William Wyler – Ben-Hur

• Charles Barton – The Shaggy Dog
• Frank Capra – A Hole in the Head
• Richard Fleischer – Compulsion
• John Ford – The Horse Soldiers
• Howard Hawks – Rio Bravo
• Alfred Hitchcock – North by Northwest
• Leo McCarey – Rally Round the Flag, Boys!
• Otto Preminger – Anatomy of a Murder
• Douglas Sirk – Imitation of Life
• George Stevens – The Diary of Anne Frank
• Billy Wilder – Some Like It Hot
• Fred Zinnemann – The Nun's Story

Phil Karlson – Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse for The Untouchables

• John Brahm – The Twilight Zone for "Time Enough at Last"
• Robert Florey – Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse for "The Innocent Assassin"
• Tay Garnett – The Untouchables for "The Jake Lingle Killing"
• Christian Nyby – Wagon Train for "The Jenny Tannen Story"
• Don Weis – General Electric Theater for "Survival"