Sir David Lean (25 March 1908 – 16 April 1991) was an English filmmaker and editor, widely considered one of the most important figures of British cinema. He directed the large-scale epics The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Doctor Zhivago (1965), Ryan's Daughter (1970), and A Passage to India (1984). He also directed the film adaptations of Charles Dickens novels Great Expectations (1946) and Oliver Twist (1948), as well as the romantic drama Brief Encounter (1945).
b. March 25, 1908, Croydon, Surrey, England d. April 16, 1991, London, England
David Lean was the ultimate influence on me because of his sense of scale, his characterization within scale, and his dramatic structure in films like Lawrence of Arabia, Doctor Zhivago, and Ryan's Daughter.