filmmaker

American  

[film-mey-ker] / ˈfɪlmˌmeɪ kər /

noun

1. Also called moviemaker.  a producer or director of motion pictures, especially one working in all phases of production.

   the leading young filmmakers of France.

2. a person who makes film, especially for use in photography.

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Other Word Forms

• filmmaking noun

Etymology

Origin of filmmaker

First recorded in 1905–10; film + maker

Example Sentences

The moment feels like Ms. Romvari’s depiction of her own origin story as a filmmaker, and suggests how tightly intertwined her brother’s struggles are with the roots of her vocation.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

She tells the story of her initial encounter with filmmaker Jim Jarmusch as he began working on “Stranger Than Paradise,” where he was interested in casting Bertei as the female lead.

From Salon • Apr. 14, 2026

He imagined an older artist in a situation with a younger artist where “it’s a ruse but I didn’t know what the ruse was,” the filmmaker says.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2026

The big baby news arrives for the “White Lotus” star a year after the death of husband Jeff Baena, an independent filmmaker who directed Plaza in “The Little Hours.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2026

You might say, Okay, but when has a working-class Indian-American girl with a kooky dadi and ripped jeans ever become a famous filmmaker?

From "From Twinkle, with Love" by Sandhya Menon