Mel Gibson he founded Icon Entertainment, a production company, which independent film director Atom Egoyan has called "an alternative to the studio system". Director Peter Weir cast him as one of the leads in the critically acclaimed World War I drama "Gallipoli" (1981), which earned Gibson a Best Actor Award from the Australian Film Institute, as well as a reputation as a serious, versatile actor. Gibson produced, directed, and starred in the epic historical drama film "Braveheart" (1995), for which he won the Golden Globe Award and Academy Award for Best Director, along with the Academy Award for Best Picture. He later
National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Director National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Director The National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Director is an annual award given by National Society of Film Critics to honor the best film director of the year. American director Martin Scorsese and Swedish director Ingmar Bergman won this award a record three times. Scorsese won for "Taxi Driver" (1976), "Raging Bull" (1980), and "Goodfellas" (1990); Bergman won for "Persona" (1967), "Shame (Skammen)" + "Hour of the Wolf (Vargtimmen)" (1968), and "The Passion of Anna (En passion)" (1970). Robert Altman, Luis Buñuel, David Cronenberg, Clint Eastwood, Mike Leigh, Terence