 while still in high school, he wrote and directed 10 år på bagen - 3 år i skyggen ...

In China They Eat Dogs (1999) Open Hearts (2002) Brothers (2004) Brødre Adam's Apples (2005) After the Wedding (2007) In a Better World (2010) Hævnen

11. Ole Christian Madsen

Director | Flammen & Citronen

Ole Christian "OC" Madsen is from the "Golden Year" of the Danish Filmschool, including director's like Thomas Vinterberg and Per Fly. Ole Christian Madsen started out directing television series, but moved on to his first feature Sinans Wedding in 1997, followed by highly acclaimed second feature ...

Prague (2006) Flame and Citron (2008) Itsi Bitsi (2014) Steppeulven

12. Ulrich Seidl

Producer | Rimini

Ulrich Seidl was born on November 24, 1952 in Vienna, Austria. He is a producer and director, known for Rimini (2022), Paradise: Love (2012) and Goodnight Mommy (2014). He is married to Veronika Franz. They have two children.

Dog Days (2001) Hundstage Import Export (2007) Paradise: Love (2013)

13. Nuri Bilge Ceylan

Producer | Bir Zamanlar Anadolu'da

Nuri Bilge Ceylan was born in Istanbul on January 26th, 1959. In 1976, he began studying chemical engineering at Istanbul Technical University, in a context of strong student unrest, boycotts and political polarization. In 1978, he switched courses to Electrical Engineering at Bogazici University. ...

The Town (1997) Clouds of May (1999) Distant (2002) Uzak Climates (2006) Iklimler Three Monkeys (2008) Once Upon a Time in Anatolia (2012) Winter Sleep (2014)

14. Wes Anderson

Director | Fantastic Mr. Fox

Wesley Wales Anderson was born in Houston, Texas. His mother, Texas Ann (Burroughs), is an archaeologist turned real estate agent, and his father, Melver Leonard Anderson, worked in advertising and PR. He has two brothers, Eric and Mel. Anderson's parents divorced when he was a young child, an ...

Rushmore (1998) The Royal Tenenbaums (2001) Lost in Translation (2003) Moonrise Kingdom (2012) The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

15. Kar-Wai Wong

Director | Yi dai zong shi

Wong Kar-wai (born 17 July 1956) is a Hong Kong Second Wave filmmaker, internationally renowned as an auteur for his visually unique, highly stylised, emotionally resonant work, including Ah fei zing zyun (1990), Dung che sai duk (1994), Chung Hing sam lam (1994), Do lok tin si (1995), Chun gwong ...

Days of Being Wild (1990) Chungking Express (1994) Fallen Angels (1995) In the Mood for Love (2000) 2046 (2004) The Grandmaster (2013)

16. Carlos Reygadas

Producer | Stellet Licht

Carlos Reygadas was born on October 10, 1971 in Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico. He is a producer and director, known for Silent Light (2007), Japan (2002) and Post Tenebras Lux (2012). He is married to Natalia López.

Japón (2002) Silent Light (2007) Post Tenebras Lux (2012)

17. Zhangke Jia

Producer | Jiang hu er nü

Zhangke Jia was born on May 24, 1970 in Fenyang, Shanxi, China. He is a producer and director, known for Jiang hu er nü (2018), A Touch of Sin (2013) and Mountains May Depart (2015). He has been married to Tao Zhao since January 7, 2012.

Platform (2000) The World (2004) Still Life (2006) Touch of Sin (2013) Black Coal, Thin Ice (2014) Mountains May Depart (2015)

18. Tsai Ming-liang

Director | Qingshaonian Nuozha

Born in Kuching, Malaysia, he graduated from the Drama and Cinema Department of the Chinese Cultural University of Taiwan and worked as a theatrical producer and TV director. His second feature film, Vive L'Amour (1994), won the Golden Lion (best picture) at the 1994 Venice Film Festival. His ...

Rebels of the Neon God (1992) Vive L'Amour (1994) The Hole (1998) What Time Is It There? (2001) Good Bye, Dragon Inn (2003) I Don't Want to Sleep Alone (2006) Stray Dogs (2013)

19. So Yong Kim

Director | Na-moo-eobs-neun san

So Yong Kim was born in 1968 in Pusan, South Korea. So Yong is a director and producer, known for Treeless Mountain (2008), In Between Days (2006) and For Ellen (2012).

In Between Days (2006) Treeless Mountain (2008) Lovesong (2016)

20. Ounie Lecomte

Director | Yeo-haeng-ja

Ounie Lecomte was born in 1966 in Seoul, South Korea. She is a director and actress, known for A Brand New Life (2009), Looking for Her (2015) and After Midnight (1990).

A Brand New Life (2009)

21. Brillante Mendoza

Director | Alpha: The Right to Kill

Brillante Mendoza is a Philippine director and producer. He is the first Filipino to receive the Best Director award at Cannes for his film Kinatay in 2009. He is also the only Filipino to receive France's "Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Arts et Lettres" (Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters) in ...

Foster Child (2007) Slingshot (2007) Service (2008) Grandmother (2009) Kinatay (2009)

22. Kiyoshi Kurosawa

Director | Tokyo Sonata

Kiyoshi Kurosawa was born on July 19, 1955 in Kobe, Japan. He is a director and writer, known for Tokyo Sonata (2008), Pulse (2001) and Cure (1997).

The Cure (1997) Tokyo Sonata (2008)

23. Takashi Miike

Director | Jûsan-nin no shikaku

Takashi Miike was born in the small town of Yao on the outskirts of Osaka, Japan. His main interest growing up was motorbikes, and for a while he harbored ambitions to race professionally. At the age of 18 he went to study at the film school in Yokohama founded by renowned director Shôhei Imamura, ...

The Bird People in China (1998) Audition (1999) Ichi the Killer (2001) 13 Assassins (2010) Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai (2011)

24. Asghar Farhadi

Writer | Forooshande

Asghar Farhadi was born in 1972 in Iran. He became interested in cinema in his teenage years and started his filmmaking education by joining the Youth Cinema Society of Esfahan in 1986 where he made 8mm and 16mm short films. He received his Bachelors in Theater from University of Tehran's School of...

Fireworks Wednesday (2006) About Elly (2009) A Separation (2011) The Past (2013) The Salesman (2016)

25. Xavier Dolan

Actor | J'ai tué ma mère

Xavier Dolan was born on March 20, 1989 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He is an actor and producer, known for I Killed My Mother (2009), Tom at the Farm (2013) and Heartbeats (2010).

I Killed My Mother (2009) Laurence Anyways (2012) Tom at the Farm (2013) Mommy (2014) It's Only the End of the World (2016)

26. Park Chan-wook

Director | Oldeuboi

Park Chan-wook was born on August 23, 1963 in Seoul, South Korea. He is a producer and director, known for Oldboy (2003), The Handmaiden (2016) and Decision to Leave (2022). He is married to Eun-hee Kim. They have one child.

Oldboy (2003) Sympathy for Lady Vengeance (2005) Thirst (2009) The Handmaiden (2016)

27. Bong Joon Ho

Writer | Snowpiercer

Bong Joon-ho is a South Korean filmmaker. The recipient of three Academy Awards, his filmography is characterized by emphasis on social themes, genre-mixing, black humor, and sudden tone shifts. He first became known to audiences and achieved a cult following with his directorial debut film, the ...

Memories of Murder (2003) The Host (2006) Mother (2009) Snowpiercer (2013)

28. Alfonso Cuarón

Producer | Gravity

Alfonso Cuarón Orozco was born on November 28th 1961 in Mexico City, Mexico. From an early age, he yearned to be either a film director or an astronaut. However, he did not want to enter the army, so he settled for directing. He didn't receive his first camera until his twelfth birthday, and then ...

A Little Princess (1995) Y Tu Mama Tambien (2001) Children of Men (2006) Gravity (2013)

29. Alejandro G. Iñárritu

Director | Biutiful

Alejandro González Iñárritu (ih-nyar-ee-too), born August 15th, 1963, is a Mexican film director.

González Iñárritu is the first Mexican director to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director and by the Directors Guild of America for Best Director. He is also the first Mexican-born ...

Amores Perros (2000) 21 Grams (2003) Babel (2006) Biutiful (2010) Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014) The Revenant (2015)

30. Guillermo Arriaga

Writer | The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada

Guillermo Arriaga was born on March 13, 1958 in Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico. He is a writer and producer, known for The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (2005), 21 Grams (2003) and Amores Perros (2000).

Amores Perros (2000) 21 Grams (2003) The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (2005) Babel (2006) From Afar (2015)

31. Pedro Almodóvar

Writer | Hable con ella

The most internationally acclaimed Spanish filmmaker since Luis Buñuel was born in a small town (Calzada de Calatrava) in the impoverished Spanish region of La Mancha. He arrived in Madrid in 1968, and survived by selling used items in the flea-market called El Rastro. Almodóvar couldn't study ...

Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (1988) All About My Mother (1999) Talk to Her (2002) Bad Education (2004) Volver (2006) Broken Embraces (2009) The Skin I Live In (2011) Julieta (2016)

32. Pablo Larraín

Producer | No

Pablo Larraín was born in Santiago, Chile. He is a director, writer and producer, known for Spencer (2021), Jackie (2016), El Club (2015), NO (2012), among others. Together with his brother Juan de Dios Larraín, they founded Fabula in 2004, one of the most prolific production companies in Latin ...

Tony Manero (2008) Post Mortem (2010) No (2012) El Club (2015) Jackie (2016) Neruda (2016)

33. Icíar Bollaín

Director | Te doy mis ojos

Born in Madrid, Iciar Bollain has worked as an actress in films such El Sur (1983), directed by Víctor Erice; Sublet (1991) directed by Chus Gutiérrez, Malaventura (1988) directed by Manuel Gutiérrez Aragón; El Mejor de los Tiempos (1990) and Un Paraguas para Tres (1992) directed by Felipe Vega, ...

Take My Eyes (2003) También la lluvia (2010) The Olive Tree (2016)

34. Paul Laverty

Writer | Sorry We Missed You

Paul Laverty was born in Calcutta, India, to an Irish mother and Scottish father.

He obtained a Philosophy degree at the Gregorian University in Rome. Thereafter he obtained a law degree in Glasgow and went on to do an apprenticeship with two of Scotland's most celebrated lawyers. He became a ...

My Name Is Joe (1998) Sweet Sixteen (2002) The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006) También la lluvia (2010) The Olive Tree (2016)

35. Walter Salles

Director | Central do Brasil

Walter Salles was born on April 12, 1956 in Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He is a director and producer, known for Central Station (1998), The Motorcycle Diaries (2004) and Terra Estrangeira (1995). He is married to Maria Klabin. They have one child.

Central Station (1998) Behind the Sun (2001) The Motorcycle Diaries (2004) Linha de Passe (2008)

36. Pedro Peirano

Writer | Gatos viejos

Pedro Peirano is known for Gatos viejos (2010), The Maid (2009) and Young & Wild (2012).

The Maid (2009) No (2012)

37. Guillermo del Toro

Writer | El laberinto del fauno

Guillermo del Toro was born October 9, 1964 in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. Raised by his Catholic grandmother, del Toro developed an interest in filmmaking in his early teens. Later, he learned about makeup and effects from the legendary Dick Smith (The Exorcist (1973)) and worked on making his ...

Cronos (1993) The Devil's Backbone (2001) Pan's Labyrinth (2006) The Strain TV (2015) Crimson Peak (2015) The Shape of Water (2017)

38. Alejandro Amenábar

Writer | The Others

Is the son of a Spanish mother and a Chilean father. His family moved back to Spain when he was 1 year old, and he grew up and studied in Madrid. He wrote, produced and directed his first short film La cabeza at the age of 19, and he was 23 when he directed his feature debut Thesis (1996). His film ...

Thesis (1996) Open Your Eyes (1997) The Others (2001) The Sea Inside (2004)

39. J.A. Bayona

Director | La sociedad de la nieve

Juan Antonio García Bayona is a Spanish film director. He directed the 2007 horror film The Orphanage, the 2012 drama film The Impossible, and the 2016 fantasy drama film A Monster Calls. Bayona's latest film is the 2018 science fiction adventure film Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, the fifth ...

The Orphanage (2007) The Impossible (2012) A Monster Calls (2016)

40. Fernando León de Aranoa

Writer | A Perfect Day

Fernando León de Aranoa was born on May 26, 1968 in Madrid, Spain. He is a writer and director, known for A Perfect Day (2015), The Good Boss (2021) and Mondays in the Sun (2002).

Familia (1996) Barrio (1998) Mondays in the Sun (2002) A Perfect Day (2016)

41. Julio Medem

Director | Lucía y el sexo

Julio Medem was born in San Sebastian in northern Spain. As a teenager Medem made short movies with a super-8 camera owned by his father. Some of those films are "El ciego" (1976), "El jueves pasado" (1977) and "Fideos" (1979.) Wanting to know more about the darkest corners of the human mind, Medem...

The Red Squirrel (1993) Earth (1996) Lovers of the Arctic Circle (1998)

42. Kim Ki-duk

Writer | Bin-jip

He studied fine arts in Paris in 1990-1992. In 1993 he won the award for Best Screenplay from the Educational Institute of Screenwriting with "A Painter and A Criminal Condemned to Death". After two more screenplay awards, he made his directorial debut with Crocodile (1996) ("Crocodile"). Then he ...

Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring (2003) 3-Iron (2004) The Bow (2005) Time (2006) Pieta (2012)

43. Jafar Panahi

Director | Taxi

Jafar Panahi (Born 11 July 1960) is an Iranian film director, screenwriter, and film editor, commonly identified with the Iranian New Wave film movement. After several years of making short films and working as an assistant director for fellow Iranian film-maker Abbas Kiarostami, Panahi achieved ...

Through the Olive Trees (1994) The White Balloon (1995) The Mirror (1997) The Circle (2000) Crimson Gold (2003) Offside (2006) This Is Not a Film (2011) Closed Curtain (2013) Taxi (2015)

44. Fernando Meirelles

Director | The Constant Gardener

Fernando Meirelles was born in a middle class family in São Paulo City, Brazil.

He studied architecture at the university of São Paulo. At the same time he developed an interest in filmmaking. With a group of friends he started producing experimental videos and video art. They won a huge number of ...

City of God (2002) The Constant Gardener (2005)

45. Mohammad Rasoulof

Producer | Dast-neveshtehaa nemisoosand

Mohammad Rasoulof was born in Shiraz, Iran in 1972. He is an independent director, writer and producer. He studied sociology. Rasoulof started his filmmaking with documentaries and short films. For his first film 'Gagooman'(The Twilight, 2002) Rasoulof won the prize for the best film at the Fajr ...

Iron Island (2005) The White Meadows (2009) Goodbye (2011) Manuscripts Don't Burn (2013)

46. Marjane Satrapi

Director | Persepolis

Marjane Satrapi was born on November 22, 1969 in Rasht, Iran. She is a director and actress, known for Persepolis (2007), The Voices (2014) and Chicken with Plums (2011). She is married to Mattias Ripa. She was previously married to Reza.

Persepolis (2007) Chicken with Plums (2011)

47. Denis Villeneuve

Director | Dune

Denis Villeneuve is a French Canadian film director and writer. He was born in 1967, in Trois-Rivières, Québec, Canada. He started his career as a filmmaker at the National Film Board of Canada. He is best known for his feature films Arrival (2016), Sicario (2015), Prisoners (2013), Enemy (2013), ...

Maelstrom (2000) Polytechnique (2009) Incendies (2010) Enemy (2013) Prisoners (2013) Sicario (2015) Arrival (2016) Blade Runner 2049 (2017)

48. Peter Strickland

Director | Katalin Varga

Peter Strickland was born in 1973 in Reading, Berkshire, England, UK. He is a director and writer, known for Katalin Varga (2009), In Fabric (2018) and Berberian Sound Studio (2012).

Katalin Varga (2009) Berberian Sound Studio (2012) The Duke of Burgundy (2014)

49. Majid Majidi

Writer | Bacheha-Ye aseman

Majid Majidi was born on April 17, 1959 in Tehran, Iran to a middle class family. He started acting in amateur theater groups at the age of fourteen. After receiving his high school diploma, he started studying art at the Institute of Dramatic Art in Tehran. After the Islamic Revolution of 1979, ...

The Father (1996) Children of Heaven (1997) The Color of Paradise (1999) Baran (2001) The Song of Sparrows (2008)

50. Tomas Alfredson

Director | Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Tomas Alfredson was born on April 1, 1965 in Lidingö, Stockholms län, Sweden. He is a director, known for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011), Let the Right One In (2008) and The Snowman (2017). He is married to Charlotte Alfredson. They have one child. He was previously married to Cissi Elwin.

Let the Right One In (2008) Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)

51. Pablo Trapero

Producer | El Clan

Pablo Trapero was born in San justo, Argentina in 1971. In 1999 he directed his first feature, Mundo Grua, which won the Critics Prize at Venice. In 2002, he opened his production company, Matanza Cine, that produces films for fellow filmmakers, as well as his own. His second feature, El Bonaerense...

Crane World (1999) Leonera (2008) Carancho (2010) The Clan (2015)

52. Frank Darabont

Writer | The Shawshank Redemption

Three-time Oscar nominee Frank Darabont was born in a refugee camp in 1959 in Montbeliard, France, the son of Hungarian parents who had fled Budapest during the failed 1956 Hungarian revolution. Brought to America as an infant, he settled with his family in Los Angeles and attended Hollywood High ...

The Shawshank Redemption (1994) The Green Mile (1999) The Mist (2007) The Walking Dead TV

53. Darren Aronofsky

Writer | Pi

Darren Aronofsky was born February 12, 1969, in Brooklyn, New York. Growing up, Darren was always artistic: he loved classic movies and, as a teenager, he even spent time doing graffiti art. After high school, Darren went to Harvard University to study film (both live-action and animation). He won ...

Requiem for a Dream (2000) The Fountain (2006) The Wrestler (2008) Black Swan (2010) Mother! (2017)

54. Gaspar Noé

Director | Enter the Void

Gaspar Noé is an Argentinian filmmaker and screenwriter who lives in France. He is the son of Luis Felipe Noé, an Argentinian artist. He directed I Stand Alone, Irréversible, Enter the Void, Love, Climax, Carne, Lux Æterna, Sodomites and Vortex. His films are known for having a sensory overload ...

I Stand Alone (1998) Irreversible (2002)

55. Álex de la Iglesia

Director | El bar

Álex de la Iglesia is one of the most popular and respected European filmmakers of his generation. Considered a genre of his own, based on his skill and originality in a range of cinematographic art styles, he has currently finished shooting the second season of "30 Coins", the successful HBO Max ...

The Day of the Beast (1995) Common Wealth (2000) El Crimen Perfecto (2004) Witching and Bitching (2013) Words with Gods (2014)

56. Jean-Pierre Dardenne

Producer | Deux jours, une nuit

After studying drama in the arts institute, Jean Pierre Dardenne and his brother Luc made some videos about the rough life in blue-collar small towns in the Wallonie. After their meeting with filmmaker Armad Gatti and cinematographer Ned Burgess, they decided to enter in the movie business.

In 1978 ...

La Promesse (1996) Rosetta (1999) The Son (2002) L'enfant (2005) The Silence of Lorna (2008) The Kid with a Bike (2011) Rust and Bone (2012) Deux jours, une nuit (2014) The Unknown Girl (2016) La fille inconnue

57. Jacques Audiard

Writer | De rouille et d'os

Born in Paris, France, in 1952. Jacques Audiard's family has always been involved in movie business. His father, Michel, was a popular screenwriter and director and his uncle a producer. But in his teens he refused that world and wanted to be a teacher. He studied literature and philosophy at the ...

A Self-Made Hero (1996) Read My Lips (2001) The Beat That My Heart Skipped (2005) A Prophet (2009) Rust and Bone (2012) Dheepan (2015)

58. Thomas Bidegain

Writer | De rouille et d'os

Thomas Bidegain was born on March 23, 1968 in Mauléon-Licharre, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, France. He is a writer and actor, known for Rust and Bone (2012), A Prophet (2009) and Les Cowboys (2015).

A Prophet (2009) Rust and Bone (2012) Our Children (2012) Dheepan (2015)

59. Cãtãlin Mitulescu

Producer | Cum mi-am petrecut sfârsitul lumii

Cãtãlin Mitulescu was born on January 13, 1972 in Bucharest, Romania. He is a producer and writer, known for How I Celebrated the End of the World (2006), Loverboy (2011) and If I Want to Whistle, I Whistle (2010).

The Way I Spent the End of the World (2006) If I Want to Whistle, I Whistle (2010)

60. Jean-Pierre Jeunet

Director | Un long dimanche de fiançailles

Jean-Pierre Jeunet is a self-taught director who was very quickly interested by cinema, with a predilection for a fantastic cinema where form is as important as the subject. Thus he started directing TV commercials and video clips (such as Julien Clerc in 1984). At the same time he met designer/...

Delicatessen (1991) The City of Lost Children (1995) Amélie (2001) A Very Long Engagement (2004)

61. Corneliu Porumboiu

Writer | A fost sau n-a fost?

Corneliu Porumboiu was born on September 14, 1975 in Vaslui, Romania. He is a writer and director, known for 12:08 East of Bucharest (2006), The Whistlers (2019) and Police, Adjective (2009).

12:08 East of Bucharest (2006) Police, Adjective (2009) The Treasure (2015)

62. Alexander Payne

Director | Nebraska

Director, producer and screenwriter Alexander Payne was born in Omaha, Nebraska. His parents, Peggy (Constantine) and George Payne, ran a Greek restaurant. His father is of Greek and German ancestry, and his mother is of Greek descent; the family name was originally Papadopoulos. He is the youngest...

Election (1999) About Schmidt (2002) Sideways (2004) The Descendants (2011) Nebraska (2013)

63. Richard Linklater

Director | Waking Life

Self-taught writer-director Richard Stuart Linklater was born in Houston, Texas, to Diane Margaret (Krieger), who taught at a university, and Charles W. Linklater III. Richard was among the first and most successful talents to emerge during the American independent film renaissance of the 1990s. ...

Dazed and Confused (1993) Before Sunrise (1995) Waking Life (2001) Before Sunset (2004) Before Midnight (2013) Boyhood (2014) Everybody Wants Some!! (2016) Last Flag Flying (2017)

64. David O. Russell

Director | American Hustle

David Owen Russell is an American film writer, director, and producer, known for a cinema of intense, tragi-comedic characters whose love of life can surpass dark circumstances faced in very specific worlds. His films address such themes as mental illness as stigma or hope; invention of self and ...

Flirting with Disaster (1996) Three Kings (1999) The Fighter (2010) Silver Linings Playbook (2012) American Hustle (2013)

65. Steve McQueen

Director | 12 Years a Slave

Steve McQueen was born on October 9, 1969 in London, England, UK. He is a director and producer, known for 12 Years a Slave (2013), Shame (2011) and Hunger (2008). He is married to Bianca Stigter. They have two children.

Hunger (2008) Shame (2011) 12 Years a Slave (2013)

66. Robert Rodriguez

Producer | El mariachi

Robert Anthony Rodriguez was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas, USA, to Rebecca (Villegas), a nurse, and Cecilio G. Rodríguez, a salesman. His family is of Mexican descent.

Of all the people to be amazed by the images of John Carpenter's 1981 sci-fi parable, Escape from New York (1981), none ...

El mariachi (1992) From Dusk Till Dawn (1996) Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003) Desperado (1995) Sin City (2005) Grindhouse (2007) Planet Terror (2007) Machete (2010)

67. Danny Boyle

Director | 127 Hours

Daniel Francis Boyle is a British filmmaker, producer and writer from Radcliffe, Greater Manchester. He is known for directing 28 Days Later, 127 Hours, Trainspotting, T2 Trainspotting, Slumdog Millionaire, Millions, Shallow Grave, The Beach, Yesterday, and Steve Jobs. He won many awards for ...

Trainspotting (1996) The Beach (2000) 28 Days Later... (2002) 28 Weeks Later (2007) Slumdog Millionaire (2008) 127 Hours (2010) Steve Jobs (2015) T2 Trainspotting (2016)

68. Michel Gondry

Director | Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

He grew up in Versailles with a family who was very influenced by pop music. When he was young, Gondry wanted to be a painter or an inventor. In the 80s he entered in an art school in Paris where he could develop his graphic skills and where he also met friends with whom he created a pop-rock band ...

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) The Science of Sleep (2006) Microbe and Gasoline (2015)

69. Nicolas Winding Refn

Writer | The Neon Demon

Writer, director, and producer Nicolas Winding Refn was born in Copenhagen, Denmark, in 1970, to Anders Refn, a film director and editor, and Vibeke Winding (née Tuxen), a cinematographer. Just before he turned 11, in 1981, he moved to New York with his parents, where he lived out his teen years. ...

Pusher Trilogy Bronson (2008) Drive (2011) The Neon Demon (2016)

70. Jean-Marc Vallée

Director | C.R.A.Z.Y.

Jean-Marc Vallée was a Canadian filmmaker, editor and screenwriter from Montreal. He directed Black List, C.R.A.Z.Y., The Young Victoria, Wild, Dallas Buyers Club, Los Locos, Loser Love and Café de Flore. He also created the HBO shows Big Little Lies and Sharp Objects. He was married to Chantal ...

C.R.A.Z.Y. (2005) Café de Flore (2011) Dallas Buyers Club (2013) Wild (2014)

71. Jim Jarmusch

Director | Paterson

Moved to New York City at the age of seventeen from Akron, Ohio. Graduated from Columbia University with a B.A. in English, class of '75. Without any prior film experience, he was accepted into the Tisch School of the Arts, New York.

Permanent Vacation (1980) Stranger Than Paradise (1984) Down by Law (1986) Mystery Train (1989) Night on Earth (1991) Dead Man (1995) Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999) Coffee and Cigarettes (2003) Broken Flowers (2005) Only Lovers Left Alive (2013) Paterson (2016) Gimme Danger (2016)

72. Jim Sheridan

Producer | In America

Following a distinguished career in the theatre between the 1960s and the 1980s, Jim Sheridan wrote and directed his first critically acclaimed feature My Left Foot in 1989. The film was nominated for two European Film Awards. He followed this in 1990 with The Field which he also wrote and directed...

My Left Foot (1989) In the Name of the Father (1993) Some Mother's Son (1996) The Boxer (1997) In America (2002)

73. Fatih Akin

Director | Aus dem Nichts

Fatih Akin was born in 1973 in Hamburg of Turkish parentage. He began studying Visual Communications at Hamburg's College of Fine Arts in 1994. His collaboration with Wueste Film also dates from this time. In 1995, he wrote and directed his first short feature, "Sensin - You're The One!" ("Sensin -...

Short Sharp Shock (1998) In July (2000) Head-On (2004) The Edge of Heaven (2007) Soul Kitchen (2009) Tschick (2016)

74. Paolo Sorrentino

Writer | È stata la mano di Dio

Director and screenwriter Paolo Sorrentino was born in Naples in 1970, and and became an orphan when he lost both of his parents at the age of 16. At the age of 25, after studying for a few years at the Faculty of Economics and Business in University of Naples Federico II, he decided to work in the...

Le conseguenze dell'amore (2004) The Family Friend (2006) Il Divo (2008) This Must Be the Place (2011) La grande bellezza (2013) Youth (2015)

75. Susanne Bier

Director | Hævnen

Though Academy Award®, Golden Globe Award and Emmy Award winning writer and director Susanne Bier's work often plays out against a wide-reaching global backdrop, its focus is intimate, carefully exploring the explosive emotions and complexities of familial bonds. This unique combination is part of ...

Open Hearts (2002) Brothers (2004) After the wedding (2006) In a Better World (2010) The Night Manager TV (2016)

76. Radu Mihaileanu

Writer | Train de vie

Radu Mihaileanu was born on April 23, 1958 in Bucharest, Romania. He is a writer and director, known for Train of Life (1998), The Concert (2009) and Live and Become (2005).

Train of Life (1998) Live and Become (2005) The Concert (2009) La source des femmes (2011)

77. J.J. Abrams

Producer | Lost

Jeffrey Jacob Abrams was born in New York City and raised in Los Angeles, the son of TV producer parents. At 15, he wrote the music for Don Dohler's Nightbeast (1982). In his senior year of college, he and Jill Mazursky teamed up to write a feature film, which became Taking Care of Business (1990)....

Armageddon (1998) Lost TV (2004) Fringe TV (2008) Star Trek (2009) Super 8 (2011) Person of Interest TV (2011) Almost Human TV (2013) Believe TV (2014) Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens (2015) Westworld TV (2016) 11.22.63 TV (2016)

78. David Lynch

Writer | Twin Peaks

Born in precisely the kind of small-town American setting so familiar from his films, David Lynch spent his childhood being shunted from one state to another as his research scientist father kept getting relocated. He attended various art schools, married Peggy Lynch and then fathered future ...

Eraserhead (1977) The Elephant Man (1980) Blue Velvet (1986) Wild at Heart (1990) Twin Peaks TV The Straight Story (1999) Mulholland Drive (2001)

79. Stephen Frears

Director | Dangerous Liaisons

Stephen started off in a career in the legal profession before switching to work as an assistant stage manager at London's Royal Court which led to work as an assistant director on films by Karel Reisz and Lindsay Anderson He directed his first short in 1967 and his feature debut, Gumshoe, in 1971....

Prick Up Your Ears (1987) Dangerous Liaisons (1988) The Grifters (1990) Liam (2000) High Fidelity (2000) Dirty Pretty Things (2002) The Queen (2006) Philomena (2013)

80. Edgar Wright

Director | Shaun of the Dead

Edgar Howard Wright (born 18 April 1974) is an English director, screenwriter, producer, and actor. He is best known for his comedic Three Flavours Cornetto film trilogy consisting of Shaun of the Dead (2004), Hot Fuzz (2007), and The World's End (2013), made with recurrent collaborators Simon Pegg...

Shaun of the Dead (2004) Hot Fuzz (2007) The World's End (2013) Baby Driver (2017)

81. Christopher Nolan

Writer | Tenet

Best known for his cerebral, often nonlinear, storytelling, acclaimed Academy Award winner writer/director/producer Sir Christopher Nolan CBE was born in London, England. Over the course of more than 25 years of filmmaking, Nolan has gone from low-budget independent films to working on some of the ...

Following (1998) Memento (2000) Insomnia (2002) Batman Begins (2005) The Prestige (2006) The Dark Knight (2008) Inception (2010) The Dark Knight Rises (2012) Interstellar (2014) Dunkirk (2017)

82. Tim Burton

Producer | Edward Scissorhands

Timothy Walter Burton was born in Burbank, California, to Jean Rae (Erickson), who owned a cat-themed gift shop, and William Reed Burton, who worked for the Burbank Park and Recreation Department. He spent most of his childhood as a recluse, drawing cartoons, and watching old movies (he was ...

Batman (1989) Edward Scissorhands (1990) Batman Returns (1992) The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) Ed Wood (1994) Big Fish (2003) Corpse Bride (2005) Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005) Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007) 9 (2009) Frankenweenie (2012)

83. Paul Haggis

Writer | Crash

Paul Haggis established himself over twenty years with an extensive career in television, before his big break into features arrived when he became the first screenwriter to garner two Best Film Academy Awards back-to-back for his scripts: "Million Dollar Baby" (2004) directed by Clint Eastwood, ...

Crash (2004) (+dir) Million Dollar Baby (2004) Letters from Iwo Jima (2006) Flags of Our Fathers (2006) Casino Royale (2006) In the Valley of Elah (2007) (+dir) The Next Three Days (2010) Show Me a Hero TV (2015)

84. Clint Eastwood

Actor | Million Dollar Baby

Clint Eastwood was born May 31, 1930 in San Francisco, to Clinton Eastwood Sr., a bond salesman and later manufacturing executive for Georgia-Pacific Corporation, and Ruth Wood (née Margret Ruth Runner), a housewife turned IBM clerk. He grew up in nearby Piedmont. At school Clint took interest in ...

Play Misty for Me (1971) High Plains Drifter (1973) The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976) Pale Rider (1985) Unforgiven (1992) A Perfect World (1993) The Bridges of Madison County (1995) Mystic River (2003) Million Dollar Baby (2004) Letters from Iwo Jima (2006) Flags of Our Fathers (2006) Gran Torino (2008) Changeling (2008) American Sniper (2014) Sully (2016)

85. Takeshi Kitano

Actor | Zatôichi

Takeshi Kitano originally studied to become an engineer, but was thrown out of school for rebellious behavior. He learned comedy, singing and dancing from famed comedian Senzaburô Fukami. Working as a lift boy on a nightclub with such features as comic sketches and striptease dancing, Kitano saw ...

Violent Cop (1989) Sonatina (1993) Fireworks (1997) Dolls (2002) Zatoichi (2003)

86. Juan José Campanella

Writer | El secreto de sus ojos

Juan José Campanella was born on July 19, 1959 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He is a writer and director, known for The Secret in Their Eyes (2009), The Man of Your Dreams (2011) and The Weasel's Tale (2019).

El mismo amor, la misma lluvia (1999) Son of the Bride (2001) The Secret in Their Eyes (2009)

87. Andrea Arnold

Director | American Honey

Andrea Arnold was born on April 5, 1961 in Dartford, Kent, England, UK. She is an actress and director, known for American Honey (2016), Fish Tank (2009) and Red Road (2006).

Red Road (2006) Fish Tank (2009) Wuthering Heights (2011)

88. Cédric Klapisch

Director | L'auberge espagnole

Cédric Klapisch was born on September 4, 1961 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, Hauts-de-Seine, France. He is a director and actor, known for The Spanish Apartment (2002), Rise (2022) and Family Resemblances (1996). He has been married to Lola Doillon since 2002. They have one child.

Family Resemblances (1996) L'auberge espagnole (2002) Russian Dolls (2005) Paris (2008)

89. Guillaume Canet

Actor | Jeux d'enfants

Son of horse breeders, the young man spent his childhood in the countryside near Paris. In his youth, Guillaume wanted to be a horse-rider, and briefly followed a professional career in the sport. A bad fall broke his dreams, but is at the origin of his acting career, and success. After briefly ...

Tell No One (2006)

90. Charlie Kaufman

Writer | I'm Thinking of Ending Things

Avid reader Charlie Kaufman wrote plays and made short films as a young student. He moved from Massapequa, New York to West Hartford, Connecticut in 1972 where he attended high school. As a comedic actor, he performed in school plays and, after graduation, he enrolled at Boston University but soon ...

Being John Malkovich (1999) Adaptation. (2002) Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) Synecdoche, New York (2008) Anomalisa (2015)

91. Ethan Coen

Producer | The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

The younger brother of Joel, Ethan Coen is an Academy Award and Golden Globe winning writer, producer and director coming from small independent films to big profile Hollywood films. He was born on September 21, 1957 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In some films of the brothers- Ethan & Joel wrote, Joel...

Blood Simple. (1984) Raising Arizona (1987) Miller's Crossing (1990) Barton Fink (1991) Fargo (1996) The Big Lebowski (1998) O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000) The Man Who Wasn't There (2001) Intolerable Cruelty (2003) No Country for Old Men (2007) A Serious Man (2009) True Grit (2010) Inside Llewyn Davis (2013) Hail, Caesar! (2016)

92. Jason Reitman

Producer | Up in the Air

Jason Reitman is a Canadian filmmaker and producer who notably directed Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Juno, Thank You for Smoking, Up in the Air, Young Adult and Tully. He produced Chloe and Jennifer's Body, two films that advanced Amanda Seyfried's career for adult oriented roles. He is the son of Ivan...

Thank You for Smoking (2005) Juno (2007) Up in the Air (2009) Young Adult (2011)

93. Yorgos Lanthimos

Director | The Lobster

Yorgos Lanthimos was born in Athens, Greece. He studied directing for Film and Television at the Stavrakos Film School in Athens. He has directed a number of dance videos in collaboration with Greek choreographers, in addition to TV commercials, music videos, short films and theater plays. Kinetta,...

Dogtooth (2009) Attenberg (2010) Alps (2011) The Lobster (2015) The Killing of a Sacred Deer (2017)

94. Yannis Economides

Director | To mikro psari

Yannis Economides was born in Cyprus in 1967. In 1987 he moved to Athens, Greece, to pursue studies in law, but almost immediately quit law school to study filmmaking instead.

After making several documentaries and short films, in 2003 he wrote and directed his first feature film, the iconic ...

Matchbox (2002) Soul Kicking (2006) Knifer (2010) Stratos (2014)

95. Paul Thomas Anderson

Director | Punch-Drunk Love

Anderson was born in 1970. He was one of the first of the "video store" generation of film-makers. His father was the first man on his block to own a V.C.R., and from a very early age Anderson had an infinite number of titles available to him. While film-makers like Spielberg cut their teeth making...

Hard Eight (1996) Boogie Nights (1997) Magnolia (1999) Punch-Drunk Love (2002) There Will Be Blood (2007) The Master (2012) Inherent Vice (2014)

96. Damián Szifron

Editor | Relatos salvajes

Damián Szifron was born on July 9, 1975 in Ramos Mejía, Buenos Aires, Argentina. He is a producer and editor, known for Wild Tales (2014), To Catch a Killer (2023) and Los simuladores (2002).

On Probation (2005) Relatos salvajes (2014)

97. Roman Polanski

Director | Chinatown

Roman Polanski is a Polish film director, producer, writer and actor. Having made films in Poland, Britain, France and the USA, he is considered one of the few truly international filmmakers. Roman Polanski was born in Paris in 1933.

His parents returned to Poland from France in 1936, three years ...

Knife in the Water (1962) Repulsion (1965) Cul-de-sac (1966) Rosemary's Baby (1968) Chinatown (1974) The Tenant (1976) Tess (1979) Bitter Moon (1992) The Ninth Gate (1999) The Pianist (2002) The Ghost Writer (2010) Carnage (2011) Venus in Fur (2013)

98. Carlos Vermut

Writer | Quién te cantará

Carlos Vermut was born on March 6, 1980 in Madrid, Spain. He is a writer and director, known for Quién te cantará (2018), Magical Girl (2014) and Manticore (2022).

Diamond Flash (2011) Magical Girl (2014)

99. Semih Kaplanoglu

Producer | Yumurta

Semih Kaplanoglu is one of the most acclaimed writer-director-producers of contemporary filmmaking. Born and raised in Izmir, Turkey, he received BS in Cinema-Television from the Faculty of Fine Arts, Dokuz Eylul University, in 1984. Kaplanoglu made his debut feature in 2001 'Away From Home', and ...

Angel's Fall (2005) Yumurta (Egg) (2007) Sut (Milk) (2008) Honey (2010)

100. Roy Andersson

Director | En kärlekshistoria

Roy Arne Lennart Andersson is a Swedish film director, best known for his distinctive style of absurdist humor and melancholic depictions of human life. His personal style is characterized by long takes, and stiff caricaturing of Swedish culture and grotesque. Over his career Andersson earned ...

A Swedish Love Story (1970) Songs from the Second Floor (2000) You, the Living (2007) A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (2014)