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Sydney Pollack

Directing

Born July 1, 1934 · Lafayette, Indiana, USA

Died May 26, 2008

Also known as Sidney Pollack · Sydney Irwin Pollack

Biography

Sydney Irwin Pollack (July 1, 1934 – May 26, 2008) was an American film director, producer, and actor. Pollack is known for directing commercially and critically acclaimed studio films. During his forty-year career, he received numerous accolades, including two Academy Awards and two Primetime Emmy Awards, in addition to nominations for three Golden Globe Awards and six BAFTA Awards. Pollack won the Academy Awards for Best Director and Best Picture for Out of Africa (1985). He was also nominated for Academy Awards for Best Director for They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (1969) and Tootsie (1982). Pollack's other notable films include Jeremiah Johnson (1972), The Way We Were (1973), The Yakuza (1974), Three Days of the Condor (1975), Absence of Malice (1981), The Firm (1993), and Sabrina (1995). Pollack produced and acted in Michael Clayton (2007), and he produced numerous films including The Fabulous Baker Boys (1989), Sense and Sensibility (1995), The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), Iris (2001), Cold Mountain (2003) and The Reader (2008). Pollack acted in Robert Altman's The Player (1992), Woody Allen's Husbands and Wives (1993), and Stanley Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut (1999). Description above from the Wikipedia article Sydney Pollack, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Awards & recognition

  • Academy AwardBest Director · 1986
  • Academy AwardBest Picture · 1986
  • Berlinale Camera · 1986
  • Golden Globe AwardBest Motion Picture – Drama · 1985
  • Primetime Emmy AwardOutstanding Directing for a Drama Series · 1966
Show all 14 awards →
  • National Board of Review AwardBest Film
  • Academy AwardBest Picture · 2009 · nominated
  • European Film AwardBest Film · 2009 · nominated
  • Academy AwardBest Picture · 2008 · nominated
  • Academy AwardBest Director · 1986 · nominated
  • Academy AwardBest Director · 1983 · nominated
  • Academy AwardBest Picture · 1983 · nominated
  • Academy AwardBest Director · 1970 · nominated
  • Academy AwardBest Picture · nominated

Filmography50+ titles

The Sopranos

1999as Warren Feldman

The Twilight Zone

1959as Arthur Willis

One Six Right

2005as Self

John Candy: I Like Me

2025as Self - Director (archive footage)

Citizen Jane Fonda

2020

The Alfred Hitchcock Hour

1962Director

Alfred Hitchcock Presents

1955as Bernie Samuelson

Burt Lancaster: Daring to Reach

1996as Self

Frasier

1993as Holden Thorpe (voice)

The Reader

2008Producer

Eyes Wide Shut

1999as Victor Ziegler

Robert Mitchum: The Reluctant Star

1991as Self

Entourage

2004as Sydney Pollack

Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures

2001as Self

King of the Hill

1997as Grant Trimble (voice)

Sense and Sensibility

1995Executive Producer

Three Days of the Condor

1975Director, Producer

Jeremiah Johnson

1972Director

The Swimmer

1968Co-Director

The Fugitive

1963Director

Have Gun, Will Travel

1957as Joe Culp

Babenco: Tell Me When I Die

2020as Self (archive footage)

Silver Linings Playbook

2012Thanks

The Talented Mr. Ripley

1999Executive Producer

The Player

1992as Dick Mellen

Out of Africa

1985Director, Producer

Tootsie

1982as George Fields

Amazing Grace

2018as Self - Director (archive footage) (uncredited)

Searching for Bobby Fischer

1993Executive Producer

The Yakuza

1974Director, Producer

The Slender Thread

1965Director

Husbands and Wives

1992as Jack

The Way We Were

1973Director

Sketches of Frank Gehry

2006as Self

Cold Mountain

2003Producer

Will & Grace

1998as George Truman

Recount

2008Executive Producer

Michael Clayton

2007as Marty Bach

The Majestic

2001as Studio Executive (voice)

Death Becomes Her

1992as Hospital Doctor (uncredited)

Presumed Innocent

1990Producer

The Dick Cavett Show

1968as Self - Guest

The Firm

1993Director, Producer

Mad About You

1992as Dr. Sydney Warren

War Hunt

1962as Sgt. Owen Van Horn

The Quiet American

2002Executive Producer

Sliding Doors

1998Producer

Just Shoot Me!

1997as Sydney Pollack

Absence of Malice

1981Director, Producer

Magician: The Astonishing Life and Work of Orson Welles

2014as Self - Filmmaker (archive footage)