CITIZEN RUTH

Alexander Payne

(Omaha, NE, USA, 1961) graduated in film studies from UCLA and debuted with Citizen Ruth, which was presented at the Sundance Festival. In 1999, he directed Election, which received numerous awards, including best screenplay from the Writers’ Guild of America and the New York Film Critics Circle. Thanks to his next feature film, About Schmidt (2002), Jack Nicholson received the Oscar for best actor; the film also competed at Cannes and inaugurated the New York Film Festival. Two years later, Sideways won an Oscar for best adapted screenplay, and was also nominated for best film and best director. In 2011, he co-wrote the Oscar-winning screenplay with Nat Faxon and Jim Rash and directed The Descendants, starring George Clooney and selected at TFF. The following year, he helmed the black-and-white road movie Nebraska, featuring Bruce Dern, which won the Best Actor award at Cannes. In 2017, he directed Downsizing, starring Matt Damon, which was selected in competion at Venice. In 2023, he directed The Holdovers, presented at Telluride and starring Paul Giamatti.

FILMOGRAFIA

Carmen (cm, 1985), The Passion of Martin (mm, 1991), Citizen Ruth (La storia di Ruth - Donna americana, 1996), Election (id., 1999), About Schmidt (A proposito di Schmidt, 2002), Sideways (Sideways - In viaggio con Jack, 2004), Paris, je t’aime (ep. 14e arrondissement, cm, 2006), Hung (ep. pilota/Pilot, cm, tv, 2009), The Descendants (id., 2011), The Descendants (Paradiso amaro, 2011), Nebraska (id., 2013), Downsizing (Downsizing – Vivere alla grande, 2017), The Holdovers (The Holdovers – Lezioni di vita, 2023).