Steven Spielberg Biography
Steven Spielberg: A Biography
Steven Spielberg is one of the most acclaimed directors in the history of film. He has directed over thirty-five films and produced over seventy-five films. In total he has been a part of over 120 films (Steven Spielberg). One of his most famous films is the movie Jaws.Steven Spielberg’s life was not easy but he did not let that get in the way of his dream of going into the film industry. Steven Spielberg has revolutionized the way people look at films today. He has used all of the camera angles to make the films he directs unique. For example he used point of view for Jaws to create a suspenseful moment in the film.
Steven Spielberg was born December 18, 1946 in Cincinnati, Ohio. He was born to Leah Adler and Arnold Spielberg. In 1958, he became a boy scout and earned the photography merit badge, which is believed to have sparked his love for movie and movie making (Sighted in Arizona). Being born into a Jewish family was hard for him as a teen. He suffered prejudices and was beat up and kicked around because of his beliefs. His family has direct ties to the Holocaust as some of his relatives died in concentration camps. (Steven Spielberg Faces the Holocaust). Following his parents divorce he and his three sisters moved with their father to California. After graduating from Arcadia High School in 1965 he attended California State University, Long Beach.
Spielberg’s first directorial job came in 1969 when he was hired to direct a segment for a TV show. He was then offered to direct Peter Bruchley’s Jaws, which was the start of his famous career. He later directed E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, which was nominated for nine Academy Awards. Between the start of his career and 1994 he has been a part of over fifty films. Critics call his early films masterpieces and carefully crafted, but recently they say that he tries too hard to be accessible to all viewers, which makes boring, bland films (Spielberg Criticism).
Steven Spielberg has made the book Jaws into a classic movie, I believe that he has done this by the way he directed the films. He has a special way of utilizing the camera to show exactly what he wants. For example in Jaws he using point of view from the sharks perspective to create an eerie and suspenseful feeling. Spielberg has taken many different events in history (ex. Holocaust, WWII, WWI) and turned them into our perspective of how things were back then. For example Schindler’s List is based during the time of the Holocaust. When we think of the Holocaust we think of lots of Jews being slaughtered and being held captive, when Spielberg shows the good Germans; Germans that helped the Jews not, killed them.
The movie Jaws which was made in 1975, became a classic because of the originality and suspense, had it not be directed by Steven Spielberg I’m not sure it would be considered a classic today. “More than sixty-seven million Americans saw the film, taking its total US haul to a record-breaking $129.5m.” (Shark Tale That Changed History). Jaws went through its troubles though, nearly being shut down due to going over budget and over scheduling. Jaws won three Academy Awards for Best Film, Best Original Dramatic Score, and Best Sound.
Steven Spielberg has a unique way of utilizing the camera, one that I think if Jaws had not been directed by Steven Spielberg, it wouldn’t have been as good as it was.. Steven Spielberg is one of the world’s greatest and most admired directors of all time. Had it not been for Jaws Steven Spielberg’s career might have never picked up, his career wouldn’t have picked up because Jaws was such a big hit, he may have never had the opportunity again if he turned that one down.. He has won over 120 awards from the PGA (Producers Guild of America) Awards to the Directors Guild of America, which makes him one of the directors with the most awards during their career. Steven Spielberg continues to fulfill his dream in movie making today and continues to get awards.
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