Directing
John Carpenter
An American film director, screenwriter, producer, editor, composer, and occasional actor. Although Carpenter has worked in numerous film genres in his four-decade career, his name is most commonly associated with horror and science fiction. Most films in Carpenter's career were initially commercial and critical failures, with the notable exceptions of Halloween (1978), The Fog (1980), Escape from New York (1981), and Starman (1984). However, many of Carpenter's films from the 1970s and the 1980s have come to be viewed as cult classics, and he has been acknowledged as an influential filmmaker. Cult classics that Carpenter directed include: Dark Star (1974), Assault on Precinct 13 (1976), The Thing (1982), Christine (1983), Big Trouble in Little China (1986), Prince of Darkness (1987), They Live (1988) and In the Mouth of Madness (1995). His films are characterized by minimalist lighting and photography, static cameras, use of steadicam, and distinctive synthesized scores. Carpenter is also notable for having composed or co-composed most of the music of his films; some of them are now considered cult as well, with the main theme of Halloween being considered a part of popular culture. His music is generally synthesized with accompaniment from piano and atmospherics. He released his first studio album Lost Themes in 2015, and also won a Saturn Award for Best Music for Vampires (1998). Carpenter is an outspoken proponent of widescreen filming, and all of his theatrical movies (with the exception of Dark Star and The Ward) were filmed anamorphic with a 2.35:1 or greater aspect ratio. The Ward was shot in Super 35, the first time Carpenter has ever used that system. Carpenter has stated he feels that the 35mm Panavision anamorphic format is "the best movie system there is", preferring it over both digital and 3D film. Many of Carpenter's films have been re-released on DVD as special editions with numerous bonus features. Carpenter has been the subject of the documentary film John Carpenter: The Man and His Movies, and American Cinematheque's 2002 retrospective of his films. Moreover, in 2006, the United States Library of Congress deemed Halloween to be "culturally significant" and selected it for preservation in the National Film Registry. In 2010, writer and actor Mark Gatiss interviewed Carpenter about his career and films for his BBC documentary series A History of Horror. Carpenter appears in all three episodes of the series. He was also interviewed by Robert Rodriguez for his The Director's Chair series on El Rey Network. Many filmmakers have been influenced by Carpenter, including James Cameron, Quentin Tarantino (The Hateful Eight was heavily influenced by The Thing), Guillermo del Toro, Robert Rodriguez, Edgar Wright, Danny Boyle, Nicolas Winding Refn, Bong Joon-ho, among others. The video game Dead Space 3 is said to be influenced by Carpenter's The Thing, The Fog and Halloween, and Carpenter has stated that he would be enthusiastic to adapt that series into a feature film.
Filmography
The Thing Expanded
Film · 2026
Full Moon Rising: The Charles Band Story
Film · 2026
Carpenter
Film · 2026
In Search of Darkness: 1995-1999
Film · 2025
I'm Chevy Chase and You're Not
Film · 2025
John Carpenter: Live From Los Angeles - Halloween Night
Film · 2025
Hammer: Heroes, Legends and Monsters
Film · 2024
In Search of Darkness: 1990-1994
Film · 2024
John Mulaney Presents: Everybody's in L.A.
Series · 2024
Amityville: An Origin Story
Series · 2023
In Search of Darkness: Part III
Film · 2022
Studio 666
Film · 2022
Halloween in Hollywood
Film · 2022
In Search of Tomorrow
Film · 2022
Charles Band’s Full Moon Freakshow
Series · 2022
The History of Metal and Horror
Film · 2021
AGFA Mystery Mixtape #4: Follow Your Own Star
Film · 2020
In Search of Darkness: Part II
Film · 2020
The AGFA Mystery Mixtape Vault
Film · 2020
In Search of Darkness
Film · 2019
1982: Hollywood Summer
Film · 2019
The Rise of the Synths
Film · 2019
The Movies That Made Us
Series · 2019
Henchman: The Al Leong Story
Film · 2018
John Carpenter: Live Retrospective
Film · 2018
Monstres, l'ennemi de l'intérieur
Film · 2017
Dark Glamour: The Blood and Guts of Hammer Productions
Film · 2017
It Takes a Village: The Making of Village of the Damned
Film · 2016
The Puppet Man
Film · 2016
John Carpenter: Live At Primavera Sound 2016
Film · 2016
Jean-Michel Jarre: A Journey into Sound
Film · 2015
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
Series · 2015
Track Stories
Series · 2015
Carpenter on Quatermass
Film · 2014
Why Horror?
Film · 2014
The Director's Chair
Series · 2014
The Real History of Science Fiction
Series · 2014
The Birds: Hitchcock's Monster Movie
Film · 2012
Charlie Brown: Blockhead's Revenge
Film · 2011
Nightmare Factory
Film · 2011
The Future of Fear
Film · 2011
Scary Girl
Film · 2011
Let There Be Light: The Odyssey of Dark Star
Film · 2010
Halloween: The Inside Story
Film · 2010
A History of Horror
Series · 2010
Nightmares in Red, White and Blue
Film · 2009
Tales from the Script
Film · 2009
Monsterland
Film · 2009
Fasten Your Seatbelt: The Thrilling Art of Alfred Hitchcock
Film · 2009
The Master's Touch: Hitchcock's Signature Style
Film · 2009
Lovecraft: Fear of the Unknown
Film · 2008
Fantastic Flesh: The Art of Make-Up EFX
Film · 2008
Pure Cinema: Through the Eyes of Hitchcock
Film · 2008
Bernard Herrmann: Hitchcock's Maestro
Film · 2008
In the Master's Shadow: Hitchcock's Legacy
Film · 2008
Partners in Crime: Hitchcock's Collaborators
Film · 2008
Bloodsucking Cinema
Film · 2007
Commemoration: Howard Hawks' 'Rio Bravo'
Film · 2007
Going to Pieces: The Rise and Fall of the Slasher Film
Film · 2006
Robby the Robot: Engineering a Sci-Fi Icon
Film · 2006
Working with a Master: John Carpenter
Film · 2006
Big John
Film · 2006
Born to Controversy: The Roddy Piper Story
Film · 2006
Halloween: 25 Years of Terror
Film · 2006
Amazing! Exploring the Far Reaches of Forbidden Planet
Film · 2006
The Perfect Scary Movie
Film · 2005
Hollywood's Greatest Villains
Film · 2005
Snake Plissken: Man of Honor
Film · 2005
John Carpenter: The Man and His Movies
Film · 2004
Christine: Ignition
Film · 2004
Christine: Fast and Furious
Film · 2004
Christine: Finish Line
Film · 2004
Hollywood's Creepiest Creatures
Film · 2004
100 Scariest Movie Moments
Series · 2004
An Opera of Violence
Film · 2003
Halloween: A Cut Above the Rest
Film · 2003
Do You Remember Laurie Zimmer?
Film · 2003
The Wages of Sin
Film · 2003
Something to Do with Death
Film · 2003
Return to 'Escape from New York'
Film · 2003
Scoring "Resident Evil"
Film · 2002
Masters of Horror
Film · 2002
Tales from the Mist: Inside 'The Fog'
Film · 2002
Through the Night with...
Series · 2002
Dario Argento: An Eye for Horror
Film · 2001
Red Desert Nights: Making Ghosts of Mars
Film · 2001
Hidden Values: The Movies of the Fifties
Film · 2001
Scoring 'Ghosts of Mars'
Film · 2001
The American Nightmare
Film · 2000
Mario Bava: Maestro of the Macabre
Film · 2000
Guns for Hire: The Making of 'The Magnificent Seven'
Film · 2000
Scream and Scream Again: A History of the Slasher Film
Film · 2000
Halloween: Unmasked
Film · 1999
The Thing: Terror Takes Shape
Film · 1998
100 Years of Horror
Series · 1996
After Sunset: The Life & Times of the Drive-In Theater
Film · 1995
Village of the Damned
Film · 1995
The Silence of the Hams
Film · 1994
Masters of Illusion: The Wizards of Special Effects
Film · 1994
Body Bags
Film · 1993
Memoirs of an Invisible Man
Film · 1992
Fear in the Dark
Film · 1991
Horror Cafe
Film · 1990
Stephen King's World of Horror
Film · 1989
First Works
Film · 1989
The Making of 'They Live'
Film · 1988
They Live
Film · 1988
Crossbow
Series · 1987
Stephen King's World of Horror
Film · 1986
The Boy Who Could Fly
Film · 1986
Big Trouble in Little China
Film · 1986
Starman
Film · 1984
Take One: Fear on Film
Film · 1982
The Thing
Film · 1982
The Making of 'The Thing'
Film · 1982
Escape from New York
Film · 1981
The Fog
Film · 1980
Bringing A Legend To Life
Film · 1979
Halloween
Film · 1978
Assault on Precinct 13
Film · 1976
Dark Star
Film · 1974
The Rifleman
Series · 1958
The Debra Hill Story
Film