Francis Ford Coppola – The Godfather

• John Boorman – Deliverance
• Bob Fosse – Cabaret
• George Roy Hill – Slaughterhouse-Five
• Martin Ritt – Sounder

Robert Butler – The Waltons for "Dust Bowl Cousins"

• Marc Daniels – Marcus Welby, M.D. for "Love is When They Say They Need You"
• Charles S. Dubin – Hawaii Five-O for "V for Fashion"

Gene Reynolds – M*A*S*H for "Pilot"

• Bill Hobin – Maude for "Maude's Dilemma"
• John Rich and Bob LaHendro – All in the Family for "The Bunkers and the Swingers"

Lamont Johnson – That Certain Summer

• Paul Bogart – The House Without a Christmas Tree
• Tom Gries – The Glass House

Bob Fosse – Liza with a Z

• Bill Davis – The Julie Andrews Hour
• Arthur Fisher – The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour

Aram Boyajian – The American Indian: This Land Was His Land (ABC News special)

• Arthur Bloom – 60 Minutes
• Julian Krainin – Oceans: The Silent Crisis (ABC News special)