Meaning & use
filmmaker
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountable
A person who makes movies, especially a director or producer.
Grammar: Countable: a filmmaker, two filmmakers. Often used with an adjective like independent or documentary.
Patterns
- a filmmaker
- independent filmmaker
- documentary filmmaker
She is an independent filmmaker who works with a small crew.
The festival attracts filmmakers from around the world.
As a filmmaker, he is known for his realistic style.
Word forms
| plural | filmmakers |
|---|
Common combinations
- independent filmmaker
- The independent filmmaker funded the project himself.
- documentary filmmaker
- The documentary filmmaker spent years with the community.
- young filmmaker
- The young filmmaker won an award for her first feature.
- aspiring filmmaker
- He moved to Los Angeles as an aspiring filmmaker.
Synonyms and how they differ
- director
- Director specifically means the person who directs the actors and the making of a film; filmmaker is broader and can include producers.
- producer
- Producer is the person who manages the business and organization of a film; filmmaker can refer to a producer but also to a director.
- movie maker
- Movie maker is a less common, more informal way to say filmmaker, often used in British English.
Word family
Commonly confused: filmmaker or film maker?
filmmaker vs film maker
The spelling 'filmmaker' is one word; 'film maker' is sometimes seen but is less common.
Practice
Which word best completes the sentence? 'The ___ spent three years making her latest movie.'
Choose one answer.
A filmmaker makes movies, so she would spend years making one. A filmgoer watches movies, a film critic reviews them, and a film buff is an enthusiast, none of whom would typically spend years making a movie.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “filmmaker”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.