Paul Joseph Schrader (born July 22, 1946 in Grand Rapids, Michigan) is an American screenwriter and film director. is the 203rd day of the year (204th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1946 (MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Grand Rapids redirects here. ... Screenwriters, scenarists, or script writers, are authors who write the screenplays from which movies and television programs are made. ... The film director, on the right, gives last minute direction to the cast and crew, whilst filming a costume drama on location in London. ...

His influences include Robert Bresson, Yasujiro Ozu and Carl Dreyer, whose cross-cultural similarities he examined in Transcendental Style in Film: Ozu, Bresson, Dreyer (ISBN 0-306-80335-6) in 1972. Despite his credentials as a director, Schrader has received more recognition for his screenplays directed by others. Robert Bresson (French IPA: ) (September 25, 1901 – December 18, 1999) was a French film director known for his spiritual, ascetic style. ... Yasujiro Ozu (小津 安二郎 Ozu Yasujirō) (December 12, 1903 - December 12, 1963) was an influential Japanese film director. ... Carl Theodor Dreyer (February 3, 1889 _ March 20, 1968) was a Danish film director. ...

Schrader is married to the actress Mary Beth Hurt, and they have two children, a daughter named Molly and a son named Sam. He was trained at the AFI Conservatory. Mary Beth Hurt (born Mary Supinger on September 26, 1946 in Marshalltown, Iowa) is a critically acclaimed stage and screen actress. ... American Film Institute Campus. ...

Career history

Schrader's early life was based on strict Calvinist principles and severe parenting. When he disobeyed his mother, she would stab him in the hand with a pin and say "You think that felt bad? Hell is like that, only every second and all over your body." Schrader did not see a film until he was 18 and could sneak away from home, and the first one he saw was The Nutty Professor, which he hated. His brother Leonard Schrader would also become a film screenwriter and collaborated with Paul on some projects. Topics in Christianity Movements · Denominations · Other religions Ecumenism · Preaching · Prayer Music · Liturgy · Calendar Symbols · Art · Criticism Important figures Apostle Paul · Church Fathers Constantine · Athanasius · Augustine Anselm · Aquinas · Palamas · Luther Calvin · Wesley Arius · Marcion of Sinope Archbishop of Canterbury · Catholic Pope Coptic Pope · Ecumenical Patriarch Christianity Portal This box:      Calvinism is... The Inferno redirects here. ... The Nutty Professor, starring Jerry Lewis, was filmed from October 9-December 17, 1962. ... Leonard Schrader (1944 in Grand Rapids, Michigan - November 2, 2006 in Los Angeles of heart failure) was an Academy Award-nominated American screenwriter and director most notable for his ability to write Japanese language films and for his many collaborations with his brother Paul Schrader. ...

Schrader received his BA in Theology from Calvin College, he went on to acquire an MA in Film Studies from the UCLA Film School graduate programme on the recommendation of Pauline Kael. Under Kael's mentoring he became a film critic, writing for LA Weekly Press and later Cinema magazine. In between Schrader also studied at Columbia University and the AFI Conservatory. This article is about a liberal arts college in the United States. ... The UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television (TFT), located in Los Angeles, USA, is unique in that it combines all three (theater, film, and television) of these aspects into a single school. ... Pauline Kael (June 19, 1919 – September 3, 2001) was an American film critic who wrote for The New Yorker magazine from 1968 to 1991. ... Film criticism is the analysis and evaluation of films. ...

In 1975, Schrader co-wrote The Yakuza, a film set in the Japanese crime world directed by Sydney Pollack and starring Robert Mitchum. Although it flopped at the box office, it brought him to the attention of the new generation of Hollywood directors. In 1976 he wrote the screenplay of Obsession for Brian De Palma. A powerful film written by Paul Schrader and Robert Towne and directed by Sydney Pollack, The Yakuza takes an in depth look at Japan as seen from western eyes. ... Sydney Pollack (born July 1, 1934 in Lafayette, Indiana) is an American actor, producer, and director. ... Robert Charles Durman Mitchum (August 6, 1917 – July 1, 1997) was an Academy award nominated American film actor and singer. ... ... Obsession is a 1976 psychological thriller/mystery directed by Brian De Palma, starring Cliff Robertson, Geneviève Bujold, and John Lithgow. ... Brian De Palma (born Brian Russell DePalma on September 11, 1940 in Newark, New Jersey) is a controversial American film director, best known for directing the Al Pacino classic Scarface, and the Academy Award-winning The Untouchables. ...

Schrader was involved in the early stages of the writing of Steven Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), but either the studio or Spielberg (even Schrader does not know to this day) did not like the religious overtones and opted for a somewhat lighter script. Steven Spielberg (born December 18, 1946)[1] is an American film director and producer. ... This article is about the film; for the definition of the UFO related phenomenon, see Close encounter. ...

Also that year, Martin Scorsese filmed his script of Taxi Driver. The film was nominated for a 1976 Golden Globe Award and provided the acclaim and funding that enabled Schrader to direct Blue Collar (1978), which he had written with his brother Leonard. Starring Richard Pryor and Harvey Keitel, it was a story of car workers trying to get out of their rut through robbery and blackmail. The shooting, as Schrader recalls, was a nightmare because of the amount of tension between him and the actors. Reportedly, Yaphet Kotto broke a chair over Keitel's back, while Pryor pulled a gun on Schrader and would refuse to shoot more than three takes per scene. Schrader also states this is the only time he has broken down on a film set, and that it made him seriously reconsider his career. Martin Marcantonio Luciano Scorsese (IPA: AmE: ; Ita: []) (born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, writer and producer and founder of the World Cinema Foundation. ... This article is about the 1976 American film. ... The Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are American awards for motion pictures and television programs, given out each year during a formal dinner. ... Blue Collar is the 1978 directorial debut of screenwriter Paul Schrader. ... Leonard Schrader (1944 in Grand Rapids, Michigan - November 2, 2006 in Los Angeles of heart failure) was an Academy Award-nominated American screenwriter and director most notable for his ability to write Japanese language films and for his many collaborations with his brother Paul Schrader. ... Richard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor III (December 1, 1940 – December 10, 2005) was an American comedian, actor, and writer. ... Harvey Keitel (born May 13, 1939) is an Academy Award-nominated American actor from New York City. ... For other uses, see Blackmail (disambiguation). ... Prince Yaphet Frederick Kotto (born November 15, 1937) is an American actor. ...

Besides Taxi Driver, Scorsese has also filmed Schrader's scripts for The Last Temptation of Christ (1988) and Bringing Out the Dead (1999), and directed Raging Bull (1980), which Schrader co-wrote with Mardik Martin. The Last Temptation of Christ, (in Greek O Teleutaios Peirasmos, Ο Τελευταίος Πειρασμός) also published as The Last Temptation, is a novel written by Nikos Kazantzakis, first published in 1951. ... Bringing Out the Dead is a film released in 1999. ... This article is about the 1980 film. ...

In 1986, Peter Weir filmed his script of The Mosquito Coast. Year 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar). ... Peter Lindsay Weir (born August 21, 1944) is an Australian film director. ... The Mosquito Coast is a 1986 film, directed by Peter Weir and starring Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren. ...

Other films Schrader has directed include Hardcore (1979), American Gigolo (1980), the remake of Cat People (1982), Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985), for which he was nominated the Palme d'Or at that year's Cannes Film Festival; Light of Day (1987); and an unconventional, visually inventive film about the kidnapping of Patty Hearst (1988). His 1990s work includes The Comfort of Strangers (1990), which was adapted by Harold Pinter from the novel by Ian McEwan; Light Sleeper (1993), a sympathetic study of a drug dealer who, like the other people around him, is vying for a normal life; Touch (1997), from a novel by Elmore Leonard; Affliction (1997) from a novel by Russell Banks; and the romantic thriller Forever Mine (1999). Hardcore is a 1979 film written and directed by Paul Schrader. ... DVD cover American Gigolo is a 1980 film, written and directed by Paul Schrader, who based the film on French director Robert Bressons Pickpocket (1959). ... Cat People is a 1982 horror film directed by Paul Schrader and starring Nastassja Kinski, Malcolm McDowell, and John Heard. ... Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters is an episodic, stylized (1985) film based on the life of the Japanese author Yukio Mishima. ... Palme dOr The Palme dOr (Golden Palm) is the highest prize given to a film at the Cannes Film Festival. ... The Cannes Film Festival (French: le Festival de Cannes), founded in 1939, is one of the worlds oldest, most influential and prestigious film festivals. ... Light of Day is a 1987 drama film starring Michael J. Fox, Gena Rowlands, Joan Jett and Michael McKean. ... Patty Hearst is a 1988 film directed by Paul Schrader and starring Natasha Richardson as Patricia Campbell Hearst and Ving Rhames as SLA leader Cinque. ... The Comfort of Strangers is a 1990 film directed by Paul Schrader. ... Harold Pinter, CH, CBE (born 10 October 1930) is an English playwright, screenwriter, poet, actor, director, author, and political activist. ... Ian McEwan CBE (born June 21, 1948) is a British novelist. ... Light Sleeper is a 1992 film written and directed by Paul Schrader. ... Touch soundtrack album cover Touch is a 1997 film written and directed by Paul Schrader. ... Elmore John Leonard Jr. ... Affliction is a 1997 film which tells the story of an alcoholic small town policeman who must investigate a mysterious death involving his best friend, while dealing with his own fathers alcoholism. ... Russell Banks (born March 28, 1940) is an American writer of fiction and poetry. ... Joseph Fiennes and Gretchen Mol in Forever Mine Forever Mine is a 1999 film written and directed by Paul Schrader. ...

He directed another biopic, Auto Focus (2002), dealing with the life and mysterious death of Hogan's Heroes actor, Bob Crane. After this he shot Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist (see below). The Walker was released in 2007, and Adam Resurrected, which will be released in 2008, is now in post-production. A biographical film or biopic is a film about a particular person or group of people, based on events that actually happened. ... A device connected to an optical system. ... Hogans Heroes was an American television situation comedy that ran from September 17, 1965 to July 4, 1971 on the CBS network for 168 episodes. ... Bob Crane as Col. ... The Walker is an upcoming drama film by Paul Schrader. ... Adam Resurrected is an upcoming dramatic film, scheduled for release in 2008. ...

Schrader wrote an essay in the September/October 2006 issue of Film Comment called "Canon Fodder," which attempts to establish criteria for judging film masterworks.

Schrader served as the head of the International Jury at the 2007 Berlin International Film Festival. He is currently a Jury Member of the on going Filmaka short film contest.

Exorcist: The Original Prequel

In 2003 he made entertainment headlines after being fired from Exorcist: Dominion, a prequel to The Exorcist. The original director chosen had been John Frankenheimer, who died in 2002 from a stroke due to complications after spinal surgery. The year 2003 in film involved some significant events. ... The Exorcist is an Academy Award-winning 1973 American horror and thriller film, adapted from the 1971 novel of the same name by William Peter Blatty, dealing with the demonic possession of a young girl, and her mother’s desperate attempts to win back her daughter through an exorcism conducted... John Michael Frankenheimer (February 19, 1930 – July 6, 2002) was an American film director. ...

After the film was completed under Schrader's direction, the production company, Morgan Creek Productions/Warner Bros. did not like the result and the entire film was re-shot, with Renny Harlin directing. It was released as Exorcist: The Beginning in 2004. Morgan Creek Productions, founded in 1988 by its Chairman, CEO and Producer/Presenter, James G. Robinson, is a film studio most notable for such blockbuster hits as Young Guns and In a varied 17-year history that has seen the Santa Monica, California-based company shift domestic distribution bases from... “WB” redirects here. ... Renny Harlin (born Lauri Mauritz Harjola on March 15, 1959 in Riihimäki, Finland) is a film director and producer mostly known for action movies. ... Categories: Movie stubs | 2004 films | Horror films | Exorcism ...

Schrader's version eventually premiered at the Brussels International Festival of Fantastic Film on March 18, 2005 as Exorcist: The Original Prequel, where discussions were held for a limited release in the UK before its release on DVD. The film saw a limited theatrical release in the U.S. as Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist in mid-2005. is the 77th day of the year (78th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... DVD (also known as Digital Versatile Disc or Digital Video Disc) is a popular optical disc storage media format. ...

In addition, after a troubled post production on Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist, Schrader had to make certain budget decisions in terms of finishing his film. To do that, he asked Angelo Badalamenti and American experimental metal band Dog Fashion Disco to contribute to the score for little or no money. Angelo Badalamenti (born March 22, 1937) is an Italian-American composer, best known for his movie soundtrack work for movie director David Lynch, most notably Blue Velvet, the Twin Peaks saga (1991-1992) and Mulholland Drive // He was born in Brooklyn, New York to a Sicilian mother and an Italian... Dog Fashion Disco is a band from Washington, D.C., notable for combining many different music styles (70s pychedelic, jazz, piano recital, circus music and vocals, among others) they are, howerever, primarily considered a metal band. ...

Filmography (as director)

• Blue Collar (1978) (also co-writer)
• Hardcore (1979) (also writer)
• American Gigolo (1980) (also writer)
• Cat People (1982)
• Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985) (also co-writer with his brother and sister-in-law)
• Light of Day (1987) (also writer)
• Patty Hearst (1988)
• The Comfort of Strangers (1990)
• Light Sleeper (1992) (also writer)
• Touch (1997) (also writer)
• Affliction (1997) (also writer)
• Forever Mine (1999) (also writer)
• Auto Focus (2002)
• Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist (2005)
• The Walker (2007) (also writer)
• Adam Resurrected (2008)

Hardcore is a 1979 film written and directed by Paul Schrader. ... DVD cover American Gigolo is a 1980 film, written and directed by Paul Schrader, who based the film on French director Robert Bressons Pickpocket (1959). ... Cat People is a 1982 horror film directed by Paul Schrader and starring Nastassja Kinski, Malcolm McDowell, and John Heard. ... Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters is an episodic, stylized (1985) film based on the life of the Japanese author Yukio Mishima. ... Light of Day is a 1987 drama film starring Michael J. Fox, Gena Rowlands, Joan Jett and Michael McKean. ... Patty Hearst is a 1988 film directed by Paul Schrader and starring Natasha Richardson as Patricia Campbell Hearst and Ving Rhames as SLA leader Cinque. ... The Comfort of Strangers is a 1990 film directed by Paul Schrader. ... Light Sleeper is a 1992 film written and directed by Paul Schrader. ... Touch soundtrack album cover Touch is a 1997 film written and directed by Paul Schrader. ... Affliction is a 1997 film written and directed by Paul Schrader from the novel by Russell Banks. ... Joseph Fiennes and Gretchen Mol in Forever Mine Forever Mine is a 1999 film written and directed by Paul Schrader. ... A device connected to an optical system. ... The Walker is an upcoming drama film by Paul Schrader. ... Adam Resurrected is an upcoming dramatic film, scheduled for release in 2008. ...

Filmography (as writer)

• The Yakuza (1975)...Directed by Sydney Pollack (with Leonard Schrader)
• Taxi Driver (1976)...Directed by Martin Scorsese
• Obsession (1976)...Directed by Brian DePalma
• Rolling Thunder (1977)...Directed by John Flynn
• Old Boyfriends (1979)...Directed by Joan Tewkesbury (with Leonard Schrader)
• Raging Bull (1980)...Directed by Martin Scorsese (with Mardik Martin)
• The Mosquito Coast (1986)...Directed by Peter Weir
• The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)...Directed by Martin Scorsese
• City Hall (1996)...Directed by Harold Becker (with Bo Goldman, Nicholas Pileggi, and Ken Lipper)
• Bringing Out the Dead (1999)...Directed by Martin Scorsese
• Torch (2007)...to be directed by Harold Becker

A powerful film written by Paul Schrader and Robert Towne and directed by Sydney Pollack, The Yakuza takes an in depth look at Japan as seen from western eyes. ... Sydney Pollack (born July 1, 1934 in Lafayette, Indiana) is an American actor, producer, and director. ... Leonard Schrader (1944 in Grand Rapids, Michigan - November 2, 2006 in Los Angeles of heart failure) was an Academy Award-nominated American screenwriter and director most notable for his ability to write Japanese language films and for his many collaborations with his brother Paul Schrader. ... This article is about the 1976 American film. ... Martin Marcantonio Luciano Scorsese (IPA: AmE: ; Ita: []) (born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, writer and producer and founder of the World Cinema Foundation. ... Obsession is a 1976 psychological thriller/mystery directed by Brian De Palma, starring Cliff Robertson, Geneviève Bujold, and John Lithgow. ... Brian De Palma (born September 11, 1940 in Newark, New Jersey) is an American film director. ... Film poster for Rolling Thunder Rolling Thunder is a 1977 film directed by John Flynn. ... John Flynn could refer to one of several people: The Reverend John Flynn, founder of the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia John Flynn, the director of a number of Hollywood movies such as Rolling Thunder. ... Joan Tewkesbury (born April 8, 1936 in Redlands, California, USA), is a film and television director, screenwriter, producer, and actress. ... This article is about the 1980 film. ... Martin Marcantonio Luciano Scorsese (IPA: AmE: ; Ita: []) (born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, writer and producer and founder of the World Cinema Foundation. ... The Mosquito Coast is a 1986 film, directed by Peter Weir and starring Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren. ... Peter Lindsay Weir (born August 21, 1944) is an Australian film director. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Martin Marcantonio Luciano Scorsese (IPA: AmE: ; Ita: []) (born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, writer and producer and founder of the World Cinema Foundation. ... City Hall is a 1996 film directed by Harold Becker. ... Harold Becker is a film director and producer from New York. ... Bo Goldman is an Academy Award winning screenwriter. ... Nicholas Pileggi (born February 22, 1933 in New York City, New York) is an American author and screenwriter, best known for writing the book Wiseguy, which he adapted into the movie Goodfellas, and for writing the book and screenplay Casino. ... Kenneth Lipper is a prominent figure in the arts, in the world of finance, and in government. ... Bringing Out the Dead is a film released in 1999. ... Martin Marcantonio Luciano Scorsese (IPA: AmE: ; Ita: []) (born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, writer and producer and founder of the World Cinema Foundation. ... Harold Becker is a film director and producer from New York. ...

Further reading

• Transcendental Style in Film: Ozu, Bresson, Dreyer (1972) (ISBN 0-306-80335-6)
• Schrader on Schrader and Other Writings (2004) (ISBN 0-571-22176-9)

External links

• Paul Schrader at the Internet Movie Database
• Interview with Schrader from 1998 on 'Bringing Out the Dead' and his writing techniques by Mikael Colville-Andersen.
• Exorcist: The Original Prequel - Brussels International Festival Of Fantastic Film (BIFFF) website
• Video of interview with Paul Schrader about Robert Bresson
• Eight Scenes From the Life of Hank Williams (Unproduced Script)