Christopher Nolan is an acclaimed British film director known for his storytelling. He began making films as a child with his father's camera. After studying literature in college and making short films, his first feature film Following (1998) was made for $6,000. His second film Memento (2000) brought him critical acclaim and award nominations. Nolan is best known for reviving the Batman franchise with Batman Begins (2005) and The Dark Knight (2008), both of which were major commercial successes.

1. Director Study
Christopher Nolan
Director Study

2. About Christopher Nolan
Best known for his story­telling, acclaimed writer­director Christopher Nolan was born on
July 30, 1970 in London, England. Over the course of 15 years of film­making, Nolan has
gone from low­budget independent films to working on some of the biggest blockbusters
ever made.
At 7 years old, Nolan began making short movies with his father's Super­8 camera.
While studying English Literature at University College London, he shot 16­millimetre
films at U.C.L.'s film society, where he learned the guerrilla techniques he would later
use to make his first feature, Following (1998), on a budget of around $6,000. The noir
thriller was recognized at a number of international film festivals prior to its theatrical
release, and gained Nolan enough credibility that he was able to gather substantial
financing for his next film.

3. Nolan's second film was Memento (2000), which he directed from his own screenplay based
on a short story by his brother Jonathan. Starring Guy Pearce, the film brought Nolan
numerous honors, including Academy Award and Golden Globe Award nominations for Best
Original Screenplay. Nolan went on to direct the critically acclaimed psychological thriller,
Insomnia (2002), starring Al Pacino, Robin Williams and Hilary Swank.
The turning point in Nolan's career occurred when he was awarded the chance to revive the
Batman franchise in 2005. In Batman Begins (2005), Nolan brought a level of gravitas back
to the iconic hero, and his gritty, modern interpretation was greeted with praise from fans
and critics alike. Before moving on to a Batman sequel, Nolan directed, cowrote and
produced the mystery thriller The Prestige (2006), starring Christian Bale and Hugh
Jackman as magicians whose obsessive rivalry leads to tragedy and murder.
In 2008, Nolan directed, cowrote, and produced The Dark Knight (2008) which went on to
gross more than a billion dollars at the world­wide box office. Nolan was nominated for a
Directors Guild of America (D.G.A.) Award, Writers Guild of America (W.G.A.) Award and
Producers Guild of America (P.G.A.) Award, and the film also received eight Academy
Award nominations.

4. Noted for the innovative structure of both his noirish, cerebral debut film Following (1998) and its
follow­up, the equally unconventional and heady Memento (2000), London­born filmmaker
Christopher Nolan has shown a unique talent for creating involving films containing concepts
based on abstract breaks with conventional behavior and idealism. Dubbed meta­noir by critics
at a loss for words to describe its psychologically demanding, high­concept yet low­key journey
into the mind of a man seeking revenge but lacking the ability to create new memories,
Memento became the basis of lively discussion and debate among critics and audiences
hungering for something thoughtful among a flurry of countless computer­generated pseudo­
thrills and all­too­familiar gross­out comedies.
What Critics think about the Thriller
Director Christopher Nolan...