10 Greatest Directorial Film Debuts

A Los Angeles native, John Singleton used his real life experiences from his younger years as an inspiration in his debut film Boyz n' the Hood.

Initially writing the screenplay for a film school application, Singleton eventually directed the film in 1991 for Colombia pictures, who trusted that the young filmmaker would be able to pull off the project. The coming-of-age drama follows a young Cuba Gooding Jr, who is forced to live with his father in the gang hotbed of South Central Los Angeles.

The studio's faith in Singleton was rewarded, with Boyz n' the Hood proving to be both a commercial and critical success. Despite having a low budget, the film made $65 million at the box office and Singleton would become the first African American director to be nominated for the Best Director award.

The film was part of a new era of African American cinema with Singleton and fellow filmmaker Spike Lee leading the movement.

Boyz n the Hood also proved to be the breakout movie for various Hollywood stars. In addition to the aforementioned Gooding Jr, rapper turned actor Ice Cube, Angela Bassett and Regina King all benefited from the success of the film.

Singleton would go on to have a successful and memorable career in Hollywood, before his unexpected death in 2019.