How Robert Redford’s First Film as Director Defied Hollywood Doubt

It ’s still hard to believe that Robert Redford, who passed away at 89 just a few months ago, is no longer with us. His influence on film stretched across more than six decades, earning him nearly every major award as both an actor and a director. Redford’s legacy goes far beyond his own performances—he inspired countless actors and filmmakers, and his impact is still felt today.

Redford’s vision wasn’t limited to the screen. He co-founded the Sundance Institute and the Sundance Film Festival, which first launched in 1978. His goal was to encourage new generations of filmmakers, and he named the festival after a piece of land he bought in Utah, itself named for his iconic role in the 1969 classic Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, where he starred alongside Paul Newman. Over the years, Sundance has become the largest independent film festival in the United States, helping launch the careers of directors like Quentin Tarantino, Paul Thomas Anderson, and Steven Soderbergh. The festival also gave a platform to indie films that later found worldwide acclaim, including Little Miss Sunshine, Whiplash, and Donnie Darko.

Redford’s Leap Into Directing

Founding Sundance also inspired Redford personally. After taking a two-year break from acting, with only one film in 1979—the rodeo romance The Electric Horseman—he decided to step behind the camera. He chose Ordinary People, a 1980 drama about a wealthy family ’s tragic unraveling, adapted from a novel and starring Donald Sutherland, for his directorial debut.

Redford later explained his motivation:

“(It was) for a couple of reasons: One was that I’d acted and produced, but I wanted to have complete control. I wanted to do a small film about the society I was living in and take full responsibility for it. Ordinary People was turned down everywhere. To my good fortune, Barry Diller at Paramount let me do it.”

Despite being new to directing, Redford was given total creative freedom, a testament to his reputation after two decades in Hollywood. He recalled,

“Nobody bothered me, nobody came around.”

Blending Art and Film

Redford also shared how directing allowed him to merge his artistic background with filmmaking:

“Another reason was that I had been an artist and shifted to acting and wondered if I should have left art. By directing, I realized I could put the two together: I could ‘design’ the film. Suddenly, I got very excited.”

That excitement paid off. Ordinary People became a box office hit, earning $90 million on a budget just over $6 million. Critics praised the film, and it received six Academy Award nominations. Redford won Best Director on his first try, and the film also took home five Golden Globes, including Best Picture and Best Director.