Iconic Horror Directors

Wes Craven

Notable Work: Scream 1-4 ( 1996-2011)
                        New Nightmare (1994)
                        A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
                       The Last House on the Left (1972)

A well-known horror director, Craven became famous for his innovative approach to the genre. The films A Nightmare on Elm Street & the Scream series focused on youth-horror, an incredibly popular sub-genre, and the use of ironic dark and hyperbolic humour. This involved using the young cast to refer to other horror movies, while being antagonised by their own terror which , in turn, would subtly comment on other horror villains. Craven is often credited with making the sub-genre the profitable and easily re-workable machine it is today.

George A. Romero

Notable Work: Dead pentalogy (1968-2009)

Romero started a small movie company in 1967 with a few university friends, each with a share of $10,000. They began work on their first project, Night of the Living Dead, a zombie horror film with a twist: its comparatively tiny budget of around $100,000. Filmed in black and white, blood was made from chocolate sauce to keep down costs and a solid script ensured it's huge success at the box office. It grossed over $30,000,000 and set a standard for an explosion of cheap, yet popular and often critically acclaimed horror movies.

A common factor between these two directors is the fact that they sparked hugely successful franchises, both at the box-office and with critics. This is no mean feat in the world of horror movies where bland, recycled scripts with an excessive amount of blood and gore are chewed-up and spat out by the mainstream market while being panned by reviewers.