Before James Cameron came along, few Hollywood directors knew more about shooting a movie on the open sea than Steven Spielberg. Going against conventional wisdom, the filmmaker learned his lesson the hard way as he headed out to the shallow waters off Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, to make his 1975 feature film "Jaws." His adaptation of Peter Benchley's best-selling novel was the first major Hollywood picture to be filmed on the ocean, and Spielberg's ambitious desire for naturalism almost sank the movie and his career. With his knowledge, he was one of the best people to warn Kevin Costner as he was about to star in his infamous 1995 tentpole "Waterworld."

Spielberg was lucky enough to get away with it, of course. Despite a troubled production that ran over schedule and over budget,

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