Alexander Payne

Alexander Payne

1961-02-10 Omaha, Nebraska, USA 42 Credits

Biography

Alexander Payne (born February 10, 1961) is an Oscar-winning filmmaker whose work has helped define modern-day American cinema. He is best known for the features Election (1999), Sideways (2004), The Descendants (2011), About Schmidt (2002), Nebraska (2013) and The Holdovers (2023). His movies have garnered a total of 24 Academy Award nominations, including four times for Best Picture and three times for Best Director. He has won two Oscars for Best Adapted Screenplay (Sideways, The Descendants...

Known For

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Complete Filmography

The Holdovers

The Holdovers

2023

Director

7.7
Directing

A curmudgeonly instructor at a New England prep school is forced to remain on campus during Christmas break to babysit the handful of students with no...

Frank Capra: Mr. America

Frank Capra: Mr. America

2023

as Self

6.0
Acting

Tells the story of how Frank Capra, a young and penniless immigrant, rose through the ranks of early Hollywood to become one of the Great American sto...

Berlanga!!

Berlanga!!

2021

as Self - Filmmaker

8.0
Acting

How does the vision of the brilliant Spanish filmmaker Luis García Berlanga (1921-2010) remain relevant in a time whose popular culture has little to ...

Christoph Waltz - The Charm of Evil

Christoph Waltz - The Charm of Evil

2021

as Self

8.0
Acting

Christoph Waltz, the villain with the friendly face, has become an integral part of the international cinema landscape. His breakthrough came with his...

The Last Shift

The Last Shift

2020

Executive Producer

5.6
Producing

Stanley, an aging fast food worker, prepares to work his final graveyard shift after 38 years. When he's asked to train his replacement, Jevon, Stanle...

Small Town Wisconsin

Small Town Wisconsin

2020

Executive Producer

6.0
Producing

After losing a custody battle, perpetual teenager Wayne Stobierski steals his son away for one last father-son weekend to the city of their dreams - M...

Hal

Hal

2019

as Self

6.5
Acting

Hal Ashby's obsessive genius led to an unprecedented string of Oscar®-winning classics, including Harold and Maude, Shampoo and Being There. But as co...

Downsizing

Downsizing

2017

Director, Screenplay, Producer

5.4
Directing Writing Producing

A kindly occupational therapist undergoes a new procedure to be shrunken to four inches tall so that he and his wife can help save the planet and affo...

Election - "The Passion of Martin" Introduction

Election - "The Passion of Martin" Introduction

2017

as Himself

Acting

Introductory piece to Alexander Payne's student film "The Passion of Martin" included on the Criterion Collection release of Election (1999).

Crash Pad

Crash Pad

2017

Executive Producer

5.6
Producing

Hopeless romantic Stensland thinks he's found true love with an older woman, Morgan, only to learn that she's married and that their fling is merely a...

Program Notes: An Introduction To The Last Detail By Alexander Payne

Program Notes: An Introduction To The Last Detail By Alexander Payne

2017

as Self

7.0
Acting

The acclaimed director Alexander Payne gives his notes on the making and interpretation of 'The Last Detail

About a Trip: Alexander Payne on Hal Ashby's 'The Last Detail'

About a Trip: Alexander Payne on Hal Ashby's 'The Last Detail'

2017

Acting

An appreciation of the film “The Last Detail” by Alexander Payne

Program Notes: An Introduction To The Last Detail By Alexander Payne

Program Notes: An Introduction To The Last Detail By Alexander Payne

2017

Writer

7.0
Writing

The acclaimed director Alexander Payne gives his notes on the making and interpretation of 'The Last Detail

Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter

Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter

2014

Executive Producer

6.6
Producing

Frustrated with her mundane life, a Tokyo office worker becomes obsessed with a fictional movie that she mistakes for a documentary. Fixating on a sce...

Nebraska

Nebraska

2013

Director

7.4
Directing

An aging, booze-addled father takes a trip from Montana to Nebraska with his estranged son in order to claim what he believes to be a million-dollar s...

Trespassing Bergman

Trespassing Bergman

2013

as Self

6.6
Acting

In the sixties, Swedish filmmaker Ingmar Bergman (1918-2007) built a house on the remote island of Fårö, located in the Baltic Sea, and left Stockholm...

The Descendants

The Descendants

2011

Director, Screenplay, Producer

6.8
Directing Writing Producing

With his wife Elizabeth on life support after a boating accident, Hawaiian land baron Matt King takes his daughters on a trip from Oahu to Kauai to co...

Cedar Rapids

Cedar Rapids

2011

Producer

5.9
Producing

A naive Midwesterner insurance salesman travels to a big-city convention in an effort to save the jobs of his co-workers.

Sideways

Sideways

2009

Story, Executive Producer

4.5
Writing Producing

A struggling writer and his engaged buddy hit the road for California wine country. Remake of the 2004 film 'Sideways'.

The Replacement Child

The Replacement Child

2008

Thanks

6.0

After spending a year in a juvenile center for beating up his stepfather, Todd Turnbull returns to his backwoods hometown a repentant, deeply religiou...

The Savages

The Savages

2007

Executive Producer

6.9
Producing

A sister and brother face the realities of familial responsibility as they begin to care for their ailing father.

I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry

I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry

2007

Screenplay

6.1
Writing

Firefighters Chuck Ford and Larry Valentine are guy's guys, loyal to the core—which is why when widower Larry asks Chuck to pose as his lover so that ...

Gray Matters

Gray Matters

2007

Executive Producer

5.8
Producing

Sam and Gray are such a well-matched pair that it is difficult to believe they are brother and sister rather than husband and wife. They both share a ...

King of California

King of California

2007

Producer

6.4
Producing

Charlie gets released from an insane asylum and moves in with Miranda, the young daughter he left behind. Charlie believes that there is treasure hidd...

Paris Je T'aime

Paris Je T'aime

2006

as Oscar Wilde (Pere-Lachaise)

6.8
Acting

Olivier Assayas, Gus Van Sant, Wes Craven and Alfonso Cuaron are among the 20 distinguished directors who contribute to this collection of 18 stories,...

Paris Je T'aime

Paris Je T'aime

2006

Director, Writer

6.8
Directing Writing

Olivier Assayas, Gus Van Sant, Wes Craven and Alfonso Cuaron are among the 20 distinguished directors who contribute to this collection of 18 stories,...

Cinema16: American Short Films

Cinema16: American Short Films

2006

Director

7.5
Directing

CINEMA16 celebrates the short film by showcasing some of the best classic and award-winning shorts on DVD. With over three hours of films CINEMA16: A...

14e Arrondissement

14e Arrondissement

2006

Director

Directing

“14e Arrondissement” is the last of the eighteen short films by well-known filmmakers that make up the anthology film Paris Je’ Taime. Richard Brody i...

Sideways

Sideways

2004

Director, Screenplay

7.1
Directing Writing

Two middle-aged men embark on a spiritual journey through Californian wine country. One is an unpublished novelist suffering from depression, and the ...

The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing

The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing

2004

as Self

7.0
Acting

Documentary about the art of film editing. Clips are shown from many groundbreaking films with innovative editing styles.

The Assassination of Richard Nixon

The Assassination of Richard Nixon

2004

Executive Producer

6.5
Producing

It’s 1974 and Sam Bicke has lost everything. His wife leaves him with his three kids, his boss fires him, his brother turns away from him, and the ban...

Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession

Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession

2004

as Self

7.0
Acting

A documentary on the Z Channel, one of the first pay cable stations in the US, and its programming chief, Jerry Harvey. Debuting in 1974, the LA-based...

About Schmidt

About Schmidt

2002

Director, Screenplay

6.8
Directing Writing

A recently retired man embarks on a journey to his estranged daughter's wedding, only to discover more about himself and life than he ever expected.

Jurassic Park III

Jurassic Park III

2001

Writer

6.2
Writing

In need of funds for research, Dr. Alan Grant accepts a large sum of money to accompany Paul and Amanda Kirby on an aerial tour of the infamous Isla S...

Election

Election

1999

Director, Screenplay

6.9
Directing Writing

Tracy Flick is running unopposed for this year’s high school student election. But Jim McAllister has a different plan. Partly to establish a more dem...

Citizen Ruth

Citizen Ruth

1996

Director, Screenplay

6.6
Directing Writing

"Citizen Ruth" is the story of Ruth Stoops, a woman who nobody even noticed -- until she got pregnant. Now, everyone wants a piece of her. The film is...

Inside Out 3

Inside Out 3

1992

Director

2.5
Directing

Softcore anthology film containing stories: "Dogs Playing Poker"; "The Branding"; "The Portal"; "The Perfect Woman"; "Within Ten Minutes"; "Tango"; "T...

The Passion of Martin

The Passion of Martin

1991

Director, Screenplay, Editor

6.1
Directing Writing Producing

A lonely photographer gradually develops a rather unhealthy obsession with a young woman he once met by sheer chance.

Inside Out

Inside Out

1991

Writer, Director

3.0
Writing Directing

Softcore anthology film containing stories: "Brush Strokes"; "Shrink Rap"; "Doubletalk"; "The Leda"; "My Secret Moments"; "Life Is For The Taking"; "T...

Carmen

Carmen

1985

Director, Music

5.3
Directing

Carmen was Alexander Payne’s first short film, made while he was studying at UCLA Film School. It is a silent comedy, derived from the opera of the sa...

Untitled Alexander Payne Western

N/A

Director

Directing

Western set in 1886 Nebraska. Plot details have not been revealed.

Somewhere Out There

N/A

Director

Directing