Director
Paul Thomas Anderson
Born 26 June 1970 · Studio City, California, USA
Paul Thomas Anderson (b. 1970) is an American writer-director from California, often called PTA. He is known for ambitious character studies of driven, lonely people, made with fluid camerawork and long takes. Emerging in the 1990s with Hard Eight and Boogie Nights, he became one of the leading auteurs of his generation.
Key films
Boogie Nights (1997)
His breakthrough: a sprawling 1970s porn-industry ensemble drama that brought him wide critical and popular attention.
Magnolia (1999)
An ambitious interlocking-stories epic about loneliness and regret, and a major step forward in scale.
Punch-Drunk Love (2002)
A short, stylised romantic comedy-drama that showed a new, more compact side of his filmmaking.
There Will Be Blood (2007)
His epic of oil and obsession, widely ranked among the best films of the 21st century.
The Master (2012)
A shot-on-70mm study of a drifter and a charismatic cult leader in postwar America.
Key awards
- 2000 Golden Bear, Berlin International Film Festival (Magnolia)
- 2002 Best Director, Cannes Film Festival (Punch-Drunk Love)
- 2012 Silver Lion for Best Director, Venice Film Festival (The Master)
On Cinespective
Full filmography · 36
- 1988The Dirk Diggler StoryDirector
- 1992Production Assistant · as selfActor
- 1992Production AssistantDirector
- 1993Cigarettes & CoffeeDirector
- 1997Boogie NightsDirector
- 1997Hard EightDirector
- 1998Flagpole SpecialDirector
- 1999MagnoliaDirector
- 1999Magnolia · as Man Confiscating Sign (uncredited)Actor
- 1999Wadd: The Life & Times of John C. Holmes · as SelfActor
- 2000That Moment: Magnolia Diary · as SelfActor
- 2002Minority Report · as Bus Passenger (uncredited)Actor
- 2002Punch-Drunk LoveDirector
- 2002BallchewerDirector
- 2003Mattress Man CommercialDirector
- 2003CouchDirector
- 200312 ScopitonesDirector
- 2007There Will Be BloodDirector
- 2012The MasterDirector
- 2013The Master: Unguided MessageActor
- 2014Inherent ViceDirector
- 2014Altman · as SelfActor
- 2015Junun · as Self (voice) (uncredited)Actor
- 2015JununDirector
- 2015A Christmas Eve Conversation With Quentin Tarantino & Paul Thomas Anderson · as SelfActor
- 2015Chryskylodon Blues · as SelfActor
- 2016DaydreamingDirector
- 2017Phantom ThreadDirector
- 2017HAIM / ValentineDirector
- 2019AnimaDirector
- 2021Licorice PizzaDirector
- 2022"Sr." · as Self (archive footage)Actor
- 2023Art-House America: Austin Film Society · as SelfActor
- 2025One Battle After AnotherDirector
- 2026Learning, Studying… Always Perfecting: The Making of One Battle After Another · as SelfActor
- 2026Cameron Winter at Carnegie HallDirector
Filmography data from TMDB. The profile text is a draft written for Cinespective.