Robert Lee Zemeckis is an American film director born in 1951 who first gained attention for directing Back to the Future Part 1 in 1985. Auteur theory suggests that a director can use film as a medium for personal artistic expression, and that their style continues across films. Some of Zemeckis's most notable films that portray isolation and loneliness include Cast Away, Back to the Future 1, and Forrest Gump, in which he explores characters isolated in unfamiliar times or places.