Steven Spielberg

Steven Allan Spielberg (/ˈspiːlbɜːrɡ/; born December 18, 1946) is an American filmmaker. He is considered one of the founding pioneers of the New Hollywood era and one of the most popular directors and producers in film history. Spielberg started in Hollywood directing television and several minor theatrical releases. He became a household name as the director of "Jaws" (1975), which was critically and commercially successful and is considered the first summer blockbuster. His subsequent releases focused typically on science fiction/adventure films such as "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" (1977), "Raiders of the Lost Ark" (1981), "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial" (1982), and "Jurassic Park" (1993), which became archetypes of modern Hollywood escapist filmmaking.

Spielberg transitioned into addressing serious issues in his later work with "The Color Purple" (1985), "Empire of the Sun" (1987), "Schindler's List" (1993), "Amistad" (1997), and "Saving Private Ryan" (1998). He has largely adhered to this practice during the 21st century, with "Munich" (2005), "Lincoln" (2012), "Bridge of Spies" (2015), and "The Post" (2017).