As a kid in Brooklyn, Aronofsky took the D train to Manhattan so that he could sneak into such films as A Clockwork Orange and Eraserhead. The films were, at that time, X-rated (they are both now rated 'R'). "They were films," he says with a smirk, "you weren't supposed to see." Fifteen years later, Aronofsky finds himself making controversial, provocative movies for the same restless young people.

Mr. Aronofsky first wooed critics with his 1998 debut Pi. The film was a Sundance hit, managing, of all things, to add some suspense to the ever-dull world of a mathematician. The film became a small triumph for Aronofsky (and Artisan Entertainment, its theatrical distributor), a no-budget science fiction drama that was financed by Aronofsky's credit cards, his friends, and complete strangers that populated Brooklyn.

Aronofsky promised friends and strangers alike that if they put up $100, he would pay them that same amount plus interest, if the film made

During the next five years Aronofsky will work on Batman and develop a handful of personal projects for various studios and directors (he will serve as a producer). It will be interesting to see his career evolve. Will he strike a comparison to Brian De Palma, making smart, personal films early in his career and then losing himself behind big-budget gimmickry? Or, more likely, will he become one of Stanley Kubrick's predecessors, a chronicler of man's advancement with a general indifference towards emotion?

Upon graduating from Harvard, Aronofsky headed to the American Film Institute's Conservatory in Los Angeles, where one of his professors - Scott Rosenberg, the director of Cool Hand Luke and The Pope of Greenwich Village - told him: "Make 'em laugh, make 'em cry, or scare the [expletive] out of 'em." It is advice that Aronofsky has taken to heart.

Aronofsky discovered an untapped passion for the art of filmmaking as a student of Edward R. Murrow High. With one of his friends in tow, Aronofsky traveled to Brooklyn's only mall, Kings Plaza, to see a movie that he now can't remember. They got there late and the movie was sold out. Aronofsky was determined to see something, however. "I saw a poster with a goofy guy with a Brooklyn hat, went in, and it turned out to be She's Gotta Have It (a 1986 Spike Lee film; his debut). And I remember being just blown away. It spoke to me partly because I'm from Brooklyn, and I really related to the hip-hop culture, but als

Some common words found in the essay are:
Artisan Entertainment, I'm Brooklyn, Brooklyn Aronofsky, Fifteen Aronofsky, Dream Aronofsky's, Aronofsky I'd, Kings Plaza, Aronofsky Batman, Greenwich Village, Film Festival, requiem dream, science fiction, brooklyn aronofsky, brick wall, film festival, science fiction drama, fiction drama, artisan entertainment,
Approximate Word count = 1000
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)