Claim: Martin Scorsese is widely regarded as one of the most significant and influential filmmakers in history.

Martin Charles Scorsese -LRB- -LSB- skɔːrˈsɛsi -RSB- -LSB- skorˈseːze -RSB- ; born November 17 , 1942 -RRB- is an American director , producer , screenwriter , and film historian , whose career spans more than 50 years . Scorsese 's body of work addresses such themes as Sicilian-American identity , Roman Catholic concepts of guilt and redemption , faith , machismo , modern crime , and gang conflict . Many of his films are also known for their depiction of violence and liberal use of profanity .   Part of the New Hollywood wave of filmmaking , he is widely regarded as one of the most significant and influential filmmakers in cinematic history . In 1990 , he founded The Film Foundation , a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation , and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation . He is a recipient of the AFI Life Achievement Award for his contributions to the cinema , and has won an Academy Award , a Palme d'Or , Cannes Film Festival Best Director Award , Silver Lion , Grammy Award , Emmys , Golden Globes , BAFTAs , and DGA Awards .   He has directed works such as the crime film Mean Streets -LRB- 1973 -RRB- , the vigilante-thriller Taxi Driver -LRB- 1976 -RRB- , the biographical sports drama Raging Bull -LRB- 1980 -RRB- , the black comedy The King of Comedy -LRB- 1983 -RRB- , the religious epic drama The Last Temptation of Christ -LRB- 1988 -RRB- , the crime film Goodfellas -LRB- 1990 -RRB- , the psychological thriller Cape Fear -LRB- 1991 -RRB- and the crime film Casino -LRB- 1995 -RRB- , some of which he collaborated on with actor and close friend Robert De Niro . Scorsese has also been noted for his successful collaborations with actor Leonardo DiCaprio , having directed him in five films , beginning with Gangs of New York -LRB- 2002 -RRB- and most recently The Wolf of Wall Street -LRB- 2013 -RRB- . Their third film together , The Departed , won Scorsese the Academy Award for Best Director in addition to the film winning the award for Best Picture . Their collaborations have resulted in numerous Academy Award nominations for both as well as them winning several other prestigious awards .   Scorsese 's other film work includes the concert film The Last Waltz -LRB- 1978 -RRB- , the black comedy After Hours -LRB- 1985 -RRB- , the biographical drama The Aviator -LRB- 2004 -RRB- , the psychological thriller Shutter Island -LRB- 2010 -RRB- , the historical adventure drama Hugo -LRB- 2011 -RRB- and the religious epic Silence -LRB- 2016 -RRB- . His work in television includes the pilot episode of the HBO series Boardwalk Empire and Vinyl , the latter of which he also co-created . He won the Academy Award for Best Director for the crime drama The Departed -LRB- 2006 -RRB- . With eight Best Director nominations , he is the most nominated living director and is tied with Billy Wilder for the second most nominations overall .