I'm actually 26, I might have been wrong on my age, but I'm sure I was 5 or 6. Since then I've seen this movie like 10 times!!
Not a record, a friend has at least seen the whole trilogy like 50 times..

Greetings!

My Favourites and ones that have inspired me or continue to inspire are:

Robert Rodriguez - Director and just a about a little of everythingelse.

Luc Besson - Director and/or Producer of some brilliant films.

Peter Jackson & Andrew Lesnie - Director & Dir. of Photography - Lord of the Rings...need I say any more.

Alejandro Gonzalez Innaritu - Director & Producer - Amorres Perros

I guess these are ones that spring to mind first, but I get inspired by lots of people and everytime I go to the cinema, even if its a crap film or one that everyone hates except the pompus film critics who appear to love it, I still get something out of it, even if its not to make the same mistakes.

I guess it all started as a child and being given a camera to playwith in the cot (crib) as a 7 month baby by my photographer father. Then helping carry the tripod or bag as a small child are weddings, Really boring, perhaps thats why I dont want to do weddings, but if fuelled and started my passion.

//Peter Jackson & Andrew Lesnie - Director & Dir. of Photography - Lord of the Rings...need I say any more.//

To me the inspirational story from Peter Jackson's career is that he made "Braindead" over several years on weekends.

Keith: I sent you an e-mail re my webpage...

As for film crazy: I was a young "actor" at the age of 11 in two children TV films in Holland, with some of the most important Dutch actors of the time (around 1966). I absolutely LOVED all that stuff with the camera, sound boom and the slate: "ACTION"!
I later became a stills photographer, but only went into moving images 4 years ago, after moving to Spain. But I never forgot how I loved the "set". I still do, actually, whether it's working as the camaraman, or even director, or as a PA or driver, I don't care, it makes me tick.

Sam Peckinpah always inspired me, seeing how crazy he was about his film, trying to look as much as possible like the lead actor. "The Wild Bunch"!

Main "current" inspiration:

Anything by...

Ridley Scott
The Coen Brothers
Cameron Crowe
Tim Bevan
David Lynch
Pedro Almodóvar
Robert Redford

And some by...

Ivan Reitman
Rob Reiner
Nora Ephron

But growing up, practically every decent movie in some way or another. I'm convinced that one of the reasons I moved to Asia was because of a movie I saw as a kid.

It's been a gradual thing for me. Not any one actor, movie, director, etc. instantly made me want to be a filmmaker. My love for film started with Spielberg and Jurassic Park...and as I saw more and more films and amazing directors continuously blew my mind, I eventually came to the decision to pursue a career as a director. Over time, the directors that have come to be my inspiration and motivation are as follows:

Steven Spielberg
M. Night Shyamalan
Quentin Tarantino
Guy Ritchie
Akira Kurosawa
Coen Brothers
Tim Burton

My story is a bit different. It wasn't a movie or a particular actor or even a book that inspired me.
You see, I'm currently a full time college student at 33 and working towards a Doctor of Pharmacy degree which I should get in 2008.
In the meantime though, as a project that started out for extra-credit and ended up turning into a full blown college club, I started investigating the paranormal with a digital camera and a Sony Nightshot TRV-350 camcorder.
I operated the camcorder while others took pictures and recorded audio. The amazing thing is that I have video of these small orbs zipping around that no-one could see with their own eyes. They only could be viewed through the infrared video.
We ended up investigating several locations and got some amazing photo's and video, and even some ghostly voices on audio.
I had an absolute blast videotaping all that stuff, and started to learn so much more when I started to edit the footage.
I then had a dream that I thought would make an awesome Sundance short, and eventually started working on several script ideas after a brainstorming session.
The end result is that 2004 will be one of the busiest years of my life with attending school (I enrolled in a video class as well), running a college club that investigates ghost activity, plus I have a Documentary film set for 1st quarter and a Feature script I'm hoping I can shoot sometime in Summer/Fall.
All this from an extra credit project! :)

Awesome story. I often wished I had a camera back when I lived in haunted areas.

To add to my list, the movie Adaptation peaked my interest in screenwriting and movie making in general. One of my favorite movies. I just picked up "Story", as recommended here, and I've been reading it over christmas break.

I'm a little older than most of you so my inspirations come as flash backs.

First recollection: seeing a young 17-year old Cybil Shepherd stuffing her bra with kleenex. I was in college but had a summer job working as the in-plant messenger boy for the world's largest still photo studio. I dropped off some mail by the modeling department and there she was sitting in the dressing room – stuffing. I became nterested in photography from that day forward which led to a career in advertising.

Many years later, while running the newspaper advertising department for an arts and crafts chain, the owner of the company walked by my office and threw a bunch of "Spuds McKennzie" merchandise on the floor and said, " I just bought a butt load of this stuff, go make me a TV commercial." A few weeks later he said "I've been making commercials for years and no one ever mentioned them. You make me one commercial and everyone notices and comments on it...let's do some more." The hook was set.

Some years later I found myself in charge of a national TV show on the Lifetime network. It runs for 26 weeks with great ratings until a political battle between the two sponsoring companies takes the show down.

Years pass and along comes Apple's Final Cut Pro and MiniDV cameras....wow, I could do all this myself without million dollar editing suites....and a rebirth of my inspiration...

So, who inspired me the most? Cybil Shepherd? The arts and crafts owner?
No, I think it was the sounds of an appreciative audience. I've never gotten over the desire to see someone's eyes light up and say, "Man, did you do that?"

Alain Aguilar, I too started animating with flash before I ever had a camera. It's actually what I do. (What I do for money right now, anyways) I'm a webdesigner, but I specialize in flash design. Right now, the current project is http://www.ethelm.com/catalogue/. I'd show everyone some actual animations if they were any good, but all of them were made when I was in 9th grade, so neigh. I stopped animating, and moved towards the web design aspect of flash, and recently learned alot of actionscript (as seen in the link). The great thing about the place I work (Ethel M Chocolate Factory), is that If I dont know how to do something, I can get payed learning how to do it all day on the web. I stop bye here when I'm at work too sometimes. Though, I have to watch out for that boss coming around the corner, checking out my monitor :-).

Back to the topic. Wow this book "Story" has so much information in it, I had never even thought about. (I guess that's the point of reading it :). ) Thanks again for the reccomendations on that.

John Locke, I've thought about moving to asia or china or mabye japan, and that's all been because of movies I'm sure. Another reason I want to make movies :) They have such great power of influence.

I was inspired my senior year of high school (way back in January `03). I always liked making movies with my friends, but never really got into it. Then I took a video production class and totally fell in love with DV. Learned Premiere 6.0 in a day and made a lot of little snippits. At one point my teacher approached me and asked, "Hey, Gino, have you ever thought about going into the industry?" I replied no and he said, "Well, i really think you should." That was it. He's the only teacher i have really kept in close touch with. I visit him every once in a while. We go see films together and have LAN parties. Kinda weird, but he is definately the kindling in this ever-growing fire of mine.
He wrote the most amazing teacher recommendation for me for my application to NYU basically telling them that they would be losing a total genius if they didn't accept me and it would hurt them more than it would me. How is one supposed to respond to such an amazing compliment? Anyway, i owe it all to him and if i ever make it big, he'll be the first i thank.

Missing some key people
 

I was thumbing through this thread, (well scrolling really) and I felt that alot of truly talented filmmakers have been left out.

on the narrative film base
Kubrik
Hitchcock
Mann
Fincher
Soderburg
Kurusawa
(the list goes on)

on documentary
Pennebaker
Burns
Epstein/Friedman
(again names are escaping me, it's been a long day)

Where are these names on anyones inspiration list? Why is it that either media friendly independent filmmakers, or big budget popculture directors are our source of inspiration? Not to say that some listed aren't talented individuals, but for a thread about those who inspire us to make films, it seems like it lends itself to a deeper discussion of talent than the two hour music videos of Guy Richie. It almost feels like we all need to do some research and find who those truly innovative filmmakers are. The ones that inspired the likes of Tarantino, Rodriguez, and Richie.

I know I dont know everything about films. But I have to believe that we arent only a bi product of music videos, commercials, and snappy t-shirts. That we as creative individuals can look deeper into the medium and find greatness.

That said, i'm sure some are gonna be gunnin for me tomarrow, but I'll stand by what I said. Thankfully film is a subjective medium, and I can still be right.

ADAM

<<<-- Originally posted by Frank Kotora : My love for film started with Spielberg and Jurassic Park...and as I saw more and more films and amazing directors continuously blew my mind>


I get a kick out of watchin the making of Jurassic part on the special edition DVD where they show u a quick glimps of the render farm and i wonder, hmm i bet they were like 100Mhz machines.

I also love the almost laughable (know) go motion animation technique which was the alternative to the 3d.

What was special for me was living with my aunt and uncle after college, talking about movies and writing a screenplay and my uncle calling and making me talk to his friend Bill who told me to "get a hi-8 camera and start shooting. It doesn't matter what kind of camera you use..." It turned out to be William Friedkin. I wish I was more prepared for that conversation.
That same uncle spotted me 2K for an XL1 which I repaid within a year btw. Everyone needs a benefactor. Unfortunately he passed away about 2 years ago and I'm still in final edit on that feature project. (lost another actor from that film recently – goes to show while I managed to avoid anxious producers threatening me to finish a project that pesky thing death can't be avoided).

Sydney Lumet's Making Movies also is a good read as it talks about things like story, actors, etc. and not percentages, lighting kits, and microphones...

Tootsie, Waiting for Guffman and Escape from New York.
not to mention Bad Taste, 16 Candles, Star Wars, Blood Simple and Raising Arizona

Roger Corman / Robert Rodriguez. Self sufficience is inspiring.
Uncle George despite every effort to destroy my childhood with his prequels... for his ability to re-purpose stories in the most successful way.

and finally Woody Allen for Manhattan and Scorsese's Raging Bull... many days were spent watching those 2 on laserdisc in the college library while I was supposed to be in the sculpture studio. (sculpture degrizzy in the Hizzzy)

Like others I have visited this thread, and enjoyed reading through it. I cannot claim aspirations to be a "movie maker" but I have had dreams of such ventures, at least to some extent. I enjoy the idea of capturing emotion on moving media. I do not know names of great film artists (well, Kubrik and a few others are givens:), and I don't understand the great technical skill that those people employ. But I do "get it" in a bigger sense. As I see it the intent of all this technical knowledge/jargon/skill is to capture or convey that emotion, whatever it is. Be it love or hate, happiness or sorrow, defeat or victory, it is all about conveying that feeling to the audience via image and sound. When that works, and it can be a wedding video, a motion picture, or a commercial, I really dig it. Trying to convey emotion on that level (where people dig it) is what I want to do. Any equipment recomendations?