Nominee Spotlight: Paul Thomas Anderson
Son of Ernie Anderson, a Cleveland late night horror film television host nicknamed Ghoulardi -- the name of Paul's production banner -- Anderson grew up in California's San Fernando Valley, and it is the backdrop for all his feature films.
His first film, Sydney, later released as Hard Eight, is a slick and ready-to-rumble thriller about an old gambler who attempts to mentor a young nobody. A prostitute and a murder plot are woven around Sydney and his young son-a-like John, and all things are wonderfully seamy.
This was the first taste we had of Anderson's perpetually-moving camera. And things were just getting started.
Also read: Nominee Spotlight: Jason Reitman
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