What is the best directorial debut film of the 2000s?

The 2000s saw a wave of bold new voices emerge in cinema with remarkable first films. From There Will Be Blood to Memento, which debut announced its director most spectacularly?

1. 1
   Memento

   Christopher Nolan's 2000 second film (first US release) — a reverse-chronology mystery about anterograde amnesia.
   1000pts
2. 2
   District 9

   Neill Blomkamp's 2009 debut — a faux-documentary sci-fi allegory on xenophobia that stunned critics.
   888pts
3. 3
   Hard Candy

   David Slade's 2005 debut — a tense two-hander in which a teenage girl confronts a suspected predator.
   874pts
4. 4
   Brick

   Rian Johnson's 2005 debut — a noir mystery transplanted into a California high school with stunning precision.
   791pts
5. 5
   Garden State

   Zach Braff's 2004 debut — a meditative indie drama about disconnection and homecoming.
   691pts
6. 6
   Half Nelson

   Ryan Fleck's 2006 debut — a nuanced drama about a drug-addicted inner-city teacher with Ryan Gosling.
   565pts
7. 7
   Moon

   Duncan Jones's 2009 debut — a minimalist sci-fi chamber film with a Sam Rockwell tour-de-force performance.
   565pts
8. 8
   City of God

   Fernando Meirelles and Kátia Lund's 2002 debut — a Brazilian crime saga of stunning kinetic energy.
   440pts
9. 9
   Primer

   Shane Carruth's 2004 $7,000 debut — a fascinatingly dense time-travel puzzle that rewards obsessive viewing.
   283pts
10. 10
    Paranormal Activity

    Oren Peli's 2007 found-footage debut made for $15,000 that redefined micro-budget horror.
    283pts
11. 11
    Little Miss Sunshine

    Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris's 2006 debut — a dysfunctional road-trip ensemble that won two Oscars.
    283pts
12. 12
    Saw

    James Wan's 2004 debut — a low-budget horror puzzle-box that launched a decade-spanning franchise.
    81pts
13. 13
    Napoleon Dynamite

    Jared Hess's 2004 deadpan debut — an indie cult comedy about an awkward Idaho teenager.
    1pts