Alfonso Cuaron

Alfonso Cuarón's Gravity is a bona fide hit -- having grossed close to $700 million worldwide and garnered ten Oscar nominations. But he tells Kim Masters that for years he had to manage the studio's anxieties over this cinematically ambitious but ultimately small story of woman alone with her adversities. He and his son Jonas, who co-wrote the script with him, were determined to have that part by played by woman over 40. At first it was to be Angelina Jolie, but the years it took to get the technology right kept her from doing it. Then, when Warner Bros suggested they change the gender of the part or get a younger actress Cuarón said they held strong. He also reflects on his eclectic career in the business complete with a career low after Great Expectations. That led him to make Y Tu Mamá También, which ultimately set him on the course he is now -- to be a sort of auteur/director that the studios are willing to back.