a film director whose personal style and views so distinctively influence the film under production that he or she is thought of as its overall creator
Auteur derives from French criticism of the 1950s and proposes that the collaboration of film-making is beholden to one vision – usually that of the director. This is still in dispute. There are valuable theories that argue how the system, the money, or even the medium itself affects the message. Even among loyal auteurists, it is admitted that the role of auteur can be taken up by producers, writers and, especially, actors and actresses — David Thomson
[French auteur author]