As the director of some of the highest-earning films of all time, Steven Spielberg has little trouble appealing to his audience.

The neighbours, though, are a different proposition.

His latest production, a five-storey, 2,500 sq metre stable and indoor riding ring for his wife, Kate Capshaw (pictured together), is making them furious.

"If this project proceeds as designed you're going to see something akin to a sports stadium placed in a quiet, single-family neighbourhood," said Sam Hellinger, a retired executive who lives nearby in the Brentwood district of Los Angeles.

Spielberg is likely to spend $7m (about £4m) on the building, on top of the $5.75m he spent buying the land.

It will have a retractable domed roof, underground stables, an area for spectators, and living quarters. And it will be about six times the size of the average Brentwood house, even though the local residents' taste tends towards mock ranch houses.

The grounds will be fenced for privacy and security, and entered by a pair of 2.4-metre wooden gates spanning a 12.8-metre drive.

"It's out of keeping with the neighbourhood and out of proportion to the surroundings," said Roger Gimbel, a television producer. He and other residents plan to fight the proposals unless Spielberg alters his plans, which are to be considered at a Los Angeles zoning administration hearing next week.

Andy Spahn, an executive with Spielberg's Dreamworks company, said: "The plans are still in formation ... Are we going to be able to please everyone? No. But we'll come a long way toward easing people's concerns. It's going to be beautiful and people will love it."