Thom Andersen was born in 1943 in Chicago. In the early 60’s, he studied at the USC (School of Cinematic Arts) in Los Angeles. In 1975 he directed Eadweard Muybridge, Zoopraxographer, a documentary film about the photographer Muybridge known for his early use of multiple cameras to capture motion. In 1995, his second film Red Hollywood shows how the communists of Hollywood were sometimes able to surreptitiously express their ideas in the films they wrote and directed. His latest movie, the 2003 Los Angeles Plays Itself, analyzes how nearly 100 years of cinema has depicted Los Angeles. It won the National Film Board Award for best documentary at the 2003 Vancouver International Film Festival. He has also lectured at the University at Buffalo (SUNY) and Ohio State University.
He currently teaches film theory and history at the California Institute of the Arts.
YEAR |
FILM |
| 1975 | Eadweard Muybridge, Zoopraxographer |
| 1995 | Red Hollywood |
| 2003 | Los Angeles Plays Itself |