History Main / AuteurLicense

* Danny Antonucci after ''WesternAnimation/EdEddnEddy''

[[folder:Anime & Manga]]

[[folder:Live Action TV]]

[[folder:Pinballs]]

* Jean-Luc Godard received his auteur license after the success of his first film, ''Film/{{Breathless}}'', leading him to make more complex and politically-driven films which consequently diminished much of the commercial and critical acclaim that first film earned. To this day, he still grips on to that license.

* After a decade of often much-acclaimed films, both small- and large-scale (ranging from ''Film/{{MASH}}'' to ''Film/{{Nashville}}'' to ''3 Women'') Creator/RobertAltman got this for 1980's ''Film/{{Popeye}}''--a live-action, big-budget family musical based on the comic strip and cartoon hero--via super-producer Robert Evans. Unfortunately, the resultant film had a long, difficult shoot and got ''very'' mixed notices from critics, and couldn't gross enough money to prove profitable; Altman spent the remainder of the decade making much smaller-scale films that attracted little attention from anyone besides film critics -- and it was just getting started! He didn't make his comeback until ''Film/ThePlayer'' in 1992.

* Creator/PattyJenkins earned her license after the breakout success of ''Film/WonderWoman'', which became the most critically acclaimed and most profitable film in the ''Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse''. Not only did Warner Bros. signed her up for [[Film/WonderWoman1984 the sequel]] (a rare feat for female directors), but also ''tripled'' her directing salary and gave her screenwriting duties for further creative control.

* Creator/{{Showtime}} gave Creator/DavidLynch and Mark Frist more or less carte-blanche for the 18 hours of the revival of Series/TwinPeaks

* Creator/ChristopherNolan after ''Film/TheDarkKnight''. He purposefully took up the director's chair for the ''Film/TheDarkKnightSaga'' in order to build a relationship with Creator/WarnerBrothers to gain the Auteur License (as well as large-scale filmmaking experience)to be able shoot his pet project that would need big-budget resources to realize fully: ''Film/{{Inception}}''. When that proved a monster critically acclaimed Oscar nominated hit, Nolan's license was likely set for the rest of his career.

* Creator/RianJohnson was given full control of his own ''Franchise/StarWars'' trilogy after Disney was impressed with his work on ''Film/TheLastJedi''. Apparently the only restriction is that it can't be about the major characters of the main series, which stands out all the more with the original directors of ''Film/StarWars9'' and ''Film/{{Solo}}'' getting fired for refusing to follow studio orders just a few months earlier.

** Kevin Feige maintains strict control of the MCU, making sure that all films maintain a common thematic thread. Some directors chafed at this and left the franchise during the Creative Committee's control of the franchise (like Jon Favreau[[note]]Decided not to direct ''Film/IronMan3'' after being disappointed with the ExecutiveMeddling of ''Film/IronMan2'' but remained involved as executive producer and his supporting role as Happy Hogan[[/note]], Joss Whedon[[note]]Became disillusioned with the final cut of ''Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron'' and is no longer actively involved in ''Series/AgentsOfSHIELD'' as his brother Jed and his wife Maurissa Tancharoen serve as the main creative force behind the show[[/note]], and Edgar Wright[[note]]Left due to CreativeDifferences between him and the Creative Committee, months before ''Film/AntMan'' began filming[[/note]]), but those who play ball are eventually given more responsibility and a lot more creative freedom to do what they want (like the Russo Brothers[[note]]Given ''three'' of the MCU's major team-up films[[/note]], Creator/JamesGunn[[note]]Allowed to do pretty much whatever he wanted with ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol2'' and more or less given carte-blanche for ''Vol. 3'' until he was fired.[[/note]], and Peyton Reed[[note]]Marvel rearranged Phase 3 specifically to give him ''Ant-Man and the Wasp''[[/note]]) with the projects they are tasked with helming.

* For Creator/TaroYoko this came into effect after ''VideoGame/NieR''. During the development of the first ''VideoGame/{{Drakengard}}'', Yoko had to continuously fight Square to keep his and the team's distinct artistic vision intact, because Square was afraid the game was too dark and nihilistic. After the game managed to win over a small but dedicated fanbase, Square was willing to fund a second game but wanted something more marketable, and to that end he was only lightly involved with ''Drakengard 2''. However, this lead to one of the more divisive games in the series exactly because of its LighterAndSofter nature, and as a result he was allowed back in the director's seat for the franchise with ''[=NieR=]'', a GaidenGame. Though it wasn't very profitable it eventually became a CultClassic and widely considered an amazing game. Due to its critical success Yoko has essentially been given free rein to do as he pleases. While this strategy didn't pay off at first, it eventually allowed Taro to break through into the mainstream with ''VideoGame/NierAutomata'.

* Creator/ChristopherNolan after ''Film/TheDarkKnight''. He purposefully took up the director's chair for the ''Film/TheDarkKnightSaga'' in order to gain the Auteur License (as well as large-scale filmmaking experience) to shoot his pet project that would need big-budget resources to realize fully: ''Film/{{Inception}}''. When that proved a monster critically acclaimed Oscar nominated hit, Nolan's license was likely set for the rest of his career.

** It's often assumed that ExecutiveMeddling is to blame for the existence of ''WesternAnimation/{{Cars 2}}'', being a horribly-received sequel to Pixar's then-most-lukewarmly received film that nevertheless rakes in billions in merchandise. Not quite--John Lasseter can't be forced to make a film by the executives at Disney, because as of shortly after the release of the first ''WesternAnimation/{{Cars}}'', John Lasseter ''is'' the executives at Disney (specifically, he's in charge of ''all'' Disney feature animation). The ''Cars'' universe is simply his pet project, and Disney has no reason to object to him using his auteur license to produce more ''Cars'' films at Pixar and ''Planes'' films at [=DisneyToon=] Studios when he packs them full of more marketable vehicle characters than your average ''Franchise/{{Transformers}}'' generation.

* Creator/TimBurton got his after ''Film/{{Batman}}'' in 1989. ''Film/PeeWeesBigAdventure'' and ''Film/{{Beetlejuice}}'' had both been bigger-than-expected hits for Creator/WarnerBros, but he still faced a good deal of ExecutiveMeddling on ''Batman''. Once it was a megahit, he became a big enough name that not only he given a good deal of creative freedom on ''Film/EdwardScissorhands'', but it was his previous track record and now-signature style that was used to sell it to audiences. Although some of his subsequent films have been critical and/or commercial disappointments, he's had enough successes to hang on to the license.

** Careful research has actually shown that a number of directors people saw as journeyman were actually quite shrewd and domineering. Creator/HowardHawks for instance who's often seen as a nuts-and-bolts film-maker who didn't have a style, was careful to avoid making films at any one studio and work as a free agent, thereby allowing him freedom to not be tied to making one kind of film in one kind of style for too long. Creator/AlfredHitchcock, from ''Film/{{Notorious}}'' onwards made films his way, and Creator/OttoPreminger was especially bold and fearless in not only making his films as per his vision, but repeatedly, and successfully, challenging censorship and doing more than any other film-maker of his time, to improve freedom of expression in Hollywood. Both Hitchcock and Preminger were the two most well-known film-makers of their era, and public celebrities, hence the reason for Hitchcock promoting a successful TV show based on his own brand, and Preminger being enough of a household name that he appeared as Mr. Freeze in ''Series/{{Batman}}''.

In the general sense, it refers to certain film-makers and directors who are considered to be highly accomplished in their field, and who are known to make films as per their wishes rather than the demands of studios and corporations. In common parlance, when a director has auteur license they are said to have "final cut" (i.e. the editing isn't finished and exhibited until the director is satisfied and ''they and they alone'', have the last word on how it actually plays to the public). This tends to be more common in small independent "Art House" cinema rather than in mainstream American movies, and in general, this trope is significant when film-makers working in the mainstream have final cut. In America, even after the end of UsefulNotes/TheHaysCode[[note]]Where censorship, regardless of the wishes of director, producer or studio, or screenwriter had the final say, meant that no movie was "truly" anybody's wish, and it was more or less a compromise[[/note]], directors still struggle with ExecutiveMeddling. A situation different from Europe, where directors not only have director's cut ''by law'' but also hold copyright[[note]]Which even directors with final cut don't have in America. They only retain it when they are also producers of their films[[/note]].

* Creator/PattyJenkins earned her license after the breakout success of ''Film/WonderWoman'', which became the most critically acclaimed and most profitable film in the ''Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse''. Not only did Warner Bros. signed her up for [[Film/WonderWoman1984 the sequel]] (a rare feat given how female directors usually aren't attached for multiple films in a franchise), but also ''tripled'' her directing salary.

** Kevin Feige maintains strict control of the MCU, making sure that all films maintain a common thematic thread. Some directors chafed at this and left the franchise during the Creative Committee's control of the franchise (like Jon Favreau[[note]]Decided not to direct ''Film/IronMan3'' after being disappointed with the ExecutiveMeddling of ''Film/IronMan2'' but remained involved as executive producer and his supporting role as Happy Hogan[[/note]], Joss Whedon[[note]]Became disillusioned with the final cut of ''Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron'' and is no longer actively involved in ''Series/AgentsOfSHIELD'' as his brother Jed and his wife Maurissa Tancharoen serve as the main creative force behind the show[[/note]], and Edgar Wright[[note]]Left due to CreativeDifferences between him and the Creative Committee, months before ''Film/AntMan'' began filming[[/note]]), but those who play ball are eventually given more responsibility and a lot more creative freedom to do what they want (like the Russo Brothers[[note]]Given ''three'' of the MCU's major team-up films[[/note]], Creator/JamesGunn[[note]]Allowed to do pretty much whatever he wanted with ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol2'' and more or less given carte-blanche for ''Vol. 3''[[/note]], and Peyton Reed[[note]]Marvel rearranged Phase 3 specifically to give him ''Ant-Man and the Wasp''[[/note]]) with the projects they are tasked with helming.

* The application of this to the ''Anime/TsubasaReservoirChronicle'' anime was how Creator/BeeTrain, while [[Anime/{{Noir}} good]] [[Anime/{{Madlax}} at]] [[Anime/ElCazadorDeLaBruja original works]], ended up with a reputation for ill-advised adaptations. Their last work since 2012 is ''Manga/HyougeMono'' which suffered TroubledProduction and experienced CreatorBacklash from the mangaka.

* Creator/{{Showtime}} gave Creator/DavidLynch and Mark Frist more or less carte blanche for the 18 hours of the revival of Series/TwinPeaks

* Due to the success of the ''VideoGame/BioShock'' franchise, Ken Levine held onto this for a while. Funnily enough, [[http://www.strategyinformer.com/news/15214/levine-dislikes-auteur-label-sounds-like-you-do-everything he dislikes being called an auteur.]] Unfortunately, ''VideoGame/BioShockInfinite'' didn't make back its absurdly high budget, and he hasn't been heard from since.

** While we're talking about Konami and auteurs, Koji "IGA" Igarashi, the man behind the ''Franchise/Castlevania'' games since ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaSymphonyOfTheNight'' up until ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaHarmonyOfDespair'', definitely also applies. He left Konami and created an at-the-time record breaking kickstarter for his own game, ''VideoGame/BloodstainedRitualOfTheNight''. Meanwhile, games of the series released after his departure have had mixed reactions, at best.

** While we're talking about Konami and auteurs, Koji "IGA" Igarashi, the man behind the Castlevania games since ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaSymphonyOfTheNight'' up until ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaHarmonyOfDespair'', definitely also applies. He left Konami and created an at-the-time record breaking kickstarter for his own game, ''VideoGame/BloodstainedRitualOfTheNight''. Meanwhile, Castlevania games released after his departure have had mixed reactions, at best.

** While we're talking about Konami and auteurs, Koji "IGA" Igarashi, the man behind the Castlevania series, definitely also applies. He left Konami and created an at-the-time record breaking kickstarter for his own game, ''VideoGame/BloodstainedRitualOfTheNight''. Meanwhile, Castlevania games released after his departure have had... mixed reactions, at best.