In these vivid and revealing interviews, directors such as the Coen brothers, Ang Lee, Anthony Minghella and Neil Jordan recall the making of their 'first films'. Each chapter focuses on a celebrated debut - from Blood Simple to Muriel's Wedding, Clerks to Angel - and explores its production from the inside. Along the way, every aspect of the movie industry is explored - from first encounters with agents and moguls, to languishing in development hell, to confronting the dreaded 'test audience'. Lowenstein, himself a writer-director on the verge of his first feature, encourages his subjects to relive the pain and elation, the comedy and the tragedy, of their freshman efforts. For aspirant directors, these tales of sleepless nights and nail-biting days will enthral and terrify in equal measure. For everyone else, they offer a privileged glimpse of famous directors taking their first tentative steps.