Above the Line

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Above the line

The people behind the picture

Directors, producers, writers and the studios that back them. Every page shows their films with the Council’s Verified and Approved seals.

Founders & mavericksThey left the big studios, or never joined them, and built their own. Pixar, DreamWorks, Amblin, Carolco, Cannon and more.

Jason BlumBlumhouseFounded Blumhouse in 2000 and perfected the low-budget, high-concept horror model.

Steven SpielbergAmblin EntertainmentCo-founded Amblin in 1981 with Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall, then DreamWorks in 1994 with Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen.

Brian GrazerImagine EntertainmentCo-founded Imagine Entertainment with Ron Howard in 1986.

Ridley ScottScott Free ProductionsFounded Scott Free, later run with his brother Tony, to keep control of their own films.

Joel SilverSilver PicturesBuilt Silver Pictures into the home of Lethal Weapon, Die Hard and The Matrix.

Roger CormanNew World PicturesFounded New World Pictures in 1970 and gave early breaks to Francis Ford Coppola, Martin Scorsese and James Cameron.

Frank MarshallThe Kennedy/Marshall CompanyCo-founded Amblin with Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy, then launched The Kennedy/Marshall Company in the early ’90s.

Dino De LaurentiisBuilt his own studio complex outside Rome, Dinocittà, before moving his operation to America.

Menahem GolanCannon FilmsHe and his cousin Yoram Globus bought Cannon in 1979 and turned it into the 1980s’ most famous action factory.

Kathleen KennedyAmblin EntertainmentCo-founded Amblin with Steven Spielberg and Frank Marshall, then launched The Kennedy/Marshall Company in the early ’90s. Later ran Lucasfilm.

Francis Ford CoppolaAmerican ZoetropeCo-founded American Zoetrope in San Francisco in 1969, with George Lucas, to make films outside the Hollywood system.

Yoram GlobusCannon FilmsHe and his cousin Menahem Golan bought Cannon in 1979 and turned it into the 1980s’ most famous action factory.

Ron HowardImagine EntertainmentCo-founded Imagine Entertainment with Brian Grazer in 1986.

Jerry BruckheimerJerry Bruckheimer FilmsTeamed with Don Simpson in 1983, then built Jerry Bruckheimer Films after Simpson’s death in 1996.

Thomas TullLegendary PicturesFounded Legendary Pictures in 2000.

Brad PittPlan B EntertainmentCo-founded Plan B in 2001; it went on to win Best Picture for 12 Years a Slave and Moonlight.

Tony ScottScott Free ProductionsRan Scott Free alongside his brother Ridley.

Mario KassarCarolco PicturesCo-founded Carolco in 1976 with Andrew Vajna and bet big on Rambo, Total Recall and Terminator 2.

George LucasLucasfilmBuilt Lucasfilm in 1971 to make movies on his own terms. Star Wars and Indiana Jones followed, and so did ILM and the graphics group that became Pixar.

Spike Lee40 Acres and a Mule FilmworksRuns his own company, 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, out of Brooklyn.

Andrew G. VajnaCarolco PicturesCo-founded Carolco in 1976 with Mario Kassar, the independent that bankrolled Rambo and Terminator 2.

Robert RodriguezTroublemaker StudiosMade El Mariachi on a shoestring, then built Troublemaker Studios in Austin, far from Hollywood.

J.J. AbramsBad RobotFounded Bad Robot in 2001.

Robert ShayeNew Line CinemaStarted New Line in 1967 distributing films to colleges. A Nightmare on Elm Street built it; The Lord of the Rings crowned it.

Tyler PerryTyler Perry StudiosBuilt Tyler Perry Studios on a former Army base in Atlanta, one of the largest production lots in the country.

Peter JacksonWingNut FilmsKept the work in New Zealand: co-founded Weta and built a filmmaking base in Wellington.

Mike MedavoyOrion PicturesLeft United Artists in 1978 with fellow UA executives to co-found Orion Pictures: Amadeus, Platoon, The Silence of the Lambs.

Christopher NolanSyncopyRuns Syncopy with Emma Thomas, the company behind his films.

Hayao MiyazakiStudio GhibliCo-founded Studio Ghibli in 1985 with Isao Takahata and Toshio Suzuki.

Emma ThomasSyncopyCo-founded Syncopy with Christopher Nolan and produces his films.

Albert R. BroccoliEon ProductionsCo-founded Eon Productions with Harry Saltzman in 1961 to make the James Bond films.

Jeffrey KatzenbergDreamWorks AnimationRan Walt Disney Studios through The Little Mermaid and The Lion King, left in 1994 and co-founded DreamWorks SKG with Steven Spielberg and David Geffen. Its animation arm gave us Shrek.

Mel GibsonIcon ProductionsCo-founded Icon Productions with Bruce Davey in 1989; Icon backed Braveheart and The Passion of the Christ.

Don BluthSullivan Bluth StudiosWalked out of Disney in 1979 with a group of animators to start his own studio: The Secret of NIMH, An American Tail, The Land Before Time.

Don SimpsonJerry Bruckheimer FilmsLeft his job running production at Paramount to team with Jerry Bruckheimer in 1983: Flashdance, Top Gun, Bad Boys.

Jordan PeeleMonkeypaw ProductionsFounded Monkeypaw Productions in 2012.

Ed CatmullPixarRan Lucasfilm’s computer graphics group. When Steve Jobs bought it in 1986, Catmull co-founded Pixar, which went on to make Toy Story, the first fully computer-animated feature.

DirectorsThe people calling action.

Steven Spielberg107 films · 60 sealed

Martin Scorsese64 films · 13 sealed

Quentin Tarantino29 films · 17 sealed

Denis Villeneuve12 films · 8 sealed

James Cameron23 films · 14 sealed

Michael Bay41 films · 22 sealed

Tim Burton29 films · 18 sealed

Stanley Kubrick16 films · 9 sealed

Robert Zemeckis40 films · 18 sealed

Sam Mendes12 films · 7 sealed

Darren Aronofsky16 films · 9 sealed

Sam Raimi42 films · 14 sealed

Peter Jackson19 films · 11 sealed

James Mangold15 films · 9 sealed

M. Night Shyamalan18 films · 13 sealed

Wes Anderson22 films · 10 sealed

Steven Soderbergh62 films · 15 sealed

George Lucas36 films · 16 sealed

Francis Ford Coppola60 films · 11 sealed

Alfred Hitchcock49 films · 10 sealed

Ang Lee16 films · 3 sealed

Kathryn Bigelow12 films · 4 sealed

Spike Lee36 films · 6 sealed

Greta Gerwig5 films · 3 sealed

Guillermo del Toro35 films · 17 sealed

Alfonso Cuarón19 films · 5 sealed

Alejandro González Iñárritu13 films · 5 sealed

Paul Thomas Anderson12 films · 7 sealed

Joel Coen30 films · 15 sealed

Ethan Coen30 films · 15 sealed

Rian Johnson8 films · 5 sealed

Bong Joon Ho9 films · 4 sealed

Chris Columbus43 films · 18 sealed

John Carpenter41 films · 6 sealed

Wes Craven38 films · 7 sealed

Brian De Palma25 films · 5 sealed

Oliver Stone38 films · 10 sealed

Michael Mann20 films · 9 sealed

John Hughes39 films · 6 sealed

Richard Linklater21 films · 6 sealed

Edgar Wright13 films · 10 sealed

Matthew Vaughn22 films · 12 sealed

Zack Snyder20 films · 14 sealed

J.J. Abrams28 films · 14 sealed

Jon Favreau20 films · 13 sealed

Taika Waititi13 films · 5 sealed

Chad Stahelski5 films · 4 sealed

Joseph Kosinski6 films · 3 sealed

Gore Verbinski11 films · 7 sealed

John McTiernan13 films · 6 sealed

Ivan Reitman48 films · 16 sealed

Barry Levinson40 films · 5 sealed

Pete Docter26 films · 14 sealed

Andrew Stanton22 films · 15 sealed

John Singleton11 films · 3 sealed

James Gunn23 films · 7 sealed

Anthony Russo17 films · 8 sealed

Joe Russo17 films · 8 sealed

Frank Darabont11 films · 4 sealed

Robert Rodriguez29 films · 12 sealed

Tyler Perry26 films · 1 sealed

Hayao Miyazaki18 films · 7 sealed

Don Bluth13 films · 1 sealed

Billy Wilder32 films · 5 sealed

Akira Kurosawa43 films · 6 sealed

Sergio Leone11 films · 5 sealed

Sidney Lumet29 films · 4 sealed

ProducersThe people who get it made.

Jerry Bruckheimer51 films · 29 sealed

Don Simpson11 films · 7 sealed

Brian Grazer85 films · 23 sealed

Kathleen Kennedy62 films · 31 sealed

Frank Marshall69 films · 27 sealed

Kevin Feige64 films · 41 sealed

Emma Thomas18 films · 14 sealed

Joel Silver81 films · 28 sealed

Lorenzo di Bonaventura46 films · 23 sealed

Jason Blum133 films · 21 sealed

Menahem Golan63 films · 0 sealed

Yoram Globus60 films · 0 sealed

Robert Shaye28 films · 7 sealed

Dino De Laurentiis69 films · 8 sealed

Lauren Shuler Donner40 films · 16 sealed

Neal H. Moritz74 films · 28 sealed

Charles Roven41 films · 21 sealed

Arnon Milchan137 films · 40 sealed

Dede Gardner38 films · 11 sealed

Jeremy Kleiner30 films · 8 sealed

Michael De Luca62 films · 19 sealed

Jeffrey Katzenberg16 films · 11 sealed

Ed Catmull2 films · 1 sealed

Mike Medavoy19 films · 3 sealed

Mario Kassar37 films · 10 sealed

Andrew G. Vajna33 films · 7 sealed

Thomas Tull50 films · 33 sealed

Brad Pitt45 films · 15 sealed

Albert R. Broccoli17 films · 4 sealed

Barbara Broccoli14 films · 9 sealed

Roger Corman73 films · 1 sealed

Saul Zaentz8 films · 3 sealed

David Heyman38 films · 21 sealed

Simon Kinberg29 films · 21 sealed

Avi Arad43 films · 31 sealed

Gale Anne Hurd30 films · 11 sealed

Jon Landau5 films · 4 sealed

Gary Kurtz6 films · 2 sealed

Robert Evans17 films · 4 sealed

Richard D. Zanuck37 films · 14 sealed

Walter F. Parkes47 films · 20 sealed

Mark Gordon46 films · 12 sealed

Lynda Obst14 films · 5 sealed

Writers & screenwritersIt starts on the page.

Aaron Sorkin11 films · 6 sealed

Christopher McQuarrie13 films · 11 sealed

Andrew Kevin Walker11 films · 4 sealed

Shane Black12 films · 9 sealed

William Goldman21 films · 5 sealed

Eric Roth18 films · 8 sealed

Steven Zaillian24 films · 11 sealed

Charlie Kaufman9 films · 4 sealed

Taylor Sheridan8 films · 4 sealed

Akiva Goldsman42 films · 21 sealed

Jonathan Nolan6 films · 4 sealed

Tony Gilroy19 films · 11 sealed

David Koepp30 films · 13 sealed

Brian Helgeland21 films · 10 sealed

Scott Frank15 films · 4 sealed

Paul Schrader29 films · 2 sealed

Nora Ephron13 films · 3 sealed

Terry Rossio24 films · 17 sealed

Ted Elliott22 films · 16 sealed

John Logan18 films · 10 sealed

Christopher Markus14 films · 12 sealed

Stephen McFeely14 films · 12 sealed

David S. Goyer33 films · 12 sealed

Steve Kloves16 films · 11 sealed

Dan O'Bannon20 films · 10 sealed

Stephen King77 films · 15 sealed

Robert Towne20 films · 6 sealed

Lawrence Kasdan21 films · 6 sealed

Cameron Crowe11 films · 4 sealed

Diablo Cody6 films · 2 sealed

Callie Khouri5 films · 1 sealed

Joe Eszterhas13 films · 1 sealed

Richard Curtis22 films · 7 sealed

Kenneth Lonergan7 films · 3 sealed

Emerald Fennell2 films · 2 sealed

Michael Arndt9 films · 8 sealed

William Monahan9 films · 3 sealed

Billy Ray16 films · 6 sealed

Drew Goddard6 films · 6 sealed

Rhett Reese12 films · 7 sealed

Paul Wernick11 films · 7 sealed

Alex Kurtzman17 films · 12 sealed

Jeff Nathanson11 films · 8 sealed

Ernest Lehman15 films · 2 sealed

Jim Cash9 films · 2 sealed

StudiosThe companies behind the logos before the movie.

Dune EntertainmentDune Entertainment95 films · 40 sealed

Scott Free Productions82 films · 28 sealed

Imagine Entertainment85 films · 21 sealed

Jerry Bruckheimer Films43 films · 29 sealed

Icon Productions33 films · 6 sealed

Amblin Entertainment101 films · 41 sealed

Lucasfilm38 films · 16 sealed

Pixar73 films · 25 sealed

Marvel Studios53 films · 34 sealed

Legendary Pictures62 films · 36 sealed

Syncopy13 films · 11 sealed

Blumhouse131 films · 21 sealed

A2446 films · 9 sealed

Castle Rock Entertainment78 films · 13 sealed

Carolco Pictures41 films · 9 sealed

Orion Pictures128 films · 8 sealed

Silver Pictures56 films · 24 sealed

Village Roadshow Pictures107 films · 42 sealed

Regency Enterprises131 films · 37 sealed

DreamWorks Pictures138 films · 64 sealed

Plan B Entertainment41 films · 16 sealed

Bad Robot18 films · 11 sealed

Miramax260 films · 42 sealed

Working Title Films129 films · 37 sealed

Platinum Dunes22 films · 6 sealed

Warner Bros. Pictures961 films · 216 sealed

Universal Pictures886 films · 189 sealed

Paramount Pictures751 films · 161 sealed

Columbia Pictures678 films · 162 sealed

20th Century Studios750 films · 158 sealed

Walt Disney Pictures301 films · 85 sealed

Lionsgate257 films · 45 sealed

Summit Entertainment146 films · 47 sealed

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer590 films · 56 sealed

Focus Features167 films · 32 sealed

Searchlight Pictures134 films · 27 sealed

Skydance32 films · 22 sealed

DreamWorks Animation67 films · 29 sealed

Walt Disney Animation Studios48 films · 25 sealed

American Zoetrope50 films · 8 sealed

The Kennedy/Marshall Company35 films · 14 sealed

Tyler Perry Studios17 films · 0 sealed

40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks30 films · 6 sealed

Troublemaker Studios19 films · 11 sealed

Monkeypaw Productions8 films · 4 sealed

Studio Ghibli25 films · 7 sealed

Sullivan Bluth Studios8 films · 0 sealed

New World Pictures47 films · 1 sealed

Eon Productions28 films · 12 sealed Annapurna PicturesAnnapurna Pictures30 films · 11 sealed NeonNeon2 films · 0 sealed

Illumination19 films · 8 sealed

Laika6 films · 3 sealed

WingNut Films18 films · 11 sealed

The Weinstein Company85 films · 13 sealed

Bad Hat Harry Productions17 films · 9 sealed