from a director or by a director

English as a Second Language English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
1

Hi,

Could you tell me which is correct?

It’s a good film by an Italian director.
OR
It’s a good film from an Italian director.

Thanks

2

Hi Liza,

Both sentences are fine as written.

#1 perhaps puts a bit more emphasis on the fact that it’s a good film, with the Italian director being less important, where #2 perhaps puts a bit more emphasis on the fact that it’s from an Italian director. Those differences are subtle, however.

3

To add to what Skrej says, I’ll mention that you should use “by” as the default preposition when talking about directors, writers and other artists in relation to their work. People who speak Central European languages (which you do Liza, if I remember correctly) tend to use “from” too often in that situation.