
Paul Schrader
- Known for
- Writing
- Born
- July 22, 1946
- Birthplace
- Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA
Paul Joseph Schrader (/ˈʃreɪdər/; born July 22, 1946) is an American screenwriter, film director, and film critic. He first became known for writing the screenplay of Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver (1976). He later continued his collaboration with Scorsese, writing or co-writing Raging Bull (1980), The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), and Bringing Out the Dead (1999). Schrader has also worked extensively as a director: his 23 films include Blue Collar (1978), Hardcore (1979), American Gigolo (1980), Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985), Light Sleeper (1992), Affliction (1997), and First Reformed (2017), with the last of these earning him his first Academy Award nomination. Schrader's work frequently depicts "man in a room" stories which feature isolated, troubled men confronting an existential crisis. Raised in a strict Calvinist family, Schrader attended Calvin College before pursuing film studies at UCLA on the encouragement of film critic Pauline Kael. He then worked as a film scholar and critic, publishing the book Transcendental Style in Film: Ozu, Bresson, Dreyer (1972) before transitioning to screenwriting in 1974. The success of Taxi Driver in 1976 brought greater attention to his work, and Schrader began directing his own films, beginning with Blue Collar (co-written with his brother, Leonard Schrader). Schrader has described three of his recent films as a loose trilogy: First Reformed (2017), The Card Counter (2021), and Master Gardener (2022). Description above from the Wikipedia article Paul Schrader, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Filmography
- Clang
Clang TBA
Writer
- The Doors of Perception
The Doors of Perception TBA
Director, Writer
- Three Guns at Dawn
Three Guns at Dawn TBA
Writer
- Life from the Other Side
Life from the Other Side TBA
Screenplay
- Amber Light
Amber Light TBA
Writer
- Non Compos Mentis
Non Compos Mentis TBA
Director, Writer

The Basics of Philosophy 2026
Director, Writer

Best Served Cold: How a Revenge Film was Buried for Decades 2026
as Himself
- Masterclass di Paul Schrader al Laceno d'Oro 48
Masterclass di Paul Schrader al Laceno d'Oro 48 2025
as Self - filmmaker, guest

Ritratti di cinema 2025
as Self

Vulcanizadora 2025
Thanks

Oh, Canada 2024
Director, Screenplay

Master Gardener 2023
Director, Writer

The Book of Harth 2022
as Self

There Are No Saints 2022
Executive Producer, Screenplay

The Card Counter 2021
Director, Writer

The Beauty of Horror: Paul Schrader on The Comfort of Strangers 2020
as Self

Clapboard Jungle: Surviving the Independent Film Business 2020
as Self

Paul Schrader: Man in a Room 2020
as Self, Thanks

What She Said: The Art of Pauline Kael 2019
as Self

First Reformed 2018
Writer, Director

We Blew It 2017
as Self

Taxi Driver: 40th Anniversary Cast Q&A 2016
as Self

Dog Eat Dog 2016
as El Greco, Director

Ken San 2016
as Self

American Johns 2015
Thanks

Hitchcock/Truffaut 2015
as Self

Dying of the Light 2014
Director, Screenplay

Venice 70: Future Reloaded 2013
as Self (segment Paul Schrader), Director

The Canyons 2013
Director

Richard Pryor: Omit the Logic 2013
as Self

Milius 2013
as Self

Walk of Fame 2012
Thanks

Eames: The Architect and the Painter 2011
as Self

Godard Made in USA 2010
as Self

The Rules of Film Noir 2009
as Self

Tales from the Script 2009
as Self

Murnau, Borzage and Fox 2008
as Self

Schrader's Exorcism 2008
as Self

Adam Resurrected 2008
Director

Producing 'Taxi Driver' 2007
as Himself

Influence And Appreciation: A Martin Scorsese Tribute 2007
as Self

God's Lonely Man 2007
as Self

The Walker 2007
Director, Screenplay

Film Noir: Bringing Darkness to Light 2006
as Self

Budd Boetticher: A Man Can Do That 2005
as Self

Dominion: Prequel to The Exorcist 2005
Director

Raging Bull: Before the Fight 2005
as Self
- Männer im Trenchcoat, Frauen im Pelz
Männer im Trenchcoat, Frauen im Pelz 2004
as Self

Sam Peckinpah's West: Legacy of a Hollywood Renegade 2004
as Self

Playboy: Sex at 24 Frames Per Second 2003
as Self

A Decade Under the Influence 2003
as Self

Easy Riders, Raging Bulls: How the Sex 'n' Drugs 'n' Rock 'n' Roll Generation Saved Hollywood 2003
as Self

Auto Focus 2002
Director
- Cat People: An Intimate Portrait by Paul Schrader
Cat People: An Intimate Portrait by Paul Schrader 2002
as Self

Bringing Out the Dead 1999
Screenplay

Forever Mine 1999
Director, Writer

Making 'Taxi Driver' 1999
as Self

Affliction 1998
Director, Screenplay

Birth of a Nation 1997
as Self

Touch 1997
Director, Screenplay

City Hall 1996
Writer

Untitled: New Blue 1995
as Himself (uncredited), Director, Writer

Witch Hunt 1994
Director

Talking with Ozu 1993
as Self

Light Sleeper 1992
Director, Writer

The Comfort of Strangers 1990
Director

Hollywood Mavericks 1990
as Self

Preston Sturges: The Rise and Fall of an American Dreamer 1990
as Self

Pictures of Europe 1990
as Self

Patty Hearst 1988
Director

The Last Temptation of Christ 1988
Screenplay

Light of Day 1987
Director, Screenplay

The Mosquito Coast 1986
Screenplay

Inside Mishima 1985
as Self

Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters 1985
Director, Writer

The Road to Bresson 1984
as Self

Cat People 1982
Director, Screenplay

Raging Bull 1980
Screenplay

American Gigolo 1980
Director, Writer

Old Boyfriends 1979
Writer, Executive Producer

Hardcore 1979
Director, Writer

Blue Collar 1978
Director, Screenplay

Rolling Thunder 1977
Original Story, Screenplay

Obsession 1976
Screenplay, Story

Taxi Driver 1976
Writer

The Yakuza 1974
Screenplay
Credits from TMDB.