David Fincher

David Andrew Leo Fincher (born August 28, 1962) is an American film director. His films, mostly psychological thrillers and biographical dramas, have received 40 nominations at the Academy Awards, including three for him as Best Director. Fincher was the co-founder of Propaganda Films, a film and music video production company.

Born in Denver, Colorado, Fincher was interested in filmmaking at an early age. He directed numerous music videos, most notably Madonna's " Express Yourself" in 1989 and "Vogue" in 1990, both of which won him the MTV Video Music Award for Best Direction. He made his feature film debut with ''Alien 3'' (1992), which garnered mixed reviews, followed by the thriller ''Seven'' (1995), which was better received. Fincher found success with '' The Game'' (1997) and greater success with ''Fight Club'' (1999), with the latter eventually becoming a cult classic. In 2002, he returned to prominence with the thriller ''Panic Room'' starring Jodie Foster.

Fincher also directed ''Zodiac'' (2007), ''The Social Network'' (2010), ''The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'' (2011), and '' Mank'' (2020). For ''The Social Network'', he won the Golden Globe Award for Best Director and BAFTA Award for Best Direction. His biggest commercial successes are '' The Curious Case of Benjamin Button'' (2008) and '' Gone Girl'' (2014), both of which grossed more than $300 million worldwide, with the former earning thirteen nominations at the Academy Awards, and eleven at the British Academy Film Awards.

In television series, he served as an executive producer and director for the Netflix series ''House of Cards'' (2013–18) and '' Mindhunter'' (2017–19), winning the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for the pilot episode of ''House of Cards''. He also served as an executive producer and co-creator with Tim Miller for their work, ''Love, Death & Robots'', garnered several Emmys including Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Short Form Animated Program three times.

Early life

David Andrew Leo Fincher was born on August 28, 1962, in Denver, Colorado. His mother, Claire Mae (née Boettcher), was a mental health nurse from South Dakota who worked in drug addiction programs. His father, Howard Kelly "Jack" Fincher (December 6, 1930 – April 10, 2003), was an author from Oklahoma who worked as a reporter and bureau chief for ''Life'' magazine. When he was two years old, the family moved to San Anselmo, California, where filmmaker George Lucas was one of his neighbors. Fincher was fascinated with filmmaking from the age of eight, when he began making films with an 8mm camera. He has said:In his teens, Fincher moved to Ashland, Oregon, where he attended Ashland High School. He directed plays and designed sets and lighting after school, and was a non-union projectionist at Varsity Theatre, as well as a production assistant at the local television news station, KOBI in Medford, Oregon. He supported himself by working as a busboy, dishwasher and fry cook.

Career

1983–1991: Early work

While establishing himself in the film industry, Fincher was employed at John Korty's studio as a production head. Gaining further experience, he became a visual effects producer, working on the animated '' Twice Upon a Time'' (1983) with George Lucas. He was hired by Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) in 1983 as an assistant cameraman and matte photographer and worked on ''Return of the Jedi'' (1983) and ''Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom'' (1984). In 1984, he left ILM to direct a television commercial for the American Cancer Society that depicted a fetus smoking a cigarette. This quickly brought Fincher to the attention of producers in Los Angeles, and he was soon given the opportunity to direct Rick Springfield's 1985 documentary, ''The Beat of the Live Drum''. Set on a directing career, Fincher co-founded production company Propaganda Films and started directing commercials and music videos. Other directors such as Michael Bay, Antoine Fuqua, Michel Gondry, Spike Jonze, Alex Proyas, Paul Rachman, Mark Romanek, Zack Snyder and Gore Verbinski also honed their skills at Propaganda Films before moving on to feature films.

Fincher directed TV commercials for many companies including Levi's, Converse, Nike, Pepsi, Revlon, Sony, Coca-Cola and Chanel, although he loathed doing them. Starting in 1984, Fincher began his foray into music videos. He directed videos for various artists including singer-songwriters Rick Springfield, Don Henley, Martha Davis, Paula Abdul, rock band the Outfield, and R&B singer Jermaine Stewart. Fincher's 1990 music video for "Freedom! '90" was one of the most successful for George Michael. In addition, he directed Michael Jackson's " Who Is It", Aerosmith's "Janie's Got A Gun" and Billy Idol's " Cradle of Love". For Madonna, he directed some of her iconic music videos: " Express Yourself", " Oh Father", "Vogue" and " Bad Girl". Between 1984 and 1993, Fincher was credited as a director for 53 music videos. He referred to the production of music videos as his own "film school", in which he learned how to work efficiently within a small budget and time frame.

1992–2000: Breakthrough

In 1990, 20th Century Fox hired Fincher to replace Vincent Ward as the director for the science-fiction horror ''Alien 3'' (1992), his film directorial debut. It was the third installment in the ''Alien'' franchise starring Sigourney Weaver. The film was released in May 1992 to a mixed reception from critics and was considered weaker than the preceding films. From the beginning, ''Alien 3'' was hampered by studio intervention and several abandoned scripts. Peter Travers of the ''Rolling Stone'' called the film "bold and haunting", despite the "struggle of nine writers" and "studio interference". The film received an Academy Award nomination for Best Visual Effects. Years later, Fincher publicly expressed his dismay and subsequently disowned the film. In the book ''Director's Cut: Picturing Hollywood in the 21st Century'', Fincher blames the producers for their lack of trust in him. In an interview with ''The Guardian'' in 2009, he stated, "No one hated it more than me; to this day, no one hates it more than me."

After this critical disappointment, Fincher eschewed reading film scripts or directing another project. He briefly retreated to directing commercials and music videos, including the video for the song "Love Is Strong" by the Rolling Stones in 1994, which won the Grammy Award for Best Music Video. Shortly, Fincher decided to make a foray back into film. He read Andrew Kevin Walker's original screenplay for ''Seven'' (1995), which had been revised by Jeremiah Chechik, the director attached to the project at one point. Fincher expressed no interest in directing the revised version, so New Line Cinema agreed to keep the original ending. Starring Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, Gwyneth Paltrow, R. Lee Ermey, and Kevin Spacey, it tells the story of two detectives who attempt to identify a serial killer who bases his murders on the Christian seven deadly sins. ''Seven'' was positively received by film critics and was one of the highest-earning films of 1995, grossing more than $320 million worldwide. Writing for '' Sight and Sound'', John Wrathall said it "stands as the most complex and disturbing entry in the serial killer genre since '' Manhunter''" and Roger Ebert opined that ''Seven'' is "one of the darkest and most merciless films ever made in the Hollywood mainstream."

Following ''Seven'', Fincher directed a music video for "6th Avenue Heartache" by the Wallflowers and went on to direct his third feature film, the mystery thriller '' The Game'' (1997), written by the duo John Brancato and Michael Ferris. Fincher also hired ''Seven'' screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker to contribute and polish the script. Filmed on location in San Francisco, the story follows an investment banker, played by Michael Douglas, who receives an unusual gift from his younger brother (Sean Penn), where he becomes involved in a "game" that integrates with his everyday life, making him unable to differentiate between game and reality. Almar Haflidason of the BBC
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