Motions pictures are an art form where the creator must tell a story in a purely visual way. The best filmmakers will also create a sense of meaning through their work. The immediacy of the cinema will help to make this form of storytelling very immersive.
There are numerous ways that filmmakers can communicate their story and overall message to the audience. Every director is unique. Several of them have excelled above others to become some of the best in the film industry.
Steven Spielberg
Spielberg is one of the most famous directors in Hollywood history. One of his key methods of storytelling is foreshadowing. He tends to foreshadow the villains of a story in creative ways. This can be seen clearly in movies such as Jurassic Park and Hook. Often characters will discuss how powerful the villain is before they appear on the screen. By doing this, Spielberg ensures that there is a good amount of tension. It also helps to clearly establish villainous characters as a threat.
David Lynch
Lynch is a very different kind of filmmaker. He is part of the surrealist movement. As such he is not interested in coherent storytelling. Instead, his focus is on finding hidden meaning within the work. His films attempt to tap into the subconscious of the audience. Lynch utilises sound design to elicit specific emotions within the viewer. This can range from contentment and euphoria to discomfort and fear.
Quentin Tarantino
Tarantino is very much a screenwriter first and director a close second. This is due to the fact that he focuses a huge amount on the story. Tarantino has stated that he plans to retire after he has completed his tenth film. The ones he has made so far usually have a non-linear narrative. He jumbles up scenes so that they become like a puzzle. It is up to the viewer to solve and make sense of these stories.
Sergei Eisenstein
This Russian director was an important pioneer of film during the silent era. He realised the importance of using editing to create meaning and propel the story forward. The most famous example of this is the Odessa steps scene in Battleship Potemkin. Eisenstein helped to develop editing techniques that are still used to this day. This includes the use of quick cuts to shock the viewer.
Alfred Hitchcock
Like Spielberg, Alfred Hitchcock is another very famous Hollywood director. His focus was on taking the audience on an emotional ride. He has stated that the role of a filmmaker is to emotionally manipulate the viewer. Hitchcock was particularly interested in creating a sense of suspense. He also occasionally explored the subconscious in a similar way to David Lynch. A good example of this is Vertigo, about a man’s obsessions and fears.
John Waters
John Waters has been revered since the 70s. However, it is fair to say that his work is not very impressive on a technical scale. Instead it is the outrageous characters and use of humorous dialogue that has earned him praise. The skills of Waters are mostly focused on the script. He uses his characters as mouthpieces to communicate his own views on the world. He has said in the past that he likes to use comedy to get the audience to think more about serious issues.