William Friedkin is rightly considered a pioneer of the New Hollywood movement that exploded onto American screens in the late ’60s and ’70s.

In a business where you’re only as good as your last film, it is surprising to learn that the final works of cinema’s greatest directors are often shrouded in mystery and relegated to the outskirts of their oeuvres.

Each awards season, the Directors Guild of America’s nominees for best feature film gather for an in-depth discussion of their work at the annual Meet the Nominees Symposium.

Rabiger and Hurbis-Cherrier’s firsthand experience allows them to describe the day-to-day of directing in simple, uncomplicated terms, appealing to both the novice and seasoned pro.

As this Taschen volume makes clear, the Master of Suspense remains appealing to cineastes young and old, with 50-plus features underscoring his timeless ingenuity.

Author Gwenda Young makes the case that from the silent era to the golden age, Clarence Brown deserves a place among the giants.

Director Ernst Lubitsch, who was idolized by Wilder and Welles, is brought into sharp focus.

The making of George Stevens' Texas-sized epic is recounted in Don Graham's meticulously chronicled book.

As the newly scaled down yet no less comprehensive Taschen book Stanley Kubrick’s Napoleon: The Greatest Movie Never Made demonstrates, Kubrick was nothing if not a completist.