Steven ‘Allan’ Spielberg was born on December 18, 1946, in Cincinnati, Ohio. His mother was a concert pianist and his father was an electrical engineer. He was attracted to films at a very young age itself. By the time he finished his teens, he had made a number of 8 mm films mostly featuring World War II stories that his father used to tell him. Other than that he also liked to make adventure movies which he shot in nearby parks and restaurants.

At the age of 13, he set off with his father’s movie camera and made a 40-minute film called’ Escape to Nowhere’ based on a battle in East Africa. At 16 years of age, he made a sci-fi adventure film called ‘Firelight’ on a $500 budget. In 1965, he graduated from Saratoga High School. Then he went on to attend the University of Southern California where he studied Theatre, Film, and Television. He was unsuccessful there and thus joined Universal Studios as a seven-day-week unpaid intern. Here he worked in the editing department but his name was never mentioned in the credits. He went on to make a 26-minute short film called Amblin’ in 1968 which was also released in a few theatres. This film was liked by the top management at Universal Studios and he was signed to direct a full-length film. Due to various complications, the film didn’t take off but soon he was hired to direct a segment for the first episode of the television series ‘Night Gallery’.

He got a chance to direct many short TV films before he made his debut film ‘Sugarland Express’. Though the film was not a critical or commercial success, he was praised for the cinematography. In 1975, he got a chance to direct the film ‘Jaws’ which would go on to turn his fledgling career upside down. This movie was a blockbuster hit collecting more than $450 million at the worldwide box office. This movie had lots of delays and the budget went haywire but Spielberg’s calm and confident demeanor helped him complete the film successfully. In 1977, he went on to make ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind’. This film achieved both critical and commercial acclaim. Next, he joined hands with his close friend George Lucas and went on to direct ‘Indiana Jones: Raiders of the Lost Ark’. This film grossed more than $380 million and made him one of the elite directors in Hollywood. Then he produced and directed the film ‘E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial’ on a budget of $10.5 million. This film went on to gross more than $750 million and became the highest-grossing film of all time.

In 1993, he directed two of the greatest movies in his Career, the out and out commercial movie ‘Jurassic Park’ and the dramatic ‘Schindler’s List’. ‘Schindler’s List’ got him his first Academy Award for Best Director whereas ‘Jurassic Park’ went on to gross in excess of $900 million. In 1998, he went on to direct ‘Saving Private Ryan’ which gave him his second Academy Best Actor Award.

He went on to direct the sequels to the ‘Indiana Jones’ Series which grossed a combined total of $2 billion. ” Once a month the sky falls on my head, I come to and I see another movie I want to make.” – Steven Allan Spielberg went on to produce and direct many blockbuster movies like ‘Catch Me If You Can’, ‘The Terminal’, ‘Minority report’, ‘The Adventures of Tintin’ and ‘Lincoln’. As of 2013, Forbes has recorded his total wealth at $3.2 billion. He has been the recipient of various awards including three Academy Awards. His creativity and innovation have been behind the mammoth success that he has achieved over the years. He has become a national icon in America and is one of the greatest filmmakers in World cinema.

Spielberg is one of the American film industry's most critically successful filmmakers, with praise for his directing talent and versatility, and he has won the Academy Award for Best Director twice. Some of his films are also among the highest-grossing films, while his total work makes him the highest-grossing film director in history. His net worth is estimated to be more than $3.6 billion (2020).

Source: ainspiringworld