Ever since the beginning of movie history, directors have tried to replicate the enigmatic world of dreams. Just think of artists such as Luis Bunuel and David Lynch who became masters at visually portraying the subconscious mind. With his new, psychological thriller "Inception" Christopher Nolan has joined that illustrious company.

In the film, a group of hi-tech thieves steal information from the dreams of rich businessmen while they are fast asleep. The crooks then try an even more complex task. Instead of just gathering knowledge, they intend to place ready-made thoughts into their victims' minds.

So, it was a challenging job Christopher Nolan had given himself. The young director spent almost ten years working on the screenplay for "Inception". A task that must have been like playing blindfold chess while walking a tight-wire. And to make things extra complicated, Nolan started writing while he was still working on "Memento". A film about a desperate man who suffers from short-term memory loss.

"Inception" was shot in six different countries over the course of six months. Filming began in the summer of 2009 in Japan and ended in Canada in the winter of the same year. The official budget was around $160 million and was split equally between Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros. Christopher Nolan's success with "The Dark Knight" helped secure the movie's $100 million in advertising costs.

These days, many Hollywood movies seem to be taken straight from Tinseltown's big recycling bin. If the films aren't sequels or prequels, they're remakes or parts of a long franchise. But Christopher Nolan doesn't operate that way. Instead, the director often explores the question of ethics and the nature of memory and personal identity. No wonder that Christopher Nolan has produced some the most interesting films of modern-day cinema.