M. Night Shyamalan: Meaning (information, definition, explanation, facts)

M. Night Shyamalan (born Manoj Nelliyattu Shyamalan, on August 6, 1970) is a writer and director. He is best known for the movies The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable and Signs.

Hallmarks of Shyamalan's films include: unexpected plot twists; realistic treatment of horror or science fiction themes; and a cameo appearance by Shyamalan himself in each film. His movies are also noted for their sharp screen play, effective background score and film editing. The movie The Sixth Sense which tells about a boy's interaction with spirits hardly used animation or loud background score.

Shyamalan was born in Pondicherry, India, but was raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania after his parents, both doctors, immigrated to the United States. Shyamalan attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. It was here that he made up his middle name, Night. Shyamalan is married to Bhavana.

A recent "documentary" about his life, aired on the Sci-Fi Channel, claimed that Shyamalan was legally dead for nearly a half hour while drowned in a frozen pond in a childhood accident, and that upon being rescued he has had experiences of communicating with spirits. The Sci-Fi Channel also claimed that Shyamalan had grown angry when he had discovered that the documentary would reveal certain personal secrets, and had therefore withdrawn from participating. The Sci-Fi Channel later admitted that both the "documentary" itself and Shyamalan's objections to it were part a hoax, perpetrated with Shyamalan's participation.

With the exception of his first film Praying with Anger (1992) which was filmed in Chennai, India, all of Shyamalan's movies have been filmed either in Philadelphia or elsewhere in the state of Pennsylvania.

Shyamalan is working on a new project called "The Life Of Pi" which will be shot in Pondicherry, India, his birth place.

Movies

• The Sixth Sense (1999) starring Bruce Willis and Haley Joel Osment
• Unbreakable (2000) starring Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson
• Signs (2002) starring Mel Gibson and Joaquin Phoenix.
• The Village (July 30, 2004) starring Joaquin Phoenix