His trademark styles include extensive use of slow motion and freeze frames, graphic depictions of extreme violence, and liberal use of profanity. Scorsese's films, much influenced by his Italian-American background and upbringing in New York City, center on macho-posturing insecure men and explore crime, machismo, nihilism, and Catholic concepts of guilt and redemption. In the 1970s and 1980s decades, Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. His directorial debut, Who's That Knocking at My Door (1967), was accepted into the Chicago Film Festival. Scorsese received an MA from New York University's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development in 1968. Five of his films have been inducted into the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as 'culturally, historically or aesthetically significant'. Scorsese has received various honors including the AFI Life Achievement Award in 1997, the Kennedy Center Honor in 2007, and the BAFTA Fellowship in 2012. He is the recipient of many accolades, including an Academy Award, three Primetime Emmy Awards, a Grammy Award, four British Academy Film Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, and two Directors Guild of America Awards.

Martin Charles Scorsese ( / s k ɔːr ˈ s ɛ s i/ Italian: born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter.