Film direction is not easy. It demands incredible storytelling instincts, a vast knowledge of every aspect of filmmaking, and outstanding adaptability, and for a filmmaker to have unshakable conviction in their vision which they can communicate to a large crew. While it takes some of the best directors years, if not decades, to earn recognition at the Oscars, others are blessed with nominations from their first feature films.
This is an incredibly rare achievement, though, with a mere handful of filmmakers finding any Oscar acclaim with their debut features and just six in the Academy’s 94-year history going on to win Best Director. With the nominations for the 95th Academy Awards recently unveiled, now seems an appropriate time to reflect on the astonishing achievements of debut filmmakers in the past.
1 Orson Welles — ‘Citizen Kane’ (1941)
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Orson Welles is an undisputed giant in the film industry. In addition to the grandeur he so often displayed on the screen, he was a true pioneer of film direction, with his iconic classic Citizen Kane still viewed as his defining success — and as one of the greatest movies ever made — over 80 years since its release.
Welles was just 25 years old when he directed, co-wrote, and starred in the famous picture. All three of his contributions were recognized by the Oscars, with Citizen Kane amassing nine nominations; however, the film’s only Oscar win was for its screenplay. John Ford won Best Director for How Green Was My Valley which won five Oscars, including Best Picture.
2 Delbert Mann — ‘Marty’ (1955)
While he may not be the most famous director of all time, Delbert Mann has the prestigious honor of being the first filmmaker to win Best Director for a debut feature film. His sweet slice-of-life romantic drama follows an unlucky-in-love butcher who gives up on relationships only to find himself falling in love with a schoolteacher he meets at a ballroom.
Mann beat out iconic filmmakers David Lean, John Sturges, and Elia Kazan for the Oscar, one of four Marty won at the ceremony. It was the only Oscar nomination Delbert Mann ever received in a career spanning almost 50 years.
3 Sidney Lumet — '12 Angry Men' (1957)
A timeless classic, 12 Angry Men excelled with its magnetic acting performances and effective direction. Based on a 1954 teleplay that was broadcast live, the entire film takes place in one room as one juror tries to convince his peers that there is reasonable doubt in the case of a teenager charged with murder.
Gradually elevating the simmering tension to an explosive boiling point with great camera positioning and pacing, Sidney Lumet’s nomination for Best Director was one of three nominations the film received. David Lean would go on to win the Oscar for his epic war drama The Bridge on the River Kwai.
4 Robert Redford — ‘Ordinary People’ (1980)
Robert Redford had been a Hollywood A-lister for over a decade when he turned his attention to directing with the family drama Ordinary People. He proved to be a natural, showing astute emotional intelligence and directorial craft as the film followed an upper-middle-class family being torn apart in the wake of a tragic death.
The film was nominated for six Oscars and won four, including one for Redford, who was recognized for his direction over fellow nominees Martin Scorsese and David Lynch. While the actor-turned-director had previously been nominated for his lead performance in The Sting, it was his first Oscar win. He was nominated again in 1996, and his service to film was recognized with a Lifetime Achievement award at the 74th Academy Awards in 2002.
5 James L. Brooks — ‘Terms of Endearment’ (1983)
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As a star-studded tearjerker, Terms of Endearment always had the potential to be a big hit at the Oscars. It was nominated for awards in 11 categories and won five Oscars, including Best Director for first-time director James L. Brooks who also took home Oscars for Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Picture.
Brooks’ direction masterfully navigated the deftly weighted script while getting fantastic performances out of the actors, culminating in a hilarious and heartbreaking film. Brooks earned Oscar nominations for three different films afterward, but Terms of Endearment was the only film he ever won Oscars for.
6 Kevin Costner — ‘Dances with Wolves’ (1990)
After breaking out as a bankable leading man in the '80s, Kevin Costner added directing to his resume with the Western epic Dances with Wolves. With noble intentions, Costner set out to make a film that respected Native American culture, proving effective thanks to the overwhelming sense of grandeur Costner captured.
Not only directing the movie but starring in it and producing it as well, Costner earned nominations for Best Lead Actor, Best Picture, and Best Director as just three of a staggering 12 nominations the film received. He won for his direction, on top of winning Best Picture and seven other awards at the Oscars.
7 John Singleton — ‘Boyz n the Hood’ (1991)
A coming-of-age drama that served as a compelling deep dive into urban America, Boyz n the Hood was as thematically rich as it was tragically poignant. The story, the characters, and the hostile, hopeless environment were captured so masterfully that it’s difficult to believe John Singleton was just 24 years old when he wrote and directed the film.
The nomination for Best Director not only saw Singleton become the youngest nominee for the award (a record that still stands) but — some 64 years into the history of the ceremony — he became the first Black person to be nominated for film direction. A further five Black filmmakers have been nominated for Best Director since none have taken home the award.
8 Sam Mendes — ‘American Beauty’ (1999)
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Having carved out a career as a theater director through the 1990s, Sam Mendes made his feature film debut with the provocative dramedy American Beauty. Balancing its disturbing story of lust and depression with razor-sharp wit, the film was nominated for eight Academy Awards and won five, including Best Direction for Mendes.
His ability to deftly balance the film's darker elements with its scathing comedy immersed audiences in the tragedy underlining the eye-opening absurdity. Among Mendes’ fellow nominees was Spike Jones, who was himself nominated for his debut film, Being John Malkovich.
9 Jordan Peele — ‘Get Out’ (2017)
Undoubtedly one of the most iconic and celebrated directorial debuts, Jordan Peele burst onto the scene as a director of the future with his surprising horror hit Get Out. After making a name for himself in entertainment alongside Keegan-Michael Key as sketch comics, he completely re-invented his career with the 2017 hit film and earned recognition from the Academy in the process.
In addition to his nomination for Best Director, Peele also received a nomination for Best Original Screenplay and, as a producer, a credit in the Best Picture nomination, while Daniel Kaluuya received a nomination for Best Lead Actor. Peele became just the fifth Black person to be nominated for Best Director and the first to win the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.
10 Emerald Fennell — ‘Promising Young Woman’ (2020)
While she regularly worked as an actress in English film and television for ten years prior, Emerald Fennell didn’t truly break out internationally until her polarizing revenge thriller Promising Young Woman turned heads in 2020. Headed by a fantastic performance from Carey Mulligan, it follows a traumatized woman seeking vengeance on those who wronged her.
As timely as it was targeted, the provocative picture received five Oscar nominations, with Fennell earning recognition for her screenplay as well as her direction. While Fennell went on to win the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, Chloé Zhao took the Best Director prize for Nomadland, which was just her second feature film.