Stephen Spielberg

He is the cinema’s great enchanter. His films have enthralled the young and the old across the globe. Yet many in Hollywood dislike this man. They say he is a child who never grew up. They fear his influence and despite his box-office successes, they made him sweat for 25 years before giving him an Oscar.

Stephen was born on December 18,1947 in Cincinatti, Ohio. His mother was a trained pianist and his father was radio operator in the war, then he worked in computer industry. Stephen shared his father’s enthusiasm for science fiction and the wondrous potential of new technology.

Stephen was short, thin and awkward in his childhood. The best escape for the boy from all his troubles was television. Watching it he could forget his sorrows. Best of all he liked to watch horror films but parents tried to impose limits on his viewing.

In 1953 the family moved to Arizona, where Stephen spent his teenage years. He entered High School, but devoted more energy

to forging alliances in the playground than to his class work. Best of all he liked effects that could be achieved with make-up. His sisters became victims of his exercises in imagination. One of his favourite special effects was building his face into a horror mask with papier mache made from wet green toilet paper.

In 1962 Spielberg set out to make his first feature, a science fiction adventure called “Firelight”. He wrote his first draft in a night: a story of scientists who provoke an alien invasion. Spielberg ‘s entry into cinema was also his exit from childhood and Arizona. Stephen entered California State College, where he made a 24-minute short film called ” Amblin”. He described the result as a “Pepsi commercial”, but it was good enough to catch the eye of the executive from the famous film studio “Universal”. Spielberg signed the contract; he was 22 and was on his way up. He never did finish college.

Soon “Universal” realized what a gem it had in Spielberg. The studio signed him to make a feature called “Sugarland Express”

(1974). The movie bombed when it was released. Spielberg’s reputation as a hot young talent was intact. A new film “Jaws” (1975) proved Spielberg’s near miraculous understanding of what the public wants. It was also sign that he would one day become one of the most formidable players in the world of cinema. In 1982 he shooted his famous film “Alien”. Now Stephen Spielberg is regarded to be as the most successful director in Hollywood today. He is well known for his imaginative movie making and has helped to create a new generation of filmmakers.


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Stephen Spielberg