BIO, MOVIES, and CAREER

There might not be a single name in cinematic history that aligns itself more closely with the word “filmmaker” than Steven Spielberg. He’s the guy. And his films? Well, the word “epic” would be the understatement of all understatements. 

If you just listed some of the most iconic suspense-thrillers, sci-fi classics, and action-adventure films of all time, you’d surely include Jaws (1975), Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), E.T. the Extra Terrestrial (1982), and Jurassic Park (1993). All Spielberg—and they’re all among the highest-grossing movies of their respective decades. 

But Spielberg isn’t just the big man behind the boisterous, otherworldly blockbusters—he’s lauded as one of the greatest directors to helm major drama films too. The Color Purple (1985), Schindler’s List (1993), Amistad (1997), Saving Private Ryan (1998), Munich (2005), War Horse (2011), Lincoln (2012), The Post (2017)—Spielberg captures real world conflict, emotional complexity, and the breadth of the human condition unlike any other director. 

Born in Ohio to a restauranter/concert pianist mother and electrical engineer father, and growing up in Phoenix, Arizona, Spielberg came from relatively unremarkable—if not well-rounded and loving—means. He fell in love with filmmaking at a young age, one of the bright youngsters of his generation to develop an affinity for the Super 8 film camera. Spielberg’s most recent film, The Fabelmans (2022) is loosely based on this stage of the director’s adolescence, its characters resembling family and other meaningful figures of his early life. 

Unsurprisingly, Spielberg’s work has earned him a true laundry list of accolades. At the Oscars alone, he’s been nominated 22 times, winning the Academy Award for Best Directing twice—for Schindler’s List and Saving Private Ryan—and once for Best Picture, again for Schindler’s List. 

The impact Spielberg has made on the lives of moviegoers and popular culture is almost indescribable. Beyond filmmaking, the living legend has been known to have monumental influence on sociopolitical issues, and is equally recognized for his philanthropic endeavors. In other words, for Spielberg, “Action” is much, much more than a movie set command. 

At 76, Steven Spielberg is still doing what he loves, and will continue to inspire movie lovers young and old—no matter the nuances of the genre, the sensitivity of the project’s subject, or limitations to human imagination. 

 

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