Which director directed the 1922 film 'Nosferatu'?

F. W. Murnau directed the 1922 film 'Nosferatu'. The full title, 'Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror', identifies it as a German silent Expressionist film made by the short-lived Prana Film studio. Max Schreck played the vampire Count Orlok, whose character and name were altered from Count Dracula because the production did not have permission to adapt Bram Stoker’s novel.

Murnau and screenwriter Henrik Galeen reshaped the story, changing Jonathan Harker to Thomas Hutter, Mina to Ellen, and Dracula to Orlok. The film also moved the action to fictional locations such as Wisborg. Despite these changes, Stoker’s widow successfully sued for copyright infringement, and a court ordered the surviving prints destroyed. Some copies nevertheless escaped destruction and later restorations preserved the film.

Murnau’s direction is especially associated with stark shadows, location shooting, distorted compositions, and the unsettling image of Orlok’s shadow climbing a staircase. The film premiered in Berlin in March 1922 and became one of silent cinema’s most influential horror works. It is often confused with Werner Herzog’s 1979 remake, which Murnau did not direct.