JOHN CARPENTER

Filmmaker known for horror and action films

A master in science fiction and horror, John Carpenter has built a career as a trailblazer in filmmaking. Born in a small town in New York, his family moved to Bowling Green, Kentucky, when he was five years old. He studied for a short time at Western Kentucky University and then transferred to USC’s film school. Before dropping out of school to pursue his independent film ventures, he began to develop the frenetic, urgent pacing that would feature in several of his features.

In 1978, he released Halloween, which would become one of the most historically and culturally significant contributions to the horror genre of filmmaking. Introducing American audiences to the slasher film, Halloween would inspire its own series of sequels and other films in the genre. Moving into the 1980s, he created significant entries in science fiction including Escape from New York, The Thing, and Starman. 

In addition to his work as a filmmaker, he has also gained a notable reputation as a composer. Creating the infamous theme to his film Halloween, he reprised the composition in the film’s 2018 remake.