Steven Allan Spielberg (born 1946) is an American film director, screenwriter, producer and editor, one of the most successful filmmakers in US history. Three-time Oscar winner. His 20 highest-grossing films have grossed $ 10 billion.
There are many interesting facts in the biography of Steven Spielberg, which we will talk about in this article.
So, here is a short biography of Steven Allan Spielberg.
Spielberg's biography
Steven Spielberg was born on December 18, 1946 in the American city of Cincinnati (Ohio). He grew up and was raised in a Jewish family.
His father, Arnold Meer, was a computer engineer and his mother, Leia Adler, was a professional pianist. He has 3 sisters: Nancy, Susan and Ann.
Childhood and youth
As a child, Stephen liked to spend a lot of time in front of the TV. Noticing his son's interest in watching films and TV series, his father prepared a surprise for him by donating a portable movie camera.
The boy was so delighted with such a gift that he did not let go of the camera, starting to shoot short films.
An interesting fact is that Spielberg even tried to shoot horror, using cherry juice as a substitute for blood. At the age of 12, he became a college student, where for the first time in his biography he participated in a youth amateur film competition.
Stephen presented a military short film "Escape to Nowhere" to the judging panel, which was eventually recognized as the best work. It is curious that the actors of this picture were his father, mother and sisters.
In the spring of 1963, a fantastic film about aliens "Heavenly Lights", directed by schoolchildren led by Spielberg, was presented at a local cinema.
The plot described the story of the abduction of people by aliens for use in a space zoo. Steven's parents financed the work on the picture: about $ 600 was invested in the project, in addition, the mother of the Spielberg family provided the film crew with free meals, and the father assisted in the construction of models.
Films
In his youth, Stephen tried twice to go to film school, but both times he failed exams. Interestingly, in his resume, the commission even made a note "too mediocre." And yet the young man did not give up, continuing to look for new ways of self-realization.
Spielberg soon entered a technical college. When the holidays came, he made a short film "Emblyn", which became his pass to the big cinema.
After the premiere of this tape, representatives of the famous film company "Universal Pictures" offered Stephen a contract. Initially, he worked on the filming of projects such as "Night Gallery" and "Colombo. Murder by the book. "
In 1971, Spielberg managed to shoot his first feature film, Duel, which received positive reviews from film critics. 3 years later, the director made his first film debut on the big screen. He presented the crime drama "The Sugarland Express", based on real events.
The following year, Steven Spielberg was struck by world fame, which brought him the famous thriller "Jaws". The tape was an incredible success, grossing over $ 260 million at the box office!
In the 1980s, Spielberg directed 3 parts of the world famous cycle about Indiana Jones: "In Search of the Lost Ark", "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" and "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade." These works have gained overwhelming popularity all over the world. An interesting fact is that the box office receipts of these tapes exceeded $ 1.2 billion!
At the beginning of the next decade, the director presented the fairy tale film "Captain Hook". In 1993, viewers saw Jurassic Park, which became a real sensation. It is curious that the box office receipts of this tape, as well as the proceeds from the sales of video discs, were crazy - $ 1.5 billion!
After such success, Steven Spielberg directed the sequel "The Lost World: Jurassic Park" (1997), which grossed $ 620 million at the box office. In the third part - "Jurassic Park 3", the man acted only as a producer.
During this period of his biography, Spielberg finished work on the legendary historical drama "Schindler's List". It told about the German Nazi businessman Oskar Schindler, who saved more than a thousand Polish Jews from death in the midst of the Holocaust. This tape has won 7 Oscars, as well as dozens of other prestigious awards in various nominations.
In subsequent years, Stephen directed such famous films as "Amistad" and "Saving Private Ryan". In the new millennium, his directorial biography has been replenished with new masterpieces, including Catch Me If You Can, Munich, Terminal and War of the Worlds.
It is worth noting that the box office receipts for each painting were several times their budget. In 2008, Spielberg presented his next film about Indiana Jones, The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. This work has collected over $ 786 million at the box office!
After that, Stephen directed the drama War Horse, the historical film The Spy Bridge, the biographical film Lincoln and other projects. Again, the box office receipts for these works exceeded their budget at times.
In 2017, there was an example of the dramatic thriller The Secret Dossier, which dealt with declassified Pentagon documents on the Vietnam War. The following year, Ready Player One hit the big screen, grossing over $ 582 million.
Over the years of his creative biography, Steven Spielberg has shot hundreds of films and TV series. Today he is one of the most famous and commercially successful filmmakers.
Personal life
Spielberg's first wife was American actress Amy Irving, with whom he lived for 4 years. In this marriage, the couple had a boy, Max Samuel. After that, the guy again married an actress named Kate Capshaw, with whom he has been living together for about 30 years.
An interesting fact is that Kate starred in the blockbuster Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. In this union, the couple had three children: Sasha, Sawyer and Destry. At the same time, the Spielbergs raised three more adopted children: Jessica, Theo and Michael George.
In his spare time, Stephen enjoys playing computer games. He has been involved in the development of video games on numerous occasions, acting as an idea or story writer.
Steven Spielberg today
In 2019, the master was the producer of the comedy Men in Black: International and the TV series Why We Hate. The following year, Spielberg directed the musical West Side Story. The media leaked information about the beginning of filming of the 5th part of "Indiana Jones" and the 3rd part of "Jurassic World".
Spielberg Photos