The Essential Directors profiles more than 70 of the most influential directors in cinema history, from the aesthetic peak of silent cinema in the 1920s through the dawn of modern Hollywood in the 1970s. Each entry offers history and insight on the filmmaker's narrative style, personal touches, contributions to the medium, key films, and distinctive movie moments to watch for. The work of these game-changing artists is illustrated throughout by more than 200 full-color and black-and-white photographs.Directors featured:Charlie ChaplinCecil B. DeMilleD. W. GriffithFritz LangOscar MicheauxF.W. MurnauKing VidorErich von StroheimLois WeberDorothy ArznerClarence BrownFrank CapraVictor FlemingHoward HawksMervyn LeRoyErnst LubitschRouben MamoulianLeo McCareyW. S. Van DykeJosef von SternbergGeorge CukorMichael CurtizJohn FordJohn HustonVincente MinnelliGeorge StevensPreston SturgesOrson WellesWilliam WylerAlfred HitchcockElia KazanAkira KurosawaIda LupinoJoseph L. MankiewiczOtto PremingerNicholas RayDouglas SirkBilly WilderFred ZinnemannIngmar BergmanBlake EdwardsFederico FelliniStanley KramerStanley KubrickDavid LeanMike NicholsRoman PolanskiWoody AllenRobert AltmanHal AshbyPeter BogdanovichFrancis Ford CoppolaBrian De PalmaSidney LumetElaine MayMartin ScorseseSteven Spielberg