Editing Christopher Nolan (section)

=== 1993–2003: Early career and breakthrough ===
After earning his bachelor's degree in English literature in 1993, Nolan worked as a [[Script analyst|script reader]], [[camera operator]] and director of [[corporate film]]s and [[industrial films]].<ref name="Tempest" /><ref name="Feinberg">{{Cite magazine |last=Feinberg, Scott |date=3 January 2015 |title=Christopher Nolan on ''Interstellar'' Critics, Making Original Films and Shunning Cell Phones and Email (Q&A) |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/race/christopher-nolan-interstellar-critics-making-760897 |url-status=live |magazine=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180117111636/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/race/christopher-nolan-interstellar-critics-making-760897 |archive-date=17 January 2018 |access-date=1 February 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=''Fearville'' (1997) |url=http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b81581f07 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107104214/http://www.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2b81581f07 |archive-date=7 November 2017 |access-date=1 February 2017 |publisher=[[British Film Institute]]}}</ref> He directed, wrote and edited the short film ''[[Larceny (short film)|Larceny]]'' (1996),{{sfn|Nathan|2022|p=34}} which was filmed over a weekend in black and white with limited equipment and a small cast and crew.{{sfn|Mooney|2018|p=5}}<ref>{{Cite news |title=Christopher Nolan: The Movies. The Memories |url=https://www.empireonline.com/interviews/interview.asp?IID=1052 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924064331/http://www.empireonline.com/interviews/interview.asp?IID=1052 |archive-date=24 September 2015 |access-date=12 February 2013 |work=[[Empire (magazine)|Empire]]|issue=253}}</ref> Funded by Nolan and shot with the [[UCL Union]] Film society's equipment, it appeared at the [[Cambridge Film Festival]] in 1996 and is considered one of UCL's best shorts.<ref>{{Cite web |title=UCLU Film Society, London |url=http://www.ucl.ac.uk/~uczxflm/productions/archive/9495 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120810232748/http://www.ucl.ac.uk/~uczxflm/productions/archive/9495/ |archive-date=10 August 2012 |access-date=12 February 2013 |publisher=[[University College London]]}}</ref> For unknown reasons, the film has since been removed from public view.{{sfn|Nathan|2022|p=34}} Nolan filmed a third short, ''[[Doodlebug (film)|Doodlebug]]'' (1997), about a man seemingly chasing an insect with his shoe, only to discover that it is a miniature of himself.{{sfn|Mooney|2018|p=6}}<ref name="independent">{{Cite news |last=Hooton |first=Christopher |date=10 April 2017 |title=Christopher Nolan's student short film ''Doodlebug'' shows the ''Dunkirk'' director's humble beginnings |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/christopher-nolan-director-dunkirk-short-first-film-doodlebug-student-ucl-london-a7675861.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190722194629/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/christopher-nolan-director-dunkirk-short-first-film-doodlebug-student-ucl-london-a7675861.html |archive-date=22 July 2019 |access-date=22 July 2019 |work=[[The Independent]]|url-access=registration}}</ref>

Nolan and Thomas first attempted to make a feature in the mid-1990s titled ''Larry Mahoney'', which they scrapped.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Whitington |first1=Paul |title=How Christopher Nolan has held true to his sweeping vision with ''Tenet'' |url=https://www.independent.ie/entertainment/movies/how-christopher-nolan-has-held-true-to-his-sweeping-vision-with-tenet-39466428.html |access-date=10 December 2022 |work=[[Irish Independent]] |date=22 August 2020 |url-access=subscription |archive-date=10 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221210113740/https://www.independent.ie/entertainment/movies/how-christopher-nolan-has-held-true-to-his-sweeping-vision-with-tenet-39466428.html |url-status=live }}{{subscription required}}</ref> During this period in his career, Nolan had little to no success getting his projects off the ground, facing several rejections; he added, "[T]here's a very limited pool of finance in the UK. To be honest, it's a very clubby kind of place&nbsp;... Never had any support whatsoever from the British film industry."<ref name="AndrewPulver05">{{Cite news |last=Pulver |first=Andrew |date=15 June 2005 |title=He's not a god – he's human |work=[[The Guardian]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2005/jun/15/features.features11 |url-status=live |access-date=23 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131224110327/http://www.theguardian.com/film/2005/jun/15/features.features11 |archive-date=24 December 2013}}</ref>

Shortly after abandoning ''Larry Mahoney'', Nolan conceived the idea for his first feature, ''[[Following]]'' (1998), which he wrote, directed, photographed and edited. The film depicts an unemployed young writer ([[Jeremy Theobald]]) who trails strangers through London, hoping they will provide material for his first novel, but is drawn into a criminal underworld when he fails to keep his distance. It was inspired by Nolan's experience of living in London and having his apartment burgled; he observed that the common attribute between larceny and pursuing someone through a crowd was that they both cross social boundaries.{{sfn|Nathan|2022|pp=20–21}} Co-produced by Nolan with Thomas and Theobald,{{sfn|Shone|2020|p=441}} it was made on a budget of around £3,000. Most of the cast and crew were friends of Nolan, and shooting took place on weekends over the course of a year.{{sfn|Nathan|2022|pp=24; 42}} To conserve [[film stock]], each scene was rehearsed extensively to ensure that the first or second take could be used in the final edit.{{sfn|Mooney|2018|p=6}}<ref name="Tobias">{{cite news|author=Tobias, Scott|url=https://www.avclub.com/christopher-nolan-1798208223|title= Interview: Christopher Nolan|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131018024630/http://www.avclub.com/articles/christopher-nolan,13769/ |archive-date=18 October 2013 |work=[[The A.V. Club]]|date=5 June 2002|access-date=10 December 2022}}</ref> ''Following'' won several awards during its festival run and was well-received by critics who labelled Nolan a majorly talented debutant.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tiger Awards Competition: previous winners |url=http://www.filmfestivalrotterdam.com/en/about/awards-and-jury/tiger-awards/previous-winners |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130121013119/http://www.filmfestivalrotterdam.com/en/about/awards-and-jury/tiger-awards/previous-winners/ |archive-date=21 January 2013 |access-date=12 February 2013 |publisher=[[International Film Festival Rotterdam]]}}</ref>{{sfn|Nathan|2022|pp=30–31}} [[Scott Timberg]] of ''[[New Times LA]]'' wrote that it "echoed [[Hitchcock]] classics", but was "leaner and meaner".<ref name="Timberg">{{Cite news |last=Timberg |first=Scott |author-link=Scott Timberg|date=15 March 2001 |title=Indie Angst |url=http://cinefiles.bampfa.berkeley.edu/cinefiles/DocDetail?docId=49987 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170815135228/https://cinefiles.bampfa.berkeley.edu/cinefiles/DocDetail?docId=49987 |archive-date=15 August 2017 |access-date=4 June 2013 |work=[[New Times LA]]|via=[[CineFiles]]}}</ref> [[Janet Maslin]] of ''[[The New York Times]]'' was impressed with its "spare look" and "agile hand-held camerawork", saying, "As a result, the actors convincingly carry off the before, during and after modes that the film eventually, and artfully, weaves together."<ref>{{Cite news |last=Maslin |first=Janet |author-link=Janet Maslin |title=Film Festival Review: Walking Along a Crooked Path |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9C0CE1D71439F931A35757C0A96F958260 |url-status=dead |access-date=3 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170204011800/http://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9C0CE1D71439F931A35757C0A96F958260 |archive-date=4 February 2017|url-access=limited|date=2 April 1999}}</ref>

{{Quote box
| width = 25%
| quote = "The difference between shooting ''[[Following]]'' with a group of friends wearing our own clothes and my mum making sandwiches to spending $4&nbsp;million of somebody else's money on ''[[Memento (film)|Memento]]'' and having a crew of a hundred people is, to this day, by far the biggest leap I've ever made."
| source = —Nolan on the jump from his first film to his second (2012)<ref>{{cite news |last1=Macdonald |first1=Moira |title=An interview with Christopher Nolan |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/entertainment/movies/an-interview-with-christopher-nolan/ |access-date=1 December 2022 |work=[[The Seattle Times]] |date=17 July 2012 |archive-date=1 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221201164842/https://www.seattletimes.com/entertainment/movies/an-interview-with-christopher-nolan/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
}}

''Following''{{'s}} success afforded Nolan the opportunity to make ''[[Memento (film)|Memento]]'' (2000), which became his breakthrough film. His brother Jonathan pitched the idea to him, about a man with [[anterograde amnesia]] who uses notes and tattoos to hunt for his wife's murderer. Jonathan worked the idea into a short story, "[[Memento Mori (short story)|Memento Mori]]" (2001), and Nolan developed it into a screenplay that told the story in reverse. Aaron Ryder, an executive for [[Newmarket Films]], said it was "perhaps the most innovative script I had ever seen".{{sfn|Mottram|2002|p=176}} The film was optioned and given a budget of $4.5{{nbsp}}million, with [[Guy Pearce]] and [[Carrie-Anne Moss]] in the starring roles.{{sfn|Mottram|2002|p=177}} Newmarket also distributed the film after it was rejected by studios who feared that it would not attract a wide audience. Following a positive [[word of mouth]] and screenings in 500 theatres, it earned $40{{nbsp}}million.{{sfn|Nathan|2022|pp=45–48}} ''Memento'' premiered at the [[Venice Film Festival]] in September 2000 to critical acclaim.{{sfn|Mottram|2002|pp=62–64}} [[Joe Morgenstern]] of ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]'' wrote in his review, "I can't remember when a movie has seemed so clever, strangely affecting and slyly funny at the very same time."<ref>{{Cite news |last=Morgenstern |first=Joe |title=Hero With No Memory Turns ''Memento'' Into Unforgettable Trip |author-link=Joe Morgenstern |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB9846986937127287|date=16 March 2001 |url-status=live |access-date=21 January 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150326002730/http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB9846986937127287 |archive-date=26 March 2015|url-access=subscription}} {{subscription required}}</ref> In the book ''The Philosophy of Neo-Noir'', Basil Smith drew a comparison with [[John Locke]]'s ''[[An Essay Concerning Human Understanding]]'', which argues that conscious memories constitute our identities – a theme Nolan explores in the film.{{sfn|Smith|2007|p=35}} ''Memento'' earned Nolan many accolades, including nominations for an [[Academy Award for Best Writing (Original Screenplay)|Academy Award]] and a [[Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay]], as well as two [[Independent Spirit Award]]s: [[Independent Spirit Award for Best Director|Best Director]] and [[Independent Spirit Award for Best Screenplay|Best Screenplay]].<ref name="nytimesawards">{{Cite news |date=2013 |title=Christopher Nolan awards |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/movies/person/240025/Christopher-Nolan/awards |url-status=dead |access-date=26 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131024065520/http://www.nytimes.com/movies/person/240025/Christopher-Nolan/awards |archive-date=24 October 2013|url-access=limited}}</ref>{{sfn|Shone|2020|p=19}} Six critics listed it as one of the best [[2000s in film|films of the 2000s]].<ref name="Metadecade">{{Cite web |last=Dietz|first=Jason|date=3 January 2010 |title=Film Critics Pick the Best Movies of the Decade |url=https://www.metacritic.com/feature/film-critics-pick-the-best-movies-of-the-decade |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170428073436/http://www.metacritic.com/feature/film-critics-pick-the-best-movies-of-the-decade |archive-date=28 April 2017 |access-date=4 September 2012 |publisher=[[Metacritic]]}}</ref> In 2001, Nolan and Emma Thomas founded the production company [[Syncopy Inc.]]<ref name="syncopy"/>{{efn|The name of the company is derived from [[Syncope (medicine)|syncope]], a medical term for fainting. [[Sorcha Ní Fhlainn]], a lecturer specialising in film studies, alluded this wordplay to Nolan's style of "disorientation" in his work. She also associated the name with synthetic and philosopher [[Jean Baudrillard]]'s [[treatise]] ''[[Simulacra and Simulation]]''.{{sfn|Ní Fhlainn|2015|p=161}}}}

Impressed by his work on ''Memento'', filmmaker [[Steven Soderbergh]] recommended Nolan to [[Warner Bros.]] to direct the [[psychological thriller]] ''[[Insomnia (2002 film)|Insomnia]]'' (2002), although the studio initially wanted a more seasoned director.{{sfn|deWaard|Tait|2013|p=49}} A remake of the 1997 [[Insomnia (1997 film)|Norwegian thriller of the same name]], the film is viewed as "the outlier of Nolan's filmography" due to its perceived lack of unconventionality he is known for.{{sfn|Nathan|2022|p=50}} Starring [[Al Pacino]], [[Robin Williams]] and [[Hilary Swank]],{{sfn|Shone|2020|p=442}} ''Insomnia'' follows two Los Angeles detectives sent to a northern Alaskan town to investigate the murder of a local teenager. It received positive reviews from critics and earned $113{{nbsp}}million against a budget of $46{{nbsp}}million.<ref>{{Cite web |title=''Insomnia'' |date=24 May 2002 |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1114154-insomnia/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100802163407/http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1114154-insomnia/ |archive-date=2 August 2010 |access-date=18 January 2014 |publisher=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=''Insomnia'' |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=insomnia.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100808004401/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=insomnia.htm |archive-date=8 August 2010 |access-date=18 January 2014 |publisher=[[Box Office Mojo]]}}</ref> Film critic [[Roger Ebert]] praised the film for introducing new perspectives and ideas on the issues of morality and guilt, adding, "Unlike most remakes, the Nolan ''Insomnia'' is not a pale retread, but a re-examination of the material, like a new production of a good play."<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ebert |first=Roger |date=24 May 2002 |title=''Insomnia'' review |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/insomnia-2002 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150213010524/http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/insomnia-2002 |archive-date=13 February 2015 |access-date=18 February 2015 |work=RogerEbert.com|author-link=Roger Ebert}}</ref> [[Richard Schickel]] of ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' deemed ''Insomnia'' a "worthy successor" to ''Memento'' and "a triumph of atmosphere over a none-too-mysterious mystery".<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Schickel |first=Richard |author-link=Richard Schickel|date=19 May 2002 |title=Sleepless in Alaska |url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,238623,00.html |url-status=live |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150113065714/http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,238623,00.html |archive-date=13 January 2015 |access-date=16 February 2015}}</ref>

''Following'', ''Memento'' and ''Insomnia'' established Nolan's image as an "[[auteur]]".{{sfn|Hill-Parks|2015|p=26}} After the lattermost, he wrote a screenplay for a [[Howard Hughes]] biopic. Nolan reluctantly tabled his script after learning that [[Martin Scorsese]] was already making one such film: ''[[The Aviator (2004 film)|The Aviator]]'' (2004).{{sfn|Nathan|2022|pp=64–65}} He was then briefly attached to direct a film adaptation of [[Ruth Rendell]]'s novel ''[[The Keys to the Street]]'' for [[Fox Searchlight Pictures]] but chose to direct ''[[Batman Begins]]'' instead.<ref name=chapman>{{cite web|last=Chapman|first=Wilson|title=Christopher Nolan's Unmade Films: Movies the ''Oppenheimer'' Director Almost Made|date=20 July 2023|website=IndieWire|url=https://www.indiewire.com/gallery/christopher-nolan-unmade-films/|accessdate=11 August 2023|archive-date=26 August 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230826135828/https://www.indiewire.com/gallery/christopher-nolan-unmade-films/|url-status=live}}</ref> Nolan turned down an offer to direct the historical epic ''[[Troy (film)|Troy]]'' (2004).<ref>{{Cite news |last=Jagernauth |first=Kevin |title=Trivia: When Christopher Nolan First Came to Warner Bros., He Was Offered ''Troy'' to Direct |publisher=[[IndieWire]] |date=21 June 2013|url=http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/trivia-when-christopher-nolan-first-came-to-warner-bros-he-was-offered-troy-to-direct-20130621 |url-status=dead |access-date=12 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140813021758/http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/trivia-when-christopher-nolan-first-came-to-warner-bros-he-was-offered-troy-to-direct-20130621 |archive-date=13 August 2014}}</ref> In April 2003, filmmaker [[David O. Russell]] put Nolan in a [[Grappling hold|headlock]] at a Hollywood party after learning that [[Jude Law]], whom Russell wanted to cast, had decided to work with Nolan instead. Russell pressured Nolan to display "artistic solidarity" by relinquishing Law from his cast.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Waxman |first=Sharon |author-link=Sharon Waxman |date=19 September 2004 |title=The Nudist Buddhist Borderline-Abusive Love-In |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/19/movies/the-nudist-buddhist-borderlineabusive-lovein.html |access-date=27 December 2022 |url-access=limited |archive-date=14 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221014203253/https://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/19/movies/the-nudist-buddhist-borderlineabusive-lovein.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="vulture">{{Cite news |last=Zhan |first=Jennifer |date=5 October 2022 |title=A Timeline of the Allegations Against Amsterdam Director David O. Russell |url=https://www.vulture.com/2022/10/david-o-russell-abuse-assault-allegations-timeline.html |access-date=27 December 2022 |work=[[New York (magazine)|Vulture]] |archive-date=26 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221226011317/https://www.vulture.com/2022/10/david-o-russell-abuse-assault-allegations-timeline.html |url-status=live }}</ref>