My Inspirational Director

“My hope is we broke so many rules we created a new rule”

Born in India but raised in the posh suburban Penn Valley area of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, M. Night Shyamalan is the son of two doctors.

His passion for filmmaking began when he was given a Super-8 camera at age eight, and even at that young age began to model his career on that of his idol, Steven Spielberg.

Though his father wanted him to follow in the family practice of medicine, his mother encouraged him to follow his passion.

By the time he was 17 the Steven Spielberg fan had made 45 home movies.

Not only is he a director, but also produces, writes and acts in most of his films.

His first film, Praying with Anger (1992), was based somewhat on his own trip back to visit the India of his birth. He raised all the funds for this project, in addition to directing, producing and starring in it.

Wide Awake (1998), his second film, he wrote and directed, and shot it in the Philadelphia-area Catholic school he once attended-even though his family was of a different religion, they sent him to that school because of its strict discipline.

That same year Shyamalan co-wrote the screenplay for Stuart Little with Greg Brooker.

Frequently uses Philadelphia as the backdrop in his movies. As seen in the films Wide Awake, The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, Signsand The Village.

Having some sort of twist in the end or surprise ending in his films.

Frequently uses shots of people's reflections in various objects

Many of his films involve two ordinary individuals with extraordinary abilities or events happening to them. One of the people either has connections to a child or is a child, and the one connected to the child is always having marital difficulties.

Films often use an event from the main character's past as a major connection to what is happening in the present (the Vincent Gray case in The Sixth Sense, the car crash in Unbreakable, the death of the wife in Signs).

Films contain widowed spouses or struggling/abandoned marriages. Anna Crowe in The Sixth Sense was a widow and Lynn Sear's husband had abandoned them. The struggling relationship of David and Audrey in Unbreakable. Graham was a widower in Signs. Alice was a widow in The Village. Cleveland was a widower in Lady in the Water. Finally, the struggling marriage of Alma and Elliott in The Happening.

His characters are often ordinary individuals caught up in extraordinary circumstances

“I play for a living...Success is tied to a feeling of magic, which I can protect.”

“When you say fear of the unknown, that is the definition of fear; fear is the unknown, fear is what you do not know, and it's genetically within us so that we feel safe. We feel scared of the woods because we're not familiar with it, and that keeps you safe.”

"It's human nature. Twenty-six people love the movie, and the 27th person hates it, and the only thing you can think about is the 27th person."

“If I'm hesitant at all about an idea, then that's not the right idea.”

I will adopted some of M. Knight Shyamalan Trademark into my own production as I think they are effective and will help make my narrative

and trailer successful and more interesting.

I will have some sort of twist in the end or a surprise ending like he does in his films- I willdo this by revealing that one of the daughters is not as innocent as I will make her out to be throughout the whole film.

I will also use shots where there is a reflection of the character in various different objects such as a mirror. This will be a good effect as it can give vague hints that my character has a split personality.

My film narrative will be based around children, strange happenings will occur to the fathers daughter. This will cause the mum and dad to be experience some martial difficulties. – one of Shyamalan’s trademarks.

My film narrative will contain a widowed spouse, and a divorcee- all which will effect the children from these marriages – he used this approach in several different films. This allows you to have a more twisted ending

Year Film Director Producer Writer Actor Role

1992 Praying with

Anger

Yes No Yes Yes Dev Raman

1998 Wide Awake Yes No Yes No

1999 The Sixth

Sense

Yes No Yes Yes Dr. Hill

Stuart Little No No Yes No

2000 Unbreakable Yes Yes Yes Yes Stadium drug

dealer

2002 Signs Yes Yes Yes Yes Ray Reddy

2004 The Village Yes Yes Yes Yes Jay (Guard at

desk)

2006 Lady in the

Water

Yes Yes Yes Yes Vick Ran/The

Vessel

2008 The

Happening

Yes Yes Yes Yes Joey (voice)

2010 The Last

Airbender

Yes Yes Yes No

Devil No Yes Yes No

2012 One Thousand

A.E.

Yes Yes No