Citizen Kane (1941)

Orson Welles directed, produced, co-wrote and starred in this 1941 debut feature at age 25, which invented or popularised techniques including deep focus photography, non-linear narrative, and low-angle shots that are now standard filmmaking tools. It was voted the greatest film ever made in every Sight & Sound poll from 1962 to 2002, a 40-year reign. The film earned nine Academy Award nominations but won only one — Best Original Screenplay — due to industry hostility toward Welles from William Randolph Hearst.