---
name: "Scott Z. Burns"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/scott-z-burns"
fi1m_id: "scott-z-burns"
imdb_id: "nm1994243"
tmdb_id: 19014
wikidata_id: "Q2481763"
roles: ["Writer","Producer","Director"]
born: "1 January 1962"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 8
average_fi1m_score: 70
average_as: "writer"
average_over: 5
updated: "2026-10-07T14:32:39.182847+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."
---

# Scott Z. Burns

## Identity

Scott Z. Burns

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/scott-z-burns
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** scott-z-burns
- **IMDb ID:** nm1994243
- **TMDB ID:** 19014
- **Wikidata ID:** Q2481763
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scott_Z._Burns, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2481763, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1994243/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/19014

Writer and producer. Born 1 January 1962 in Golden Valley, Minnesota, USA.

## Details

- **Work:** Writer, Producer, Director
- **Born:** 1 January 1962, Golden Valley, Minnesota, USA
- **Active:** 2006–2019
- **Also known as:** Scott Burns, スコット･Ｚ･バーンズ
- **Titles on Fi1m:** 8: 1 directing, 5 writing, 2 producing
- **Frequently works with:** [Steven Soderbergh](https://film.one/person/steven-soderbergh.md), [Gregory Jacobs](https://film.one/person/gregory-jacobs.md), [Matt Damon](https://film.one/person/matt-damon.md), [Jude Law](https://film.one/person/jude-law.md)
- **Average Fi1m score:** 70, as writer, over 5 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 2000s 74 (4), 2010s 64 (4)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 70 to 67 across 5 titles
- **Score spread:** 1 at 80+, 3 at 60–79, 1 under 60
- **Genres:** Drama 5, Crime 3, Thriller 3, Comedy 2, Action 1, Mystery 1
- **Screen time:** 9 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $686m across 4 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scott_Z._Burns, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2481763, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1994243/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/19014

## Streaming the US now

- **Amazon Prime Video:** [*The Informant!*](https://film.one/film/the-informant.md) (71), [*Side Effects*](https://film.one/film/side-effects.md) (70)
- **Apple TV:** [*The Bourne Ultimatum*](https://film.one/film/the-bourne-ultimatum.md) (85)
- **Hulu:** [*Californication*](https://film.one/tv/californication.md) (63)
- **Netflix:** [*The Laundromat*](https://film.one/film/the-laundromat.md) (48)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Biography

Scott Z. Burns is an American screenwriter, director and producer. He was born on 17 July 1962 in Golden Valley, Minnesota, and graduated summa cum laude from the University of Minnesota in 1985 with a degree in English.

Burns began his career in advertising, working on campaigns including the original 'Got Milk?' series, before moving into film and television. He has written screenplays for *The Bourne Ultimatum* (2007), *The Informant!* (2009), *Contagion* (2011), *Side Effects* (2013) and *The Laundromat* (2019). Several of these were directed by Steven Soderbergh, with whom he has collaborated extensively. Burns also wrote and directed the 2019 film *The Report*.

He produced the documentary *An Inconvenient Truth* (2006) and created the Apple TV+ series *Extrapolations* (2023).

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com, startribune.com.*

## On Fi1m (8)

### Directed (1)

- *Californication* (2007), Fi1m 63, Director — [page](https://film.one/tv/californication.md)

### Wrote (5) — the average rests on these

- *The Laundromat* (2019), Fi1m 48, Writer, Producer — [page](https://film.one/film/the-laundromat.md)
- *Side Effects* (2013), Fi1m 70, Producer, Screenplay — [page](https://film.one/film/side-effects.md)
- *Contagion* (2011), Fi1m 78, Screenplay, Writer — [page](https://film.one/film/contagion.md)
- *The Informant!* (2009), Fi1m 71, Screenplay — [page](https://film.one/film/the-informant.md)
- *The Bourne Ultimatum* (2007), Fi1m 85, Screenplay — [page](https://film.one/film/the-bourne-ultimatum.md)

### Produced (2)

- *An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power* (2017), Fi1m 58, Executive Producer — [page](https://film.one/film/an-inconvenient-sequel-truth-to-power.md)
- *An Inconvenient Truth* (2006), Fi1m 78, Producer — [page](https://film.one/film/an-inconvenient-truth.md)

## Complete filmography (26)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Dune: Prophecy* (2024), series, Executive Producer
- *Extrapolations* (2023), series, Executive Producer, Writer, Story, Director, Teleplay, Creator
- *The Laundromat* (2019), Producer, Writer — Fi1m 48, [page](https://film.one/film/the-laundromat.md)
- *Sea of Shadows* (2019), Executive Producer
- *The Report* (2019), Producer, Director, Writer
- *The Loudest Voice* (2019), series, Director
- *The Last Laugh* (2019), Thanks
- *The View from Here* (2018), series, Executive Producer, Director, Creator
- *The Mercy* (2018), Writer, Producer
- *An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power* (2017), Executive Producer — Fi1m 58, [page](https://film.one/film/an-inconvenient-sequel-truth-to-power.md)
- *Approaching the Unknown* (2016), Thanks
- *Last Days* (2014), Writer
- *Sex Scientists* (2013), Director
- *Side Effects* (2013), Screenplay, Producer — Fi1m 70, [page](https://film.one/film/side-effects.md)
- *Contagion* (2011), Screenplay, Writer — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/film/contagion.md)
- *Notes on Lying* (2010), Writer
- *The Informant!* (2009), Screenplay — Fi1m 71, [page](https://film.one/film/the-informant.md)
- *Food, Inc.* (2008), Thanks
- *What We Take from Each Other* (2008), Director, Writer, Executive Producer
- *Don't I Know You?* (2008), Executive Producer, Director
- *Californication* (2007), series, Director — Fi1m 63, [page](https://film.one/tv/californication.md)
- *The Bourne Ultimatum* (2007), Screenplay — Fi1m 85, [page](https://film.one/film/the-bourne-ultimatum.md)
- *Pu-239* (2006), Director, Writer
- *An Inconvenient Truth* (2006), Producer — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/film/an-inconvenient-truth.md)
- *Thumblite*, series, Executive Producer, Writer, Creator
- *American Psycho*, Screenplay

---
© 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/scott-z-burns