--- name: "Philip Kaufman" canonical: "https://film.one/person/philip-kaufman" fi1m_id: "philip-kaufman" imdb_id: "nm0442241" tmdb_id: 648 wikidata_id: "Q176126" roles: ["Writer","Director"] born: "23 October 1936" reviewed_on_fi1m: 8 average_fi1m_score: 71 average_as: "writer" average_over: 5 updated: "2026-10-03T21:26:17.197961+00:00" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Philip Kaufman ## Identity Philip Kaufman - **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/philip-kaufman - **Type:** Person - **Fi1m ID:** philip-kaufman - **IMDb ID:** nm0442241 - **TMDB ID:** 648 - **Wikidata ID:** Q176126 - **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Kaufman, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q176126, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0442241/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/648 Writer and director. Born 23 October 1936 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. ## Details - **Work:** Writer, Director - **Born:** 23 October 1936, Chicago, Illinois, USA - **Active:** 1976–present - **Titles on Fi1m:** 8: 3 directing, 5 writing - **BAFTA Film Awards:** 1 BAFTA (1 won) - **Average Fi1m score:** 71, as writer, over 5 titles - **Fi1m score by decade:** 1970s 86 (1), 1980s 80 (5), 2000s 55 (1), 2020s 58 (1) - **Fi1m against the critics:** 71 to 69 across 5 titles - **Score spread:** 2 at 80+, 1 at 60–79, 2 under 60 - **Genres:** Action 5, Adventure 5 - **Screen time:** 11 hours of reviewed films - **Box office:** $2,368m across 5 films with figures - **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Kaufman, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q176126, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0442241/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/648 ## Streaming the US now - **Apple TV:** [*Invasion of the Body Snatchers*](https://film.one/film/invasion-of-the-body-snatchers.md) (86) For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country. ## Fi1m on Philip Kaufman > Philip Kaufman is a gifted literary adaptor who lets humour and human vanity into serious stories. We value his patience with people, particularly in *The Right Stuff*, though his broader comedy can become laboured. In *The Right Stuff* (1983), Sam Shepard's Chuck Yeager makes dangerous flying look like work he intends to do properly. Kaufman gives that restraint time to work, without insisting that we admire the man every minute. He notices the vanity of the Mercury astronauts and still takes their courage seriously. This is the Kaufman we recommend most warmly: interested in people who can do something difficult, and willing to watch them do it. He had moved from independent features in the mid-1960s to the ensemble paranoia of *Invasion of the Body Snatchers* (1978). He co-wrote the story of *Raiders of the Lost Ark* (1981) with George Lucas, contributing the Ark as the object of the pursuit. Steven Spielberg directed that adventure. Kaufman's own *The Right Stuff*, adapted from Tom Wolfe, finds as much to watch in training and professional rivalry as in flying. Caleb Deschanel photographs the flying clearly enough for us to appreciate the pilots' skill. We tensed during the flights because the danger felt credible. Geoffrey Kirkland's production design helps: the hardware looks built for demanding work, rather than arranged for inspection. Kaufman lets us enjoy these things without losing interest in the men using them. His patience has a cost, and not every one of the film's 193 minutes earns its place. The satire sometimes presses a joke after it has made its point. Barbara Hershey's Glennis Yeager, Veronica Cartwright's Betty Grissom and Pamela Reed's Trudy Cooper make the strain on the families matter. Yet Kaufman's screenplay remains more interested in the men taking risks than in the women living with the consequences. The performances make that imbalance harder to excuse. His later work turned increasingly towards literary adaptation, from Milan Kundera's *The Unbearable Lightness of Being* (1988) to *Quills* (2000). His films mix drama, comedy and erotic material, asking us to adjust as the tone changes. Start with *The Right Stuff*, allowing for a director who sometimes enjoys a joke longer than we do. ## Biography Philip Kaufman is an American film director and screenwriter. Born on 23 October 1936 in Chicago, Illinois, he attended the University of Chicago and briefly Harvard Law School before making his first feature, *Goldstein* (1965). Kaufman directed and wrote the screenplay for *The Right Stuff* (1983), an adaptation of Tom Wolfe’s book about the early US space programme that received eight Academy Award nominations, including for Best Picture. He also wrote the story for *Raiders of the Lost Ark* (1981) with George Lucas. His other directing credits include *Invasion of the Body Snatchers* (1978), *The Unbearable Lightness of Being* (1988), *Henry & June* (1990) and *Quills* (2000). He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for *The Unbearable Lightness of Being*. *Sources: britannica.com, en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com.* ## On Fi1m (8) ### Directed (3) - *The Unbearable Lightness of Being* (1988), Fi1m 74, as Man walking on street outside Sabina's flat (uncredited) — [page](https://film.one/film/the-unbearable-lightness-of-being.md) - *The Right Stuff* (1983), Fi1m 86, Screenplay, Director — [page](https://film.one/film/the-right-stuff.md) - *Invasion of the Body Snatchers* (1978), Fi1m 86, as City Official on Phone (uncredited) (voice) — [page](https://film.one/film/invasion-of-the-body-snatchers.md) ### Wrote (5) — the average rests on these - *Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny* (2023), Fi1m 58, Characters — [page](https://film.one/film/indiana-jones-and-the-dial-of-destiny.md) - *Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull* (2008), Fi1m 55, Characters — [page](https://film.one/film/indiana-jones-and-the-kingdom-of-the-crystal-skull.md) - *Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade* (1989), Fi1m 83, Characters — [page](https://film.one/film/indiana-jones-and-the-last-crusade.md) - *Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom* (1984), Fi1m 65, Characters — [page](https://film.one/film/indiana-jones-and-the-temple-of-doom.md) - *Raiders of the Lost Ark* (1981), Fi1m 93, Story — [page](https://film.one/film/raiders-of-the-lost-ark.md) ## Complete filmography (22) Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page. - *Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny* (2023), Characters — Fi1m 58, [page](https://film.one/film/indiana-jones-and-the-dial-of-destiny.md) - *The Right Stuff* (2020), series, Screenplay - *Hemingway & Gellhorn* (2012), Director - *Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull* (2008), Characters — Fi1m 55, [page](https://film.one/film/indiana-jones-and-the-kingdom-of-the-crystal-skull.md) - *Twisted* (2004), Director - *Realizing The Right Stuff* (2003), Director - *Quills* (2000), Director - *Montana Jones* (1994), series, Original Story - *Rising Sun* (1993), Director, Screenplay - *Henry & June* (1990), Director, Screenplay - *Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade* (1989), Characters — Fi1m 83, [page](https://film.one/film/indiana-jones-and-the-last-crusade.md) - *The Unbearable Lightness of Being* (1988), as Man walking on street outside Sabina's flat (uncredited) · Director, Screenplay — Fi1m 74, [page](https://film.one/film/the-unbearable-lightness-of-being.md) - *Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom* (1984), Characters — Fi1m 65, [page](https://film.one/film/indiana-jones-and-the-temple-of-doom.md) - *The Right Stuff* (1983), Screenplay, Director — Fi1m 86, [page](https://film.one/film/the-right-stuff.md) - *Raiders of the Lost Ark* (1981), Story — Fi1m 93, [page](https://film.one/film/raiders-of-the-lost-ark.md) - *The Wanderers* (1979), Director, Screenplay - *Invasion of the Body Snatchers* (1978), as City Official on Phone (uncredited) (voice) · Director — Fi1m 86, [page](https://film.one/film/invasion-of-the-body-snatchers.md) - *The Outlaw Josey Wales* (1976), Screenplay - *The White Dawn* (1974), Director - *The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid* (1972), Director, Writer - *Fearless Frank* (1969), Writer, Director, Producer - *Goldstein* (1965), Writer, Editor, Producer, Director ## Gallery - ![Il regista statunitense Philip Kaufman alla Mostra del Cinema di Venezia del 1991](https://film.one/media/person/102649/gallery-ea3ddc48b124.jpg) Il regista statunitense Philip Kaufman alla Mostra del Cinema di Venezia del 1991 — Gorup de Besanez, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ce/Philip_Kaufman_01.jpg/1280px-Philip_Kaufman_01.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail) - ![Il regista statunitense Philip Kaufman alla Mostra del Cinema di Venezia del 1991](https://film.one/media/person/102649/gallery-e48818343e35.jpg) Il regista statunitense Philip Kaufman alla Mostra del Cinema di Venezia del 1991 — Gorup de Besanez, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d5/Philip_Kaufman_02.jpg/1280px-Philip_Kaufman_02.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail) - ![Philip Kaufman](https://film.one/media/person/102649/gallery-080d9d6add7d.jpg) Philip Kaufman — Gorup de Besanez, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/30/Philip_Kaufman_03.jpg/1280px-Philip_Kaufman_03.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail) - ![Philip Kaufman](https://film.one/media/person/102649/gallery-3032ec9e51e0.jpg) Philip Kaufman — Image via TMDB ## Awards ### Academy Awards — 0 won, 1 nominated - 1989: Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay (nominated), for *The Unbearable Lightness of Being* ### BAFTA Film Awards — 1 won - 1989: Best Adapted Screenplay (won), for *The Unbearable Lightness of Being* ### Other awards — 2 won - Hugo Awards 1990: Best Dramatic Presentation (won), for *Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade* - Hugo Awards 1982: Best Dramatic Presentation (won), for *Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade* *From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.* --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/philip-kaufman