- Robert is well-known for the use of impressive special effects that have substance along with style as displayed in his Back to the Future trilogy.
- Robert's first feature film was I Wanna Hold Your Hand.
- Robert likes to cast Tom Hanks as lead in his movies such as Forrest Gump, Cast Away, and The Polar Express.
- As a director, Robert has been known for using long, complicated opening shots in his movies such as in Forrest Gump, Contact, and Back to the Future.
- Robert is 6' (1.83m) tall.
- Robert is a Roman Catholic.
- Robert was awarded an Oscar for best director for his film Forrest Gump. He also won the Golden Globe Award for the same movie in 1995.
- Robert's mother was Yugoslavian.
- Robert shares his birthday with fellow directorm George Lucas.
- Robert is good friends with fellow director, Peter Jackson.
- Robert is of Lithuanian heritage.
- Robert was awarded a Student Academy Award for his film, A Field of Honor.
- Robert has a son named Alexander.
- Robert attended University of Southern California, School of Cinema. He also studied at Northern Illinois University.
- Robert likes to use the composer Alan Silvestri for his films.
- Robert was married to actress Mary Ellen Trainor. Robert is married to Leslie Harter Zemeckis.
- Robert: (on using new techniques in filmmaking) I just feel like filmmakers need to use the tools that are available. Why use an old tool when there's a new tool?
- Robert: (on doing Polar Express) The wonderful thing about working with actors, of course, is that they give you those wonderful moments you never could imagine – and that's what's great about [performance capture]. But you're not going to luck into a beautiful sunset – you're going to paint one in.
- Robert: The truth is that I was fortunate to have teachers that inspired me along the way, which is what I believe education is.
- Robert: (on making it as a filmmaker) It was a certain amount of luck and then being talented. I don't know why, but for some reason I have this ability to tell stories. The third thing was being absolutely driven to accomplish this goal.
- Robert: My parents would sit there and say, 'Don't you see where you come from? You can't be a movie director.' I guess maybe some of it I felt I had to do in spite of them, too.
- Robert: I won an Academy Award when I was 44 years old, but I paid for it with my 20s. That decade of my life from film school till 30 was nothing but work, nothing but absolute, driving work. I had no money. I had no life.
- Robert: The truth was that in my family there was no art. I mean, there was no music, there were no books, there was no theater....The only thing I had that was inspirational, was television--and it actually was.
- Robert: Understand life's mysteries - as mysteries to be lived.
- Robert: No matter how many obstacles that are thrown in our path, there are ways to accept them and to live through them. Understand life's mysteries, - as mysteries to be lived.
- Robert: I was raised a Catholic on the South Side of Chicago, and I felt I had to undo a lot of serious damage. But as I was getting older, I began coming off my absolutely young, arrogant, agnostic beliefs. I was thinking more about coming to terms with human spirituality.
