This is a list of film directorial debuts in chronological order. The films and dates referred to are a director's first commercial cinematic release. Many filmmakers have directed works which were not commercially released, for example early works by Orson Welles such as his filming of his stage production of Twelfth Night in 1933 or his experimental short film The Hearts of Age in 1934. Often these early works were not intended for commercial release either by intent, such as film school projects or inability to find distribution. Subsequently, many directors learned their trade in the medium of television as it became popular in the 1940s and 1950s. Notable directors who did their first directorial work in this medium include Robert Altman, Sidney Lumet, and Alfonso Cuarón. As commercial television advertising became more cinematic in the 1960s and 1970s, many directors early work was in this medium, including directors such as Alan Parker and Ridley Scott. With the success of MTV and the popularity of music videos from the early 1980s, this gave another avenue for directors to hone their skills. Notable directors whose early work was in music videos include David Fincher, Jonathan Glazer, Michel Gondry, and Spike Jonze. The following symbols indicate where a director has worked in another medium prior to directing commercially. ♦ Indicates where a director has created other earlier works for television # Indicates when a director's earlier work is uncredited † Indicates when a director's earlier work has not been released in cinemas, for example film school productions, short films or music videos. Refer to individual entries for further detail.

1880s

1887

1890s

1896

1898

1900s

1901

1907

1908

1909

1910s

1911

1912

1913

1914

1915

1916

1917

1918

1919

1920s

1920

1921

1922

1923

1924

1925

1926

1927

1928

1929

1930s

1930

1931

1932

1933

1934

1935

1936

1937

1938

1939

1940s

1940

1941

1942

1943

1944

1945

1946

1947

1948

1949

1950s

1950

1951

1952

1953

1954

1955

1956

1957

1958

1959

1960s

1960

1961

1962

1963

1964

1965

1966

1967

1968

1969

1970s

1970

1971

1972

1973

1974

1975

1976

1977

1978

1979

1980s

1980

1981

1982

1983

1984

1985

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990s

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000s

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010s

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020s

2020

2021

2022

2023

2024

2025

2026

Upcoming