Terrence Malick

Known for: The Tree of Life (2011), Days of Heaven (1978)

Terrence Malick directed only five films in his first four decades before entering a more prolific late period, but each — Badlands (1973), Days of Heaven (1978), The Thin Red Line (1998), The Tree of Life (2011) — is discussed as a singular formal achievement. He works with cinematographers to capture available light rather than construct images, and builds films in the editing room from thousands of hours of accumulated material. He studied philosophy at Harvard before turning to filmmaking.