Biography for Danny Boyle

Date of Birth
20 October 1956, Manchester, England, UK
Trade Mark
Often uses Ewan McGregor
The opening shot is usually a shot from the middle of the movie.
Often uses electronic music in his films.
Scotland - Often uses places, characters, actors or references to and relating to Scotland
Kinetic camera.
Frequently collaborates with John Murphy for Soundtrack production


Trivia
Passed directing Alien: Resurrection (1997) to work on A Life Less Ordinary (1997).
Attended Thornliegh Salesian College in Bolton, Lancashire
His favorite film is Apocalypse Now (1979)


Personal Quotes
You don't realize it, but often people are frightened of the director.
I learned that what I'm better at is making stuff lower down the radar. Actually, ideally not on the radar at all.
I don't want to make pompous, serious films; I like films that have a kind of vivacity about them. At this time of the year you think about awards and if you want to win one you think you should make serious films, but my instinct is to make vivacious films.
I want my films to be life-affirming, even a film like Trainspotting (1996), which is very dark in many ways. I want people to leave the cinema feeling that something's been confirmed for them about life.
I think I'm better at making films on my home turf, really. You learn from experience and I've learnt that through The Beach (2000/I). I love big movies, like Gladiator (2000), but I'm better at smaller films.
That's what's wonderful about actors sometimes, is that's who we watch on the screen... Some of us are interested in directors, but really the vast majority of us are interested in actors. You experience the films through the actors, so they're all locked into your imagination in some kind of layer of fantasy or hatred or wherever they settle into your imagination. They make much better fodder for this kind of thing [interviews] than a director.
[His next project, Sunshine (2007)] We're doing this film Sunshine (2007). In fact, we're casting for it in a few minutes actually. It's about a mission to the sun. It's a sci-fi set in space. They're flying a bomb to the sun and the bomb is like the size of Kansas, this immense bomb that they built in space. They're flying it to reignite a section of the sun which is failing, but it's really about a mission that went earlier, seven years earlier, and failed. So it's sort of mystery of what happened. It's quite big at the end, you get to meet the sun. Quite spectacular hopefully.
When I was making Sunshine (2007), it suddenly struck me: No director has ever gone back into space, with the exception of franchise directors. If you look at the record, you'll find that's true. I now know why.


Special thank for link; http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000965/bio

Biography for George Lucas

Date of Birth14 May 1944, Modesto, California, USA
Birth NameGeorge Walton Lucas Jr.
Height5' 7" (1.70 m)

Mini Biography
George Lucas was raised on a walnut ranch in Modesto, California. His father was a stationery store owner and he had three siblings. During his late teens he went to Downey High School and was very much interested in drag car racing. He planned to become a professional racecar driver. However a terrible car accident just after his high school graduation ended that dream permanently. The accident changed his views on life. He decided to attend Modesto Junior College before enrolling in the University of Southern California film school. As a film student he made several short films including THX-1138: 4EB (Electronic Labyinth) which won first prize at the 1967-68 National Student Film Festival. In 1967 he was awarded a scholarship by Warner Brothers to observe the making of Finian's Rainbow (1968) which was being directed by Francis Ford Coppola. Lucas and Coppola became good friends and formed a company called American Zoetrope in 1969. The company's first project was Lucas' full-length version of THX 1138 (1971). In 1971, Coppola went into production for The Godfather (1972), and Lucas formed his own company, Lucasfilm Ltd. In 1973 he wrote and directed the semi-autobiographical American Graffiti (1973) which won the Golden Globe and garnered five Academy Award nominations. This gave him the clout he needed for his next daring venture. From 1973 to 1974 he began writing the screenplay for Star Wars (1977). He was inspired to make this movie from Flash Gordon and the Planet of the Apes films. In 1975 he established ILM (Industrial Light & Magic) to produce the visual effects needed for the movie. Another company called Sprocket Systems was established to edit and mix Star Wars and later becomes known as Skywalker Sound. His movie was turned down by several studios until Twentieth Century Fox gave him a chance. Lucas agreed to forgo his directing salary in exchange for 40% of the film's box-office take and all merchandising rights. The movie went on to break all box office records and earned seven Academy Awards. It redefined the term "blockbuster". The rest is history. Lucas made the other Star Wars films and along with 'Steven Spielberg' created the Indiana Jones series which made box office records of their own. From 1980 to 1985 Lucas was busy with the construction of Skywalker Ranch, built to accommodate the creative, technical, and administrative needs of Lucasfilm. Lucas also revloutionized movie theaters with the THX System which was created to maintain the highest quality standards in motion picture viewing. He went on to make several more movies that have created major breakthroughs in film making. He is chairman of the board of The George Lucas Educational Foundation. In 1992 George Lucas was honored with the Irving G. Thalberg Award by the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for his lifetime achievement.

IMDb Mini Biography By: Sujit R. Varma <>

Spouse
Marcia Lucas
(22 February 1969 - 1983) (divorced)

Trade Mark
Letters/numbers THX-1138 (name of his first "real" movie) appears in many films: The licence plate number on Milner's deuce coupe in American Graffiti (1973) was THX 138. A battle droid who captures Jar Jar Binks and the Gungans has the number 1138 written on his back. In Star Wars (1977), Luke Skywalker said (with reference to Chewbacca) "Prisoner transfer from cell block 1138." In Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980), General Rieekan says, "Send Rogues ten and eleven (11) to station three-eight (38)."
His films usually feature a battle scene which takes place around a large shaft or pit.
Characters he has created often have "a bad feeling about this" (as in all of the Star Wars movies and in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008))
Stunning visual effects sequences, provided by Lucas's own special effects company, ILM.
Abstract and innovative sound design (THX 1138 (1971), Star Wars (1977)).
According to Lucas, one of the themes in all of his films is man's relationship to machines and technology - either controlling them, or being controlled by them.
High-energy action scenes using fast-paced montage (Includes all films in the Star Wars and Indiana Jones series).
Frequently uses the famous "Wilhelm Scream" sound effect in his films. This sound effect has been used in dozens of movies.

Trivia
Three adopted children: Amanda Lucas (aka Amanda Lucas, b. 1981), Katie Lucas (b. 1988), and Jett Lucas(b. 1993).
Graduated from USC's school of cinema (1962)
Shortly before graduating high school, he was involved in a high speed car accident that left him hospitalized and near death
Lucas provided all the funding for Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980), Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983) and Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999).
For 2nd consecutive year, ranked No. 4 on Entertainment Weekly's annual list of "101 Most Powerful People in Entertainment." Ranked just ahead of Steven Spielberg and just behind the power couple that runs Time Warner Turner media empire.
Sits on USC School of Cinema-Television's Board of Councilors.
In the 2001 edition of the Forbes' "400 Richest People In America", it is reported that Lucas' fortune is $3 billion.
He is a diabetic.
He has created the image of always being on the cutting edge of technology. However, when he writes, he does it in longhand in a loose leaf binder rather than on a word processor.
He was so impressed with relatively unknown stage actor James Wheaton that he cast him over studio objections in the voiceover role of "OMM" in THX 1138 (1971). The studio wanted Orson Welles to play the role.
His script for Star Wars (1977) was turned down by every major Hollywood studio, the reason being that no one would want to see it. In a last ditch attempt, Lucas approached 20th Century Fox who decided to go ahead with the script even though they were convinced it would flop. Star Wars ended up becoming the highest grossing movie ever released at that time. It still ranks as one of the highest grossing movies ever made to this day.
Sold Lucasfilm's Computer Graphics Division to Apple Computer co-founder Steve Jobs, and it later became Pixar Animation Studio.
His name backwards is Egroeg Sacul. This name is also used in the Disney theme park ride Star Tours (1987).
Rewrote the ending of Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) to tighten it up due to the fact that the scene would have been too busy. It originally ended with the mine-car chase that was later added to Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984).
Conceived Indiana Jones while on vacation with his friend Steven Spielberg in Hawaii. Lucas decided to produce while Spielberg would direct.
Had a long romantic involvement with Linda Ronstadt.
With THX 1138 (1971) and Star Wars (1977), Lucas re-invented the way sound was used in films. Using it in both a linear and abstract way, to tell the story, he pushed sound design to the forefront of the filmmaking process.
Refuses to put "critics quotes" on his movie posters. Something that infuriates many critic societies.
Biography in: John Wakeman, editor. "World Film Directors, Volume Two, 1945-1985". Pages 605-610. New York: The H.W. Wilson Company, 1988.
He based the character of Han Solo on his friend Francis Ford Coppola.
He originally wanted his friend Steven Spielberg to direct Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983), but his dispute with the Director's Guild barred him from doing so. He settled for director Richard Marquand instead.
Became so stressed during the filming of the original Star Wars (1977) that he checked himself into a hospital, where he was diagnosed with hyper-tension.
Said that Alec Guinness was very helpful to him during the filming of the original Star Wars (1977) even to the point of getting the other actors to work more seriously.
Disowned Howard the Duck (1986) after the film's release.
When he began his apprenticeship at Warner Brothers, what he wanted to see most was the Animation Department. He claims that the day he arrived on the lot was the very day the Animation Department was closed down.
Despite a reputation as Hollywood blockbusters, all of the Star Wars films are actually independent films, with the exception of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. The only way he could get the required funding to make the film was to apply for studio funding. With the success of the film and its merchandising, Lucas no longer needed to go to the studios. For Episodes V and VI, he took out bank loans, which he paid off on each films' earnings. For the Prequel Trilogy, he no longer needed bank loans, having made enough money to fund each film out of his own personal savings.
He made what was at the time an unusual deal for the film, Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981). Paramount financed the film's entire $20 million budget. In exchange, Lucas would own over 40% of the film and collect almost half of the profits after the studio a grossed a certain amount. It turned out to be a very lucrative deal for Lucas. Paramount executive Michael Eisner said that he felt the script for the film was the best he had ever read.
Won the American Film Institute's Life Time Achievement Award.


His favorite stage of filmmaking is editing the film together.
His nickname in high school was Luke. This later became the name of the hero of his original Star Wars trilogy, Luke Skywalker.
He originally wanted to do a film adaptation of Flash Gordon, but he could not obtain the rights, so he created Star Wars instead, which was in a similar vein to Flash Gordon.
Used the 1927 U.F.A. film "Metropolis" as guidelines for some of his Star Wars characters - the "robotic man" for "C3PO" and the "robots creator" as "Anakin Skywalker." Both the creator and Anakin lost a hand. The "robotic man's creator" loses his hand while building the robot.
Became rich almost overnight due to him keeping the rights to Star Wars and not selling them outright to Twentieth Century Fox.
In the 2005 edition of Forbes' "400 Richest People in America" list, his net worth is estimated at $3.5 billion. He and good friend Steven Spielberg are the only filmmakers on the list.
Plans to reissue all of the Star Wars movies in 3-D versions using the Dimensionalization process by ILM. The process was first used in Chicken Little (2005).
Had a dog named 'Indiana' which not only inspired the Indiana Jones character, but Chewbacca from Star Wars was also modelled around the way the dog looked.
He received a medal from US president George Bush for outstanding achievement in improvements in technology in movies made by his special effects company ILM
"Star Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope" (1977) is ranked #39 on the American Film Institute's 100 Most Inspiring Movies of All Time.
Grand marshal, Tournament of Roses parade [2007]
He, his mentor Francis Ford Coppola, and friend Steven Spielberg presented Martin Scorsese with his first ever Oscar for Best Director for The Departed (2006).
Is a fan of "Doctor Who" (1963).
Skywalker Ranch, Lucas' film production facility, covers an area of some 3,000 acres in Northern California's Marin County hills. The precise address is: 5858 Lucas Valley Road, Nicasio, CA, 94946. The facility employs around 200 personnel, is home to a baseball field, a vineyard, 3 restaurants and a fire station, not to mention the array of hi-tech amenities. The fact that Skywalker Ranch is located off Lucas Valley Road is pure coincidence.
Graduated from Modesto's Roosevelt Junior High school in 1958.
Rankings on Premiere's annual Power 100 List - 2002: #14; 2003: #10; 2004: #16; 2005: #11.
Quit the DGA after some disputes over the opening credits in Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980). The movie had no opening credits and the DGA fined Lucas with $250.000, which he paid, and eventually quit.

Personal Quotes
A special effect is a tool, a means of telling a story. A special effect without a story is a pretty boring thing.
The sound and music are 50% of the entertainment in a movie.
The script is what you've dreamed up-this is what it should be. The film is what you end up with.
I am simply trying to struggle through life; trying to do God's bidding.
On the making of Star Wars (1977): "When you're directing, you have to get up at four thirty [A.M], have breakfast at five, leave the hotel at six, drive an hour to location, start shooting at eight, and finish shooting around six. Then you wrap, go to your office, and set up the next day's work. You get back to the hotel about eight or nine, hopefully get a bite to eat, then you go to your room and figure out your homework, how you're going to shoot the next day's scenes, then you go to sleep. The next morning it starts all over again."
I took over control of the merchandising not because I thought it was going to make me rich, but because I wanted to control it. I wanted to make a stand for social, safety, and quality reasons. I didn't want someone using the name 'Star Wars' on a piece of junk.
The object is to try to get the (movie) system to work for you, instead of against you. And the only way you can do it is through success, I'm afraid.
Making a film is like putting out a fire with sieve. There are so many elements, and it gets so complicated.
To be renewed is everything. What more could one ask for than to have one's youth back again?
"He is his own man, he is not a son anymore, he is an equal." - describing Luke Skywalker after his duel with Darth Vader in Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980).
I wanted to make abstract films that are emotional, and I still do.
"He is one of the best. He's outwitted the empire on numerous occaisons, and he has made some very fast deals. One of his problems is that he gambles quite heavily and that's where he loses most of his money. He's tough and sharp, but never manages to scrape together enough to get any power...He's slightly self-destructive and he sort of enjoys being on the brink of disaster...You might meet him and he may be worth ten billion dollars and the next time you meet him he's in debt up to his ears." - Describing Han Solo
It's hard work making movies. It's like being a doctor:you work long hours, very hard hours, and it's emotional, tense work. If you don't really love it, then it ain't worth it.
From being a struggling, starving filmmaker to being incredibly successful in a period of a couple of years is quite a powerful experience, and not necessarily a good one.
I've had a very volatile relationship with Francis (Ford Coppola). It's on both sides, like we were married and we got divorced. It's as close a relationship as I've had with anybody.
If you can tune into the fantasy life of an 11-year-old girl, you can make a fortune in this business.
Regarding Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005): "Right or wrong this is my movie, this is my decision, and this is my creative vision, and if people don't like it, they don't have to see it."
I am very concerned about our national heritage, and I am very concerned that films that I watched when I was young and the films that I watched throughout my life are preserved, so that my children can see them.
On Gangs of New York (2002): We showed a print of it at the Skywalker Ranch. I was amazed by what he (Scorsese) did with it and where he went. It was terrific.
The parallels between what we did in Vietnam and what we're doing in Iraq now are unbelievable.
I've worked hard enough and earned enough to fail for the rest of my life. And I'm gonna do it!! - About making art films that he admits no one will want to see.
When asked what it was like to watch Steven Spielberg direct: It's like watching Albert Einstein or Thomas Edison. It's like watching Michael Jordan or Tiger Woods, any genius you can name.
Part of the reason I went back to tell the prequel, of how Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader, is that it's an interesting story and a fun one to tell. Because it is the story of how a good person turns bad.
"I am very concerned about our national heritage, and I am very concerned that the films that I watched when I was young and the films that I watched throughout my life are preserved, so that my children can see them." - expressing concern over the Colorization of black & white films
"Thank you. Thank you all. This is a very, very important award for me. Star Wars, oddly enough, doesn't really get that many awards. I'm not a big favorite with the critics, but who listens to them? I'm not a big industry favorite either, but of course they are a bunch of studio executives. The most important people for any filmmaker, the reason that I make films, is for you! The audience rules! Thank you. Thank you very much!" - while receiving the Best Movie award for Revenge Of The Sith at the Peoples Choice Awards.


With film, if you get a million people to see your movie on the first weekend, you've made about $5 million. That basically will not end up on the top-10 chart. You have to get 10 million people on the first weekend. And if you don't do it in two days, you're basically out of the theaters and into the DVD market. There's just an ecology there. If you're a mouse, don't expect to kill a lion, because it ain't gonna happen. If you want to have that kind of power, it's better to be a lion, because the mice are fine - you can have a life and everything - but the lions are the ones out there prowling and scaring the hell out of everybody.
Yeah, I have a few dollars, but when you're getting up to the point where the average movie costs $80 million, anything under $20 million is pretty cheap. Anything under $10 million is almost impossible. And anything under $5 million is Roger Corman.
[on film critics] "There are a few critics overseas, and occasionally a critic will write an astute analysis of the movie. There is value in reading critics that actually have something intelligent to say, but the journalistic community lives in a world of sound bites and literary commerce: selling newspapers, selling books, and they do that simply by trashing things. They don't criticize or analyze them. They simply trash them for the sake of a headline, or to shock people to get them to buy whatever it is they're selling."
[on critics] "You have to have a thick enough skin to cope with the criticism. I'm very self-critical and I have a lot of friends that I trust who are film directors and writers and people in my profession. I trust them to be extremely critical but I trust their opinion; their opinion is thoughtful, knowledgeable. I also know them personally so I know the psychological slant they are putting on it. I know what their tastes are and I can say, "Well that's great for them but that's not great for me." Technical criticism is extremely helpful but you are only going to get that from your peers. "
None of the films I've done was designed for a mass audience, except for Indiana Jones. Nobody in their right mind thought American Graffiti or Star Wars would work.
[About THX-1138] My first film was a parable about the way we are living our lives today. I realize it was a rather depressing statement. People really weren't interested in a depressing statement. Being a pessimist doesn't seem to accomplish anything.
[About the origin of Chewbacca] There was a dog in American Graffiti, but I didn't use Indiana for the part because it was a night scene and I wanted a white dog. My wife was very upset that I didn't put my own dog in the movie; so I said I'd put Indiana's spirit in the next one. And that's how the Wookiee came into being.
[About the upcoming 2008 film, "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull"] When you do a movie like this, a sequel that's very, very anticipated, people anticipate ultimately that it's going to be the Second Coming. And it's not. It's just a movie. Just like the other movies. You probably have fond memories of the other movies. But if you went back and looked at them, they might not hold up the same way your memory holds up... You're not going to get a lot of accolades... All you can do is lose.
Honestly, everyone feels you have to talk about yourself all the time. They say I'm introverted because I don't give many interviews. But I don't give many interviews because I don't make many films.
On the influence of Star Wars on Hollywood films: People say my movies are just like Hollywood movies. And I say, "I can't help it if Hollywood copies."

Salary
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)
$400,000,000
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
$2,500,000 + net profits
Body Heat (1981)
$250,000 + 5% of profits
Star Wars (1977)
$200,000 + 40% of the net profits
American Graffiti (1973)
$50,000 + 15% of gross
THX 1138 (1971)
$15,000
The Rain People (1969)
$3,000
Finian's Rainbow (1968)
$3,000


Special thank for credit link; http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000184/

Biography for Steven Spielberg

Date of Birth18 December 1946, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
Birth NameSteven Allan Spielberg
Height5' 7½" (1.71 m)
Mini Biography
Undoubtedly one of the most influential film personalities in the history of film, Steven Spielberg is perhaps Hollywood's best known director and one of the wealthiest filmmakers in the world. Spielberg has countless big-grossing, critically acclaimed credits to his name, as producer, director and writer. He was born in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1946. He went to California State University Long Beach, but dropped out to pursue his entertainment career. He gained notoriety as an uncredited assistant editor on the classic western "Wagon Train" (1957). Among his early directing efforts were Battle Squad (1961), which combined World War II footage with footage of an airplane on the ground that he makes you believe is moving. He also directed Escape to Nowhere (1961), which featured children as World War Two soldiers, including his sister Anne Spielberg, and The Last Gun (1959), a western. All of these were short films. The next couple of years, Spielberg directed a couple of movies that would portend his future career in movies. In 1964, he directed Firelight (1964), a movie about aliens invading a small town. In 1967, he directed Slipstream (1967), which was unfinished. However, in 1968, he directed Amblin' (1968), which featured the desert prominently, and not the first of his movies in which the desert would feature so prominently. Amblin' also became the name of his production company, which turned out such classics as E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982). Spielberg had a unique and classic early directing project, Duel (1971) (TV), with Dennis Weaver. In the early 1970s, Spielberg was working on TV, directing among others such series as Rod Serling's "Night Gallery" (1970), "Marcus Welby, M.D." (1969) and Columbo: Murder by the Book (1971) (TV). All of his work in television and short films, as well as his directing projects, were just a hint of the wellspring of talent that would dazzle audiences all over the world.

Spielberg's first major directorial effort was The Sugarland Express (1974), with Goldie Hawn, a film that marked him as a rising star. It was his next effort, however, that made him an international superstar among directors: Jaws (1975). This classic shark attack tale started the tradition of the summer blockbuster or, at least, he was credited with starting the tradition. His next film was the classic Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), a unique and original UFO story that remains a classic. In 1978, Spielberg produced his first film, the forgettable I Wanna Hold Your Hand (1978), and followed that effort with Used Cars (1980), a critically acclaimed, but mostly forgotten, Kurt Russell\Jack Warden comedy about devious used-car dealers. Spielberg hit gold yet one more time with Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), with Harrison Ford taking the part of Indiana Jones. Spielberg produced and directed two films in 1982. The first was Poltergeist (1982), but the highest-grossing movie of all time up to that point was the alien story E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982). Spielberg also helped pioneer the practice of product placement. The concept, while not uncommon, was still relatively low-key when Spielberg raised the practice to almost an art form with his famous (or infamous) placement of Reece's Pieces in "E.T." Spielberg was also one of the pioneers of the big-grossing special-effects movies, like "E.T." and "Close Encounters", where a very strong emphasis on special effects was placed for the first time on such a huge scale. In 1984, Spielberg followed up "Raiders" with Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984), which was a commercial success but did not receive the critical acclaim of its predecessor. As a producer, Spielberg took on many projects in the 1980s, such as The Goonies (1985), and was the brains behind the little monsters in Gremlins (1984). He also produced the cartoon An American Tail (1986), a quaint little animated classic. His biggest effort as producer in 1985, however, was the blockbuster Back to the Future (1985), which made Michael J. Fox an instant superstar. As director, Spielberg took on the book The Color Purple (1985), with Whoopi Goldberg and Oprah Winfrey, with great success. In the latter half of the 1980s, he also directed Empire of the Sun (1987), a mixed success for the occasionally erratic Spielberg. Success would not escape him for long, though.

The late 1980s found Spielberg's projects at the center of pop-culture yet again. In 1988, he produced the landmark animation/live-action film Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988). The next year proved to be another big one for Spielberg, as he produced and directed Always (1989) as well as Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), and Back to the Future Part II (1989). All three of the films were box-office and critical successes. Also, in 1989, he produced the little known comedy-drama Dad (1989), with Jack Lemmon and Ted Danson, which got mostly mixed results. Spielberg has also had an affinity for animation and has been a strong voice in animation in the 1990s. Aside from producing the landmark "Who Framed Roger Rabbit", he produced the animated series "Tiny Toon Adventures" (1990), "Animaniacs" (1993), "Pinky and the Brain" (1995), "Freakazoid!" (1995), "Pinky, Elmyra & the Brain" (1998), "Family Dog" (1993) and "Toonsylvania" (1998). Spielberg also produced other cartoons such as The Land Before Time (1988), We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story (1993), Casper (1995) (the live action version) as well as the live-action version of The Flintstones (1994), where he was credited as "Steven Spielrock". Spielberg also produced many Roger Rabbit short cartoons, and many Pinky and the Brain, Animaniacs and Tiny Toons specials. Spielberg was very active in the early 1990s, as he directed Hook (1991) and produced such films as the cute fantasy Joe Versus the Volcano (1990) and An American Tail: Fievel Goes West (1991). He also produced the unusual comedy thriller Arachnophobia (1990), Back to the Future Part III (1990) and Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990). While these movies were big successes in their own right, they did not quite bring in the kind of box office or critical acclaim as previous efforts. In 1993, Spielberg directed Jurassic Park (1993), which for a short time held the record as the highest grossing movie of all time, but did not have the universal appeal of his previous efforts. Big box-office spectacles were not his only concern, though. He produced and directed Schindler's List (1993), a stirring film about the Holocaust. He won best director at the Oscars, and also got Best Picture. In the mid-90s, he helped found the production company DreamWorks, which was responsible for many box-office successes.

As a producer, he was very active in the late 90s, responsible for such films as The Mask of Zorro (1998), Men in Black (1997) and Deep Impact (1998). However, it was on the directing front that Spielberg was in top form. He directed and produced the epic Amistad (1997), a spectacular film that was shorted at the Oscars and in release due to the fact that its release date was moved around so much in late 1997. The next year, however, produced what many believe was one of the best films of his career: Saving Private Ryan (1998), a film about World War Two that is spectacular in almost every respect. It was stiffed at the Oscars, losing best picture to Shakespeare in Love (1998).

Spielberg produced a series of films, including Evolution (2001), The Haunting (1999) and Shrek (2001). he also produced two sequels to Jurassic Park (1993), which were financially but not particularly critical successes. In 2001, he produced a mini-series about World War Two that definitely *was* a financial and critical success: "Band of Brothers" (2001), a tale of an infantry company from its parachuting into France during the invasion to the Battle of the Bulge. Also in that year, Spielberg was back in the director's chair for Artificial Intelligence: AI (2001), a movie with a message and a huge budget. It did reasonably at the box office and garnered varied reviews from critics.

Spielberg has been extremely active in films there are many other things he has done as well. He produced the short-lived TV series "SeaQuest DSV" (1993), an anthology series entitled "Amazing Stories" (1985), created the video-game series "Medal of Honor" set during World War Two, and was a starting producer of "ER" (1994). Spielberg, if you haven't noticed, has a great interest in World War Two. He and Tom Hanks collaborated on Shooting War (2000) (TV), a documentary about World War II combat photographers, and he produced a documentary about the Holocaust called A Holocaust szemei (2000). With all of this to Spielberg's credit, it's no wonder that he's looked at as one of the greatest ever figures in entertainment.

IMDb Mini Biography By: http://www.imdb.com/SearchBios?Scott%20msa0510@mail.ecu.edu

Spouse
Kate Capshaw
(12 October 1991 - present) 5 children
Amy Irving
(27 November 1985 - 2 February 1989) (divorced) 1 child
Trade Mark
Uses powerful flashlights in dark scenes (Jurassic Park (1993); The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) and E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982))
Frequently uses music by John Williams.
Often shows shooting stars (Jaws (1975)).
Onscreen performers staring, usually at something off camera.
He often uses images of the sun (Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), The Color Purple (1985), Empire of the Sun (1987), Saving Private Ryan (1998)).
His films often show children in some sort of danger.
Consistent references to World War II.
Frequent references to Disney films, music, or theme parks.
Frequently uses a piano as an element in key scenes (Schindler's List (1993), Saving Private Ryan (1998), Minority Report (2002)).
Important images, or characters, are often seen through the rear-view mirror of a car (Duel (1971) (TV), E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982), Jurassic Park (1993), Schindler's List (1993), Artificial Intelligence: AI (2001)).
Frequently casts Tom Hanks, Richard Dreyfuss, Harrison Ford, Frank Welker and Tom Cruise.
Protagonists in his films often come from families with divorced parents, with fathers portrayed as reluctant, absent, or irresponsible, most notably in _E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)_ (Elliot's mother is divorced and father absent) and Catch Me If You Can (2002) (Frank Abagnale's mother and father split early in the film). This reflects Spielberg's own experience as a youth with his parents breaking up.
A common theme in many of his films is ordinary people who discover something extraordinary - people, places, artifacts, creatures, etc. (Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)).
Since Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), all of his movies have featured visual effects (even those that were undetected) by Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), the F/X house created by his friend George Lucas. The only exception has been The Terminal (2004), which had F/X work by Digital Imageworks.
Is credited for starting the summer blockbuster tradition with 1975's first $100 million megahit, Jaws (1975).

Trivia
Member of Theta Chi Fraternity (Zeta Epsilon Chapter, Long Beach State University).
Is a supporter of the Democratic Party.
Is among the richest individuals in Hollywood.
Received the Germany's Cross of Merit with star for his sensible representation of Germany's history in Schindler's List (1993). [1998]
Jonathan Norman was sentenced to 25 years to life, for stalking Spielberg and threatening to rape him. [June 1998]
Chosen by Entertainment Weekly as the most powerful person in entertainment in 1997. [31 October 1997]
Involved in road accident and treated for an injured shoulder. [23 September 1997]
American Film Institute Life Achievement Award. [1995]
There are seven children in the Capshaw-Spielberg family: Theo Spielberg, who was adopted by Kate Capshaw before their marriage and later adopted by Spielberg, born in 1988, Sasha Spielberg, born on 14 May 1990, Sawyer Spielberg, born on 10 March 1992, their adopted daughter Mikaela George Spielberg, born on 28 February 1996, and Destry Allen Spielberg, born on 1 December 1996. Kate Capshaw's daughter Jessica Capshaw, born in 1976, is from her previous marriage. Steven Spielberg's son Max Spielberg, born in 1985, is from his previous marriage to Amy Irving.
Amy Irving gave birth to his son Max Spielberg on 13 June 1985.
He claims Richard Dreyfuss is his alter-ego.
Attended California State University, Long Beach after being turned down by USC Cinema school twice.
Attended Arcadia High School in Phoenix.
Donated $100,000 to the Democratic Party. [1996]
Awarded second annual John Huston Award for Artists Rights by the Artists Rights Foundation. [1995]
Co-founder (with Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen) of DreamWorks SKG.
He has one of the original Rosebud sleds from Citizen Kane (1941) in his house.
Godfather of Drew Barrymore and Gwyneth Paltrow.
Named Best Director of the 20th Century in an Entertainment Weekly on-line poll, substantially beating out runners-up Alfred Hitchcock and Stanley Kubrick. [September 1999]

Born to Arnold Spielberg, a computer engineer, and Leah Adler, née Posner, a restaurateur and concert pianist.
Received the Distinguished Public Service Award, the U. S. Navy's highest civilian honor, on Veterans Day 1999 for his work on the movie Saving Private Ryan (1998).
Sits on USC School of Cinema-Television's Board of Councilors.
When he was a child, he sneaked onto the lot of Universal Studios during a tour and befriended an editor who showed him a few things about filmmaking.
Gwyneth Paltrow calls him Uncle Morty.
During filming of their episode of "Night Gallery" (1970), Spielberg gave Joan Crawford the gift of a single red rose in a Pepsi bottle. During an on-set conversation with Detroit Free Press reporter Shirley Eder, Crawford pointed out Spielberg and said, "Go interview that kid, because he's going to be the biggest director of all time!" Crawford and Spielberg remained good friends until her death in 1977.
Awarded the honor of Knight of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) in New Years Honours 2001 by Queen Elizabeth II for his contribution to the British film industry. As a non-Commonwealth citizen, he will not be able to use the title. [December 2000]
States that the work of David Lean has had a profound effect on his career.
Spent five months developing the script for Rain Man (1988) with Ronald Bass, but had to commit to his handshake deal to direct Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989). Spielberg gave all of his notes to Barry Levinson.
Almost directed Big (1988) with Tom Hanks starring, but didn't want to steal the thunder of his sister, Anne Spielberg, who co-wrote the script.
Personally offered the American Beauty (1999) script to Sam Mendes, who ended up winning the Academy Award for Best Director on the film, which was Mendes's debut feature.
Flew Will Smith to his Hamptons home via helicopter to offer him the part in Men in Black (1997).
Often casts new actors based on their performances in other works. Rarely does auditions for major roles.
Was asked to approve use of the theme music from Jaws (1975) for Swingers (1996). When he saw a cut of the film, he saw Vince Vaughn, whom he chose to play Nick Van Owen in The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997).
He is an Eagle Scout and was on an advisory board for the Boy Scouts of America. He left this position because he did not agree with the fact that the Boy Scouts of America discriminated against homosexuals.
Was directing a childbirth scene when he received a call that Amy Irving was giving birth to their son Max Spielberg.
According to the 2001 issue of Forbes' "400 Richest People In America," Spielberg's fortune is $2.1 billion.
Born at 6:16 PM EST.

Was irked when footage from his movie Duel (1971) (TV) was used as stock footage in an episode of "The Incredible Hulk" (1978). But since Universal Studios owned the rights to both the The Incredible Hulk series and the film of Duel, taking legal action was not possible. However, he subsequently updated his contracts to include a clause that would protect his future material from being used as stock footage.
On May 31, 2002, graduated from California State University Long Beach with a bachelor's degree in film and electronic arts. He had dropped out of college in 1968 to concentrate on his career, but during the 2000s fulfilled his remaining graduation requirements via independent projects, which required correspondence courses and several term papers. For Spielberg, the school waived its requirement that all senior film majors must submit a completed 12-minute short film, accepting Schindler's List (1993) in its place. He donned cap and gown and marched in the commencement ceremony with his fellow graduates.
Received honorary doctor of humane letters degree from Yale University (27 May 2002).
When Spielberg received his undergraduate degree (about 35 years after he had first entered college), the orchestra played the theme from the "Indiana Jones" series of films as he walked up to and across the stage.
Owns the rights to the Stephen King novel "The Talisman". As of 2002, the book has not been made into a film. He is now producing this film for release in 2007.
His father served in World War II in South East Asian Front.
Michael Kahn has edited all of Spielberg's theatrical features since Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), their first collaboration. Kahn did not, however, edit E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) because he was editing Poltergeist (1982). E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) was edited by Carol Littleton.
According to the 2002 edition of Forbes' "400 Richest People in America," his fortune is estimated at $2.2 billion, a $100 million improvement over the 2001 estimate.
Ranked #1 in Premiere's 2003 annual Hollywood Power List. It is the third time he received the top ranking (the others being in 1994 & 1995). He had ranked #6 in 2002.
In Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), the humans and aliens use music and computers to communicate. Spielberg's father was a computer scientist and his mother was a musician. This fact was only recently pointed out to him on "Inside the Actors Studio" (1994) by host James Lipton and he was unsurprisingly delighted when he realised the connection.
Is set to produce a mini-series for HBO that will set out to debunk the legend of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. The mini-series, written by David Leland, will focus on the historical reality of life in 500 A.D., when Arthur was thought to be King and will have no round table, Merlin, Lancelot, Excalibur, or knights. Camelot itself will be shown to have been a simple Roman fort and Arthur, named Artos in the film, will be portrayed as a humble blacksmith whose forging skills win him the English throne. It was expected to air sometime in 2004. [2003]
The first film he directed that was not scored by John Williams was The Color Purple (1985), which was scored by Quincy Jones.
Was voted the 11th Greatest Director of all time by Entertainment Weekly.

In 1983, he lost the Best Picture Oscar to Gandhi (1982), directed by Richard Attenborough. He later went on to direct five cast members, as well as Attenborough, in his later movies: Amrish Puri in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984); Roshan Seth in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984); Richard Attenborough in Jurassic Park (1993); Ben Kingsley in Schindler's List (1993), Nigel Hawthorne in Amistad (1997) and Martin Sheen in Catch Me If You Can (2002).
Has worked with four actors from the Hannibal Lecter film series, in reverse order to the order in which the Lecter films came out. The first one he worked with was Ralph Fiennes in Schindler's List (1993), who went on to play Francis Dollarhyde in Red Dragon (2002). His next film was The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997), with Julianne Moore, who played Clarice Starling in the third Lecter film, Hannibal (2001). After this, he made Amistad (1997), with Anthony Hopkins, who began playing Hannibal Lecter in the second film, The Silence of the Lambs (1991). After this he made Saving Private Ryan (1998), which featured Dennis Farina, who played Jack Crawford in the original Lecter film, Manhunter (1986).
When asked what are the films he's made he would like to be remembered for, he said E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) and Schindler's List (1993).
Although close friend, George Lucas, has vowed to only shoot future movies digitally, Spielberg has been the most vocal film-maker of the opposing view: to continue shooting all of his movies on film. Other directors siding with Spielberg include Martin Scorsese and Oliver Stone.
According to his interview on the series "Inside the Actors Studio" (1994), his favorite curse word is "Rats!"
To date, has never provided a director's commentary on any of his films DVDs. [2004]
In the 2004 edition of Forbes' "400 Richest People in America", his net worth is estimated at $2.6 billion, his highest showing yet. The only filmmaker ahead of him is his good friend George Lucas, whose worth is estimated at $3 billion.
Described One Froggy Evening (1955) as "the most perfect cartoon ever made".
His longtime friend George Lucas originally wanted him to direct the third entry of the original Star Wars trilogy, Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983) and Spielberg was eager to do so, but Lucas was unsuccessful in getting him the job because of his dispute with the Director's Guild at the time.
When he used product placement in E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982), he used Reese's Pieces only because M & M's parent company didn't want their product associated with aliens and UFOs.
Directed nine actors in Oscar-nominated performances: Liam Neeson; Ralph Fiennes; Anthony Hopkins; Tom Hanks; Melinda Dillon; Whoopi Goldberg; Oprah Winfrey; Margaret Avery and Christopher Walken.
Wrote a letter to Polish writer/director Mira Hamermesh in appreciation of one of her films.
Graduated from Saratoga High School in Saratoga, California.
Ranked #2 on Premiere's 2005 Power 50 List, behind only Peter Jackson. Had the same ranking in 2004, behind Pixar bosses John Lasseter and Steve Jobs.
Though he has directed 9 actors in Oscar-nominated performances, to date he has never directed an Oscar-winning performance.
Ranked #1 in Empire (UK) magazine's "The Greatest directors ever!" (2005).

Has been Honorary Member of the Society of Operating Cameramen (SOC) since 1995 and received the Governors Award "for his contributions in the advancement of the use of the motion picture camera".
He has always been very protective of his name. If his company is working on a film and he feels it is not up to his standards, he will remove his name as a producer.
Aside from producing The Goonies (1985), he also directed at least one scene in the movie.
In the 2005 edition of Forbes' "400 Richest People in America", his net worth is estimated at $2.7 billion, a $100 million improvement over 2004 (due mostly to his share of the DreamWorks Animation public stock offering). He, and good friend George Lucas (net worth: $3.5 billion) are the only filmmakers on the list.
In December, he, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen sold DreamWorks SKG to Paramount Pictures Corporation for $1.6 billion.
Once screened Lawrence of Arabia (1962) with director David Lean, who gave Spielberg a "live director's commentary", as Spielberg put it. Spielberg said that it was one of the best moments of his life, learning from a true master. Consequently, Spielberg stated that it helped him make better pictures and that commentary directly influenced every movie he has made since.
His ten favourite films of all time are: Fantasia (1940); Citizen Kane (1941); A Guy Named Joe (1943); It's a Wonderful Life (1946); The War of the Worlds (1953); Psycho (1960); Lawrence of Arabia (1962); 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968); The Godfather (1972) and Nuit américaine, La (1973).
Has an estimated fortune of $2.8 billion ($2,800,000,000), according to the "Los Angeles Business Journal". The size of his fortune him the 14th richest person in the Los Angeles area and likely the wealthiest producer-director in the world (with only his friend George Lucas coming close).
His iconic character "E.T." from E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) is ranked #26 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time.
Is the most represented filmmaker on the American Film Institute's 100 Most Inspiring Movies of All Time, with five films on the list and three in the top ten. They are: Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) at #58; The Color Purple (1985) at #51; Saving Private Ryan (1998) at #10; E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) at #6 and Schindler's List (1993) at #3.
Ranked #6 in the Power Rankings and #1 in the Money Rankings on Forbes' 2006 Celebrity 100 List, with earnings of $332 million. Most of those earnings were from the 2005 sale of DreamWorks to Paramount Pictures.
Ranked #4 on Premiere's 2006 "Power 50" list. Had ranked #2 in 2005.
Interviewed in "Directors Close Up: Interviews with Directors Nominated for Best Film by the Directors Guild of America", ed. by Jeremy Kagan, Scarecrow Press, 2006.
In 1996, he purchased Clark Gable's Oscar (which he won for It Happened One Night (1934)) to protect it from further commercial exploitation and gave it back to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, commenting that he could think of "no better sanctuary for Gable's only Oscar than the Motion Picture Academy".
On 14 December 2002 he bought Bette Davis' Oscar, which she won for Dangerous (1935), at a Sotheby's auction in New York to return it to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The statuette was among the memorabilia sold by the Planet Hollywood restaurant chain, which has emerged from bankruptcy protection.

On 19 July 2001 he purchased Bette Davis' Oscar statuette, which she won for Jezebel (1938), at a Christie's auction and returned it to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Early in his career, while working for Universal Studios, he was asked to give a tour to a special guest who had just sold the film rights to one of his books to the studio. That guest was Michael Crichton, who later worked with Spielberg on Jurassic Park (1993).
Both live-action adaptations of "The Incredible Hulk" have references to his films. The first used stock footage from Duel (1971) (TV). In the 2003 film by Ang Lee (Hulk (2003)), the impact of the Hulk hitting the ground causes ripples to form in nearby bodies of water, just as the Tyrannosaur does in Jurassic Park (1993).
Though he frequently works with Tom Hanks, Hanks is not, as of 2006, involved in Spielberg's biopic about Abraham Lincoln, even though he is descended from the family of Lincoln's mother, Nancy Hanks.
Owns one of the largest gun collections on the East Coast. He shoots, but only privately.
Godfather of Gwyneth Paltrow.
Awarded Kennedy Center Honors in 2006, with Dolly Parton, Smokey Robinson, Zubin Mehta, and Andrew Lloyd Webber.
According to Teri Garr, Spielberg told her on a set that one of his favorite movies is Viva Las Vegas (1964), starring Elvis Presley.
Is of Hungarian descent, which explains his surname, coming from the Austrian city where his ancestors lived.
Considered directing Memoirs of a Geisha (2005).
He, George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola presented Martin Scorsese with his first ever award for Best Director, for The Departed (2006).
Is a huge fan of the actors Steve Martin, Bill Murray and Robin Williams. He is also proud to admit they are good friends of his.
Was offered the opportunity to direct California Split (1974), but job went to Robert Altman.
Was originally set to direct Cape Fear (1991). He later recommended Martin Scorsese for the job and personally called the director, letting him know that this was a commercial film that had potential to be a hit, which would exercise more power for Scorcese to make his films.
Attended the funeral of Princess Diana with friends Richard Attenborough, Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman and Tom Hanks. [September 6, 1997]
Went to the same college, CSULB as Frank Miranda.
Was originally in talks to direct The Mask of Zorro (1998) but later only produced it.
Burt Reynolds film "White Lightning" (1973) was originally slated to be Spielberg's first theatrical feature and he spent months on pre-production.
Robbie Williams mentions him in his song "I Will Talk and Hollywood Will Listen".
2007- Ranked #2 on EW's The 50 Smartest People in Hollywood.
Is a fan of "Doctor Who" (1963).
In 2007, Forbes estimated his earnings for the year 2006 to be $110 million.
Is a fan of video games and says that their development is intriguing to him.
His dog Elmer starred in several of his films including Jaws (1975) and Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977).

Owns homes in Pacific Palisades, California; New York City; East Hampton, New York; and Naples, Florida.
Pulled out of his role as advisor to the 2008 Beijing Olympics, reacting to the Chinese government's inaction over the genocide in Darfur (February 2008).
Is a fan of the works of Carl Barks, and cites them as a big inspiration on his storytelling.
Dated actress Valerie Bertinelli in the late '70s.
Turned down the opportunity to direct Deep Impact (1998) and The Mask of Zorro (1998) to work on Saving Private Ryan (1998).
Served on the Board for the Institute for the Study of Women in Men in Society for USC. Hosted events for the intellectual society at his screening room and offices on the Universal lot in the late 1980s.

Personal Quotes
I think that the Internet is going to effect the most profound change on the entertainment industries combined. And we're all gonna be tuning into the most popular Internet show in the world, which will be coming from some place in Des Moines. We're all gonna lose our jobs. We're all gonna be on the Internet trying to find an audience.
Once a month the sky falls on my head, I come to and I see another movie I want to make.
[on winning the Best Director Oscar for Saving Private Ryan (1998)]: Am I allowed to say I really wanted this?
Before I go off and direct a movie I always look at 4 films. They tend to be: "Seven Samurai" (Shichinin no samurai (1954)); Lawrence of Arabia (1962); It's a Wonderful Life (1946) and The Searchers (1956).
[On friend Joan Crawford]: She is five feet four, but she looks six feet on the screen. In a two-shot with anyone, even Gable, (Clark Gable), your eyes fix on her. She is imperious, yet with a childlike sparkle. She is haughty, yet tender. She has no great range as an actress, yet within the range she can perform better than any of her contemporaries.
I have made almost as many films in England as I have in America. I will come back to England again and again.
I would love to see the British film industry get back on its feet again.
I don't drink coffee. I've never had a cup of coffee in my entire life. That's something you probably don't know about me. I've hated the taste since I was a kid.
I dream for a living.
I'd rather direct than produce. Any day. And twice on Sunday.
[on the film Poltergeist (1982)]: Poltergeist is the darker side of my nature, it's me when I was scaring my younger sisters half to death. In Poltergeist, I wanted to terrify and I also wanted to amuse - I tried to mix the laughs and screams together.
With Star Wars (1977), George (George Lucas) put the butter back into the popcorn.
I always like to think of the audience when I am directing. Because I am the audience.
The older I get, the more I look at movies as a moving miracle.

[When asked about being conflicted whether to make more artistic films, or more commercial films]: All the time, but when you have a story that is very commercial and simple, you have to find the art. You have to take the other elements of the film and make them as good as possible, and doing that will uplift the film.
Godzilla (Godzilla, King of the Monsters! (1956)) was the most masterful of all dinosaur movies because it made you believe it was really happening.
I don't work weekends. Weekends are for my kids. And I have dinner at home every night when I'm not physically directing a movie - I get home by six. I put the kids to bed and tell them stories and take them to school the next morning. I work basically from 9.30 to 5.30 and I'm strict about that.
I think every film I make that puts characters in jeopardy is me purging my own fears, sadly only to re-engage with them shortly after the release of the picture. I'll never make enough films to purge them all.
I'm as guilty as anyone, because I helped to herald the digital era with _Jurassic Park (1993)). But the danger is that it can be abused to the point where nothing is eye-popping any more. The difference between making Jaws (1975) 31 years ago and War of the Worlds (2005) is that today, anything I can imagine, I can realize on film. Then, when my mechanical shark was being repaired and I had to shoot something, I had to make the water scary. I relied on the audience's imagination, aided by where I put the camera. Today, it would be a digital shark. It would cost a hell of a lot more, but never break down. As a result, I probably would have used it four times as much, which would have made the film four times less scary. Jaws is scary because of what you don't see, not because of what you do. We need to bring the audience back into partnership with storytelling.
Being a movie-maker means you get to live many, many lifetimes. It's the same reason audiences go to movies, I think. When my daughter Sasha (Sasha Spielberg) was 5 years old, we would be watching something on TV and she'd point to a character on screen and say, "Daddy, that's me." Ten minutes later a new character would come on screen and she'd say, "No, Daddy. That's me." Throughout the movie she would pick different people to become. I think that's what we all do. We just don't say it as sweetly.
After a scary movie about the world almost ending, we can walk into the sunlight and say, "Wow, everything's still here. I'm OK!" We like to tease ourselves. Human beings have a need to get close to the edge and, when filmmakers or writers can take them to the edge, it feels like a dream where you're falling, but you wake up just before you hit the ground.
What I'm saying is that I believe in showmanship.
Times have changed. It's like when the first 747 landed at Los Angeles international airport: everybody thought flying through the sky was the most greatest marvel they had ever seen - floating through the air, seemingly in slow motion. Today we never even look at 747s. They're a dime a dozen and it's that way with the blockbuster. If there was one blockbuster every three years, it meant a lot more than when you have a blockbuster every three weeks. It's the job of each of these studios to market these movies as the must-see movie of the year, so they go after blockbuster status by creating a grand illusion. Sometimes they've got a real engine behind that grand illusion, meaning the movie is damned good and the audience will say they got their money's worth. Other times, the audience comes on the promise of seeing something they've never ever seen before and it becomes just another sci-fi action yarn and they feel disappointed.

I've learned that we can do just about anything under the sun with computers. So the question becomes, should we? Or, should we remind ourselves, as filmmakers, to be careful and remember that there is nothing more important than how a story is told? If storytelling becomes a byproduct of the digital revolution, then the medium itself is corrupted. On the other hand, if digital tools are simply a way to enhance a conventional story, then in that case, they can make telling that story easier. It's easier and more practical to show 20,000 soldiers in the Crimean War using computers, obviously. So, that's fine. But now, we have technology that can replace actors, or an entire performance in an already existing movie. We could cut out Humphrey Bogart and replace him with Vin Diesel, if somebody wanted. Who would want to? Well, there might be people who would. That's why we have to be careful. Movies reflect our cultural heritage from the period in time in which they were made. Therefore, altering them can destroy that historical perspective. That's disrespectful of history, which is a big issue for me. The situation is like walking a tightrope - we have to move forward, but we have to be careful.
I had dinner with the founder of Yahoo! about seven years ago in Japan. I had my son, who is now sixteen, he was much younger then. I took him to a tea house. We had Geishas, they were serving us tea and I had a little soki and we were talking. And he kept sitting across from me and he kept saying "Yahoo! You have to know what Yahoo!"... and he was going crazy over this thing called Yahoo! And I thought he was actually out of his brain. You know, because he kept talking about Yahoo! and I thought he was trying to say "Yahoo!" And he was, but I had no idea what he was building. And he was so thrilled with what was happening in his world. And this was way beyond my world at that time. And how I look back. I thought: God if I could have been a little bit nicer to that guy, he might have called me up and offered me a chance to invest early. (2002).
During an interview with Roger Ebert regarding his film Munich (2005) and the response from Jewish critics that claim it depicts Israeli and Palestinian causes as morally equivalent: Frankly, I think that's a stupid charge. The people who attack the movie based on 'moral equivalence' are some of the same people who say diplomacy itself is an exercise in 'moral equivalence' and that war is the only answer. That the only way to fight terrorism is to dehumanize the terrorists by asking no questions about who they are and where they come from. What I believe is, every act of terrorism requires a strong response, but we must also pay attention to the causes. That's why we have brains and the power to think passionately. Understanding does not require approval. Understanding is not the same as inaction. Understanding is a very muscular act. If I'm endorsing understanding and being attacked for that, then I am almost flattered.

I feel like I've been engaged to the British Empire since 1980 and tonight you have given me the ring knighthood.
If Bush (George W. Bush), as I believe, has reliable information on the fact that Saddam Hussein is making weapons of mass destruction, I cannot not support the policies of his government.
What kept us going was the thought that David Lean, at 54, had done this every day for a year. David Lean was our criterion for survival. - on filming Raiders of the Lost Ark in Tunisia
I've taken the time to familiarize myself with the impressive field of Democratic candidates and am convinced that Hillary Clinton is the most qualified candidate to lead us from her first day in the White House. Hillary is a strong leader and is respected the world over. As president, she will bring America back together, rebuild our prestige abroad and ensure our protection here at home.
As long as there's been Transformers, I've been one of the biggest fans. And I always thought that somewhere in this genius concept, there was a movie.
I'll probably never win an Oscar, but I'll sure have a lot of fun! I really believe that movies are the great escape!
"Duel" was almost a once-in-a-lifetime story. You don't get stories like that all the time.
All those horrible, traumatic years I spent as a kid became what I draw from creatively today.
The person I enjoy working for more than anyone else is George Lucas. He's the best boss I ever had because he's the most talented boss I ever had.
If I weren't a director, I would want to be a film composer.
I interpret my dreams one way and make a movie out of them and people see my movies and make them part of their dreams.
At E3 games convention about partnership with EA: I am a gamer myself, and I really wanted to create a video game that I could play with my kids.
{On his behavior following the premiere of a new film] My ritual is total blackout. No radio, no television, no internet, no newspapers. I just want to hear one number, which is the Monday-morning number.
The most expensive habit in the world is celluloid, not heroin, and I need a fix every two years.

Salary
Jurassic Park III (2001)
$72,000,000
Schindler's List (1993)
$0 (Asked not to be paid.)
Jurassic Park (1993)
$250,000,000 (gross and profit participations)
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
$1,500,000 + % of gross
Where Are They Now
(January 2003) Received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
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Special thank for credit link; http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000229/bio