10 Greatest Directorial Film Debuts

Was this ever really up for debate? Regarded by many to be the greatest film of all time, it was inevitable that Orson Welles' legendary tale about wealth and power would be number one on this list.

Exempt from the control of the studios, Welles was a visionary whose production of Citizen Kane has become developed into Hollywood legend. Whether it be Welles' war with media mogul William Randolph Hearst or the controversial history regarding the authorship of the screenplay, the mystery drama continues to be appreciated, more than 80 years after its release.

As for the film itself, Citizen Kane changed cinema forever. Featuring dozens of innovative camera and editing techniques, the movie is an impressive cinematic experience for a film made in 1941, overcoming the typical issues that usually limited studio productions during that era.

Welles' vision is enhanced by an excellent screenplay and story, that provided audiences with some of the best lines in cinema history and an underlying message that resonates to this day.

Some suggest that having Citizen Kane as his debut film was a curse on Welles, with expectations for his future films being almost impossible to beat.

Asked years later whether he thought his first film was the greatest of all time, Welles replied "No certainly not, my next one is". That question is up for debate. But when it comes to debut films, Welles' Citizen Kane is undoubtedly the greatest.