APM Welcome, APM North West Network Conference, Synergies Across Sectors
Director research a2
1.
2. ABOUT WES CRAVEN
o American film director, writer, producer, and
actor known for his work on horror films,
particularly slasher films.
3. FAMOUS MOVIES DIRECTED
o He was best known for creating the A Nightmare on
Elm Street franchise featuring the Freddy Krueger
character, directing the first installment and Wes
Craven's New Nightmare, and co-writing A Nightmare
on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors with Bruce Wagner
o Craven also directed all four films in the Scream
series, and co-created the Ghostface character. Some
of his other films include The Hills Have Eyes, The
Last House on the Left, The People Under The Stairs,
Red Eye, The Serpent And The Rainbow and Vampire
In Brooklyn.
4. FILM STYLE
Craven's works tend to share a common exploration of the
nature of reality. A Nightmare on Elm Street, for example,
dealt with the consequences of dreams in real life. New
Nightmare "brushes against" (but does not quite break) the
fourth wall by having actress Heather Langenkamp play
herself as she is haunted by the villain of the film in which
she once starred.
At one point in the film, the audience sees on Wes Craven's
word processor a script he has written, which includes the
exact conversation he just had with Heather — as if the
script was being written as the action unfolded. The Serpent
and the Rainbow portrays a man who cannot distinguish
between nightmarish visions and reality.
6. AWARDS AND NOMINEES
During his career, Wes Craven was nominated for and
won several awards, including the Saturn Award.
In 1977, he won the critic's award at the Sitges Film
Festival for his film The Hills Have Eyes. The
Gérardmer Film Festival granted him the Grand Prize
in 1997 for Scream. In 2012, the New York City Horror
Film Festival awarded Craven the Lifetime
Achievement Award.
7. FILMS
Wes Craven has become synonymous with genre
bending and innovative horror, challenging
audiences with his bold vision.
His first feature film was The Last House on the Left
(1972), which he wrote, directed, and edited. Craven
reinvented the youth horror genre again in 1984 with
the classic A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), a film
he wrote and directed.