About Robert Zemeckis
Robert Lee Zemeckis (born May 14, 1951), sometimes referred to as Bob Zemeckis, is an American filmmaker. Known for directing and producing a range of successful and influential films that often blend cutting-edge visual effects with storytelling, he has received accolades such as an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award, as well as nominations for five British Academy Film Awards and a Daytime Emmy Award. Zemeckis gained some recognition for his short film A Field of Honor (1973), which earned him a Student Academy Award for Special Jury Prize at USC. He started his career directing the comedy films I Wanna Hold Your Hand (1978), Used Cars (1980), and Romancing the Stone (1984). He gained prominence directing the sci-fi comedy Back to the Future trilogy (1985–1990), the fantasy comedy Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988), and the comedy-drama Forrest Gump (1994), the latter of which earned him the Academy Award for Best Director. He is one of only a few people to win Academy Awards for both student and professional work. Zemeckis has also directed the satirical black comedy Death Becomes Her (1992), the science fiction film Contact (1997), and the drama films Cast Away (2000), Flight (2012), The Walk (2015), and Allied (2016). His exploration of motion-capture techniques is seen in the animated films The Polar Express (2004) and A Christmas Carol (2009), as well as the action fantasy Beowulf (2007) and the drama Welcome to Marwen (2018). He has collaborated with film composer Alan Silvestri since 1984, and directed Tom Hanks in five films. The film grossed $677 million worldwide and became the top-grossing American film of 1994; it won six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor for Hanks, and Best Director for Zemeckis. Zemeckis gained some recognition for his short film A Field of Honor (1973), which awarded him a Student Academy Award for Special Jury Prize at USC. I Wanna Hold Your Hand was the first of several Zemeckis films to incorporate historic figures and celebrities into his movies; he used archival footage and doubles to simulate the presence of the Beatles. Although his next film would have some comedic elements, it was Zemeckis's first with dramatic elements and was also his biggest commercial success to date, Forrest Gump. Known for directing and producing a range of successful and influential films that often blend cutting-edge visual effects with storytelling, he has received accolades such as two Academy Awards and a Golden Globe Award, as well as nominations for five British Academy Film Awards and a Daytime Emmy Award.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.