Roland Emmerich (born
November 10,
1955) is a
German film director,
screenwriter, and
producer who works mostly in the
disaster and
action genres. He is the 18th-highest grossing director of all time in the United States, with his films generating over $945 million there.
He began his work in the film industry by directing the film
The Noah's Ark Principle as part of his university thesis and also co-founded Centropolis Film Productions in 1985 with his sister. He is a collector of art and an active campaigner for the lesbian and gay community, with Emmerich himself being
openly gay.
He is also a campaigner for an awareness of global warming and equal rights.
Early life and career
Emmerich was born in
Stuttgart,
Germany and grew up in the suburb of
Sindelfingen.
As a youth, he traveled extensively throughout Europe and North America on vacations financed by his father, Hans, the wealthy founder of a garden machinery production company.
In 1977, he began attending
University of Television and Film Munich with the intention of studying to become a production designer.
After watching
Star Wars, he instead decided to enroll in the school's film director program.
[The Force Is With Them: The Legacy of Star Wars Star Wars Original Trilogy DVD Box Set: Bonus Materials, [1]] Required to create a short film as his final thesis in 1981, he wrote and directed the full-length feature
The Noah's Ark Principle, which was eventually screened as the opening movie of the 1984
Berlin Film Festival.
