Directing

Paul Thomas Anderson

Directing · Born 1970-06-26 · Studio City, California, USA

Paul Thomas Anderson (born June 26, 1970), also known by his initials PTA, is an American filmmaker. Often described as one of the preeminent filmmakers of his generation, he is the recipient of three Academy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, four BAFTAs, three Critics Choice Awards, and nominations for a Grammy. He is the only person to have won the Academy Award for Best Director, as well as the Best Director Awards at the Cannes Film Festival, Venice Film Festival, and the Berlin International Film Festival. In addition to those accolades, he won the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival. Many of Anderson's films are psychological dramas characterized by depictions of desperate characters and explorations of dysfunctional families, alienation, loneliness, and redemption, alongside a bold visual style that uses constantly moving cameras and long takes. After his directorial debut, Hard Eight (1996), Anderson had critical and commercial success with Boogie Nights (1997), and received further accolades with Magnolia (1999) and Punch-Drunk Love (2002). There Will Be Blood (2007), Anderson's fifth film, is regarded as one of the greatest films of the 21st century. It was followed by The Master (2012) and Inherent Vice (2014), an adaptation of the 2009 novel by Thomas Pynchon. Anderson's next three films, Phantom Thread (2017), Licorice Pizza (2021) and One Battle After Another (2025) were all nominated for the Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Director, while the last earned him wins for both and Best Adapted Screenplay and became his highest-grossing film. Anderson is noted for his collaborations with the cinematographer Robert Elswit, the costume designer Mark Bridges, the composers Jon Brion and Jonny Greenwood, and actors including Philip Seymour Hoffman, Daniel Day-Lewis, John C. Reilly, and Joaquin Phoenix. He has directed music videos for artists including Fiona Apple, Haim, Aimee Mann, Joanna Newsom, Michael Penn, Radiohead, and the Smile. He also directed a 2015 documentary about Greenwood's album Junun, and the short music film Anima (2019) for the Radiohead singer Thom Yorke. Description above from the Wikipedia article Paul Thomas Anderson, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Credits · 42

Film
Learning, Studying… Always Perfecting: The Making of One Battle After Another
2026 · Self
Film
One Battle After Another
2025 · Director
Film
Escape Room
2025 · Executive Producer
Film
Napoleon
2023 · Script Consultant
Film
Beau Is Afraid
2023 · Thanks
Film
"Sr."
2022 · Self (archive footage)
Film
Licorice Pizza
2021 · Director of Photography
Film
Anima
2019 · Director
Film
The Dead Don't Die
2019 · Thanks
Film
Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh
2018 · Additional Second Assistant Director
Film
Waterlily Jaguar
2018 · Executive Producer
Film
Phantom Thread
2017 · Director
Film
HAIM / Valentine
2017 · Director
Film
A Christmas Eve Conversation With Quentin Tarantino & Paul Thomas Anderson
2015 · Self
Film
Junun
2015 · Self (voice) (uncredited)
Film
Chryskylodon Blues
2015 · Self
Film
Inherent Vice
2014 · Director
Film
Altman
2014 · Self
Film
The Master
2012 · Writer
Film
There Will Be Blood
2007 · Producer
Leçon de Cinéma
2004 · Self
Film
Mattress Man Commercial
2003 · Director
12 Scopitones
Film
12 Scopitones
2003 · Director
Film
Couch
2003 · Director
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
2003 · Self
Film
Ballchewer
2002 · Director
Film
The Truth About Charlie
2002 · Thanks
Film
Punch-Drunk Love
2002 · Producer
Film
Minority Report
2002 · Bus Passenger (uncredited)
Film
Corky Romano
2001 · Script Editor
Film
That Moment: Magnolia Diary
2000 · Self
Film
Magnolia
1999 · Man Confiscating Sign (uncredited)
Film
Wadd: The Life & Times of John C. Holmes
1999 · Self
Film
Flagpole Special
1998 · Director
Film
Boogie Nights
1997 · Director
Film
Hard Eight
1997 · Director
Film
Cigarettes & Coffee
1993 · Director
Film
Production Assistant
1992 · self
Film
The Dirk Diggler Story
1988 · Director
Saturday Night Live
1975 · Director
The Oscars
1953 · Self
Golden Globe Awards
1944 · Self - Nominee
Paul Thomas Anderson · MediaMark