American filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson has known almost all his life he wanted to make films. He is proof that realizing your calling early in life is always a good thing. Anderson has been named as one of the supreme talents of our time. He has directed at least 9 feature films including Boogie Nights (1997), There Will Be Blood (2007) and Phantom Thread (2017).
Paul Thomas Anderson Biography
Paul Thomas Anderson was born on June 26, 1970, in Studio City, California and raised in the San Fernando Valley where he now resides with his family. His father, Ernie Anderson, was a popular actor in his day and hosted a late-night horror show in Cleveland.
His dad’s entertainment DNA was stolen from him as soon as Anderson started making movies at age 8. He didn’t even have a plan B and his father supported him the whole time. He bought her a Betamax video camera when she was 12 years old.
Anderson attended several high schools including Campbell Hall School and Montclair College Preparatory. During his senior year in high school, Anderson wrote and shot his first real production, a mockumentary titled The Dirk Diggler Story (1988). The 30-minute film was dedicated to Dirk Diggler, a major porn star.
After high school, Anderson skipped about three colleges, including Santa Monica College, Emerson College, where he spent two semesters in English, and New York University, where he spent two days before collecting his tuition.
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Anderson said going to the movies felt like a chore. Instead, he decided to replace his university studies by making his own short film.
With funds from various sources, including $20,000 from gambling, Anderson made the short Cigarettes & Coffee (1993) which screened on the 1993 Sundance Festival Shorts program.
He then joined the Sundance feature film program, after which he directed his first feature, Hard Eight, which ultimately launched his career.
Family
Anderson struck up a relationship with actress, comedian, and singer Maya Rudolph (Bridesmaids and Adults) in 2001. While it’s unclear exactly when they got married, the couple began starting a family in 2005. A Daily Mail article published in early 2016 also described them: married couples.
In October 2005, they welcomed their first number, a girl named Pearl Minnie. Their other children include daughters Lucille and Minnie Ida born in November 2009 and August 2013 respectively and son Jack born in July 2011.
The family lives in a mansion in the San Fernando Valley.
Net value
The net worth of PT Anderson has been estimated to fall somewhere between $50-70 million. However, there are many who doubt these figures, believing that few of his feature films have achieved remarkable commercial success. 2007’s There Will Be Blood was his highest-grossing film, grossing just over $76 million on a $25 million budget.
However, there is a counter-argument that Anderson deserves the figure considering he gets residual benefits from his movies, does TV commercials, and banks make music videos. PS: In the late 1990s and early 2000s he made several music videos for singer Fiona Apple.
The numbers may seem too big or too small for PT Anderson depending on your perception, but the truth is he is far from broken and clearly living his dreams.
Books
Scripts for Anderson’s films were written into books and made available for purchase. Some of them include; Boogie Nights, Magnolia, Love Punch-Drunk, There Will Be Blood, The Master, Phantom Thread, and Altman on Altman.
Awards and nominations
Anderson has received awards and nominations since the release of her feature debut Hard Eight (1996). In 2016, he became the only director to win all three director’s awards at all three major international film festivals. Venice, Cannes and Berlin.
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His films have also helped shoot the careers of some actors capturing them equally coveted awards and nominations. For example, Daniel Day-Lewis, who played the lead role in There Will Be Blood, won an Academy Award for Best Actor. His works have received at least 25 Oscars, including at least 8 in his own name.
Here’s a look at some of his awards
Hard Eight (1996)
Won (1): Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best New Director.
Boogie Nights (1997)
Won (3): Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best New Director; The New Generation Award from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association and the Metro Media Award from the Toronto International Film Festival.
Nominated (10): Academy and BAFTA Award for Best Original Screenplay, Writers Guild of America Award for Best Screenplay, 3 Satellite Awards nominations AND more.
Magnolia (1999)
Won (7): 3 Toronto Film Critics Association Awards for Best Director, Film and Screenplay, 2 Berlin International Film Festival Awards for Golden Bear and Reader’s Jury of “Berliner Morgenpost” Award, Film of the Year from the San Sebastián International Film Festival and Guldbagge Award for Best Foreign Film Film.
Nominated (11): Including Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay and Writers Guild of America Award for Best Screenplay.
Punch-Drunk Love (2002)
Won (4): Cannes Film Festival for Best Director, Gijón International Film Festival for Best Screenplay, Toronto Film Critics Association Award for Best Director, and the Motovun Film Festival Propeller of Motovun Award.
Nominated (6): Including the Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Original Screenplay.
There Will Be Blood (2007)
Won (13): Including Bodil Award for Best American Film, London Critics Circle Film for Director of the Year, Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Director, Berlin International Film Festival for Best Director and more.
Nominated (27): Includes 3 Academy Awards and 3 BAFTAs for Best Adapted Screenplay, Director and Picture.
The Master (2012)
Won (3): Silver Lion Award from the Venice International Film Festival, Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Director, and International Federation of Film Critics Award for Best Picture.
Nominated (17): Including BAFTA Award for Best Original Screenplay.
Inherent Vice (2014)
Won (2): National Review Board for Best Adapted Screenplay and San Francisco Film Critics Circle Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.
Nominated (6): Including an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.
Phantom Thread (2017)
Won (5): Including Boston Society of Film Critics Best Director Award, Toronto Film Critics Association Best Director Award.
Nominated (11): Including 2 Oscars for Best Director and Best Picture.