''The Filmgoer's Companion'', now published as ''Halliwell's Who's Who in the Movies'', is an encyclopedic reference of film

actors An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

, film technicians (cameramen, editors, score composers, and the many other specialist required to make a movie),

directors Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

and

producers Producer(s), The Producer(s), or co-producer(s) may refer to: Occupations *Producer (agriculture), a farm operator *Producer, a stakeholder of economic production * Film producer, supervises the making of films **Executive producer, contributes t ...

who have produced or performed in the cinema. The format is a brief biographic introduction, followed by a list of films that they have association. It was originally written by

Leslie Halliwell Robert James Leslie Halliwell (23 February 1929 – 21 January 1989) was a British film critic, encyclopaedist and television rights buyer for ITV, the British commercial network, and Channel 4. He is best known for his reference guides, '' Fi ...

, but since his death in 1989, it has been edited by John Walker. The second half of the book contains information on film themes and genres, a listing of production companies and

film studios A film studio (also known as movie studio or simply studio) is a major entertainment company that makes films. Today, studios are mostly financing and distribution entities. In addition, they may have their own studio facility or facilities; howev ...

, a glossary, and some

movie award This is a list of groups, organizations, and festivals that recognize achievements in cinema, usually by awarding various prizes. The awards sometimes also have popular unofficial names (such as the "Oscar" for Hollywood's Academy Awards), which ar ...

s. The first edition, published in 1965, included an introduction by

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English film director. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featu ...

Latest edition

The 4th edition of ''Halliwell's Who's Who in the Movies'' (i.e. the 16th edition of ''The Filmgoer's Companion'') (2006) () contains 656 pages.

References

Film guides Books about film Biographical dictionaries by occupation {{film-book-stub