8. Richard Ayoade
After being a star on a TV show I am not a fan of, it was reasonable to be suspect in regards to Richard Ayoade make the abrupt jump to cinema. His debut movie was Submarine, a coming-of-age tale based on the Joe Dunthorne novel of the same name and it is a touching piece of melancholy comedy. An excellent supporting cast (Paddy Considine, Sally Hawkins) surround the lead, Craig Roberts, who is the main flaw of the movie as his presence does become annoying, only to be saved by Ayoade's excellent script. Ayoade is the rawest of the directors on this list, as some of his directing is not the most proficient, but the promise and potential is there. His real talent seems to lie in screenwriting as the script for the film, though adapted, is marvelous and gets the balance of comedy and drama just right. Ayoade should definitely stay behind the camera, however, after his laughless turn in the dismal, The Watch flopped at the box office. His sophomore feature is again a comedy-drama, based on a novella by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, which is an intriguing prospect that should hopefully be released by the end of the year. The fact that it stars Jesse Eisenberg and Mia Wasikowska shows Ayoade is already on a rocketing rise.