Gus Van Sant
Gus Green Van Sant, Jr. (born July 24, 1952) is an American director, screenwriter, painter, photographer, musician, and author. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Achievement in Directing for his 1997 film Good Will Hunting and his 2008 film Milk, and won the Palme d'Or at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival for his film Elephant. He lives in Portland, Oregon.
His early career was devoted to directing television commercials in the Pacific Northwest. In his films, he has dealt with themes concerning homosexuality and other marginalized subcultures.
His filmography as writer and director includes an adaptation of Tom Robbins' novel Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, which features a diverse cast (Keanu Reeves, Roseanne Barr, Uma Thurman, and k.d. lang, with cameos by William S. Burroughs and Heather Graham, among others); and My Own Private Idaho, also starring Reeves as well as River Phoenix.
He wrote the screenplays for most of his early movies, and wrote one novel, Pink. A book of his photography has also been published, called 108 Portraits.
| Known For | Directing |
|---|---|
| Most Rating | 1.0817 |
| Birthday | 1952-07-24 |
| Place of Birth | Louisville, Kentucky, USA |
| Also Known As | Gus Van Sant Jr., 거스 밴 샌트, گاس ون سنت, |
2001
Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
6.434/1727
When Jay and Silent Bob learn that their comic-book alter egos, Bluntman and Chronic, have been sold to Hollywood as part of a big-screen movie that l...
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Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
1993
Made in the USA
2/2
A Paul Joyce documentary on the American independent film scene.
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Made in the USA
2010
William S. Burroughs: A Man Within
6.5/31
A riveting and emotional journey into the world of writer William S. Burroughs, a man considered as cold as an iceberg on a winter night.
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William S. Burroughs: A Man Within
1995
Guns on the Clackamas
6/2
Nigel Nado, the notable documentary filmmaker, is trying to make a movie about some people trying to make a movie. But everything is going wrong. The...
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Guns on the Clackamas
2013
The Canyons
4.431/281
The discovery of an illicit love affair leads two young Angelenos on a violent, sexually charged tour through the dark side of human nature.
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The Canyons
2011
The Advocate for Fagdom
5.3/3
The Advocate for Fagdom unites the puzzle pieces one by one. Testimonies are combined with rare archive images. Art galeries present movie extracts th...
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The Advocate for Fagdom
1998
Strange Parallel
6.417/6
Strange Parallel is a documentary/short film revolving around the American singer/songwriter Elliott Smith. The film features interviews with Elliott...
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Strange Parallel
2024
The Trainer
6.8/4
Jack Flex is broke, buff, and wildly delusional—but he’s got a dream: to sell his absurd invention, the Heavy Hat, on his mom’s favorite shopping chan...
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The Trainer
2007
Here’s Looking at You, Boy
4.8/5
Documentary on the history of gay and lesbian film.
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Here’s Looking at You, Boy
2007
In the Mood for Doyle
4/2
Christopher Doyle is one of the best known and most acclaimed directors of photography in world cinema. Born in Australia, he sees himself as an Asian...
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In the Mood for Doyle
2000
Finding Forrester
7.123/1195
Gus Van Sant tells the story of a young African American man named Jamal who confronts his talents while living on the streets of the Bronx. He accide...
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Finding Forrester
2004
On the Set of 'Elephant': Rolling Through Time
10/1
An artistic and unconventional documentary about the making of Gus Van Sant's 'Elephant'. Brief interviews are put together with behind-the-scenes cli...
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On the Set of 'Elephant': Rolling Through Time
2023
Nicole Kidman: Eyes Wide Open
7.6/13
Nicole Kidman has worked with a host of top directors in a varied career including Gus Van Sant, Jane Campion, Stanley Kubrick, Lars von Trier and Sof...
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Nicole Kidman: Eyes Wide Open
2019
Zeroville
5.07/93
A young actor arrives in Hollywood in 1969 during a transitional time in the Industry.
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Zeroville
2016
Xavier Dolan: Bound to Impossible
6/1
Actors Anne Dorval, Suzanne Clément, Monia Chokri, Gaspard Ulliel, Vincent Cassel, Niels Schneider and Melvil Poupaud discuss working with the young C...
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Xavier Dolan: Bound to Impossible
2003
About Elephant
0/0
15-minute interview with director Gus Van Sant on Elephant (2003)
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About Elephant
2019
At the Video Store
10/1
Equal parts personal essay, intense rumination, and playful satire, this movie laments the death of the American Video Store while it searches for the...
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At the Video Store
2015
About Cinema
8.2/6
An abandoned tumbledown theater in the outback of Paraíba state is the initial setting of a film about cinema, which explores the testimonials of the...
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About Cinema
2015
I Don't Belong Anywhere: The Cinema of Chantal Akerman
6.7/16
I Don’t Belong Anywhere - Le Cinéma de Chantal Akerman, explores some of the Belgian filmmaker’s 40 plus films. From Brussels to Tel-Aviv, from Paris...
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I Don't Belong Anywhere: The Cinema of Chantal Akerman
2006
Fabulous! The Story of Queer Cinema
5.4/21
A chronological look at films by, for, or about gays and lesbians in the United States, from 1947 to 2005, Kenneth Anger's "Fireworks" to "Brokeback M...
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Fabulous! The Story of Queer Cinema
2003
Saltlake Van Sant
8/1
Behind-the-scenes documentary of one morning on the set of "Gerry" directed by Gus Van Sant.
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Saltlake Van Sant
2000
Psycho Path
7.25/4
Documentary on the making of Gus Van Sant's "Psycho."
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Psycho Path
2005
The Making of ‘My Own Private Idaho’
5.7/6
Making-of documentary of Gus Van Sant's 'My Own Private Idaho'.
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The Making of ‘My Own Private Idaho’
2012
A Special Day
6/2
At the 60th anniversary of Cannes Film Festival, 34 famous directors are followed by camera.
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A Special Day
2018
Thank You for Supporting the Arts
0/0
Directors W. Alexander Jones and Carolann Stoney turn their cameras on Liv Osthus, one of the best-known artists working in Portland’s adult entertain...
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Thank You for Supporting the Arts
1988
Junior
0/0
In Gus Van Sant's loving portrait of his cat, a reflected light leads the subject to explore a domestic composition in a manner that can only be descr...
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Junior
2018
Don't Worry, He Won't Get Far on Foot
6.7/753
On the rocky path to sobriety after a life-changing accident, John Callahan discovers the healing power of art, willing his injured hands into drawing...
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Don't Worry, He Won't Get Far on Foot
1987
Mala Noche
6.101/119
Walt is a lonely convenience store clerk who has fallen in love with a Mexican migrant worker named Johnny. Though Walt has little in common with the...
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Mala Noche
1991
My Own Private Idaho
7.058/1229
In this loose adaptation of Shakespeare's "Henry IV," Mike Waters is a hustler afflicted with narcolepsy. Scott Favor is the rebellious son of a mayor...
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My Own Private Idaho
2007
Paranoid Park
6.536/593
A teenage skateboarder becomes suspected of being connected with a security guard who suffered a brutal death in a skate park called "Paranoid Park".
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Paranoid Park
1998
Psycho
5.141/1041
A young female embezzler arrives at the Bates Motel, which has terrible secrets of its own.
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Psycho
2005
Last Days
5.573/409
The life and struggles of a notorious rock musician seeping into a pit of loneliness whose everyday life involves friends and family seeking financial...
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Last Days
2004
The Making of Last Days
0/0
Behind-the-scenes documentary of Gus Van Sant's "Last Days."
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The Making of Last Days
1987
Five Ways to Kill Yourself
3.333/3
Gus Van Sant, dissatisfied professionally, counts five ways to end his life. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2016.
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Five Ways to Kill Yourself
2008
Critic
7.9/19
Seventy critics and filmmakers discuss cinema around the conflict between the artist and the observer, the creator and the critic. Between 1998 and 20...
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Critic
1999
The Making of Drugstore Cowboy
0/0
Portland, 1988. Filmmaker Gus Van Sant shoots Drugstore Cowboy, the project that will bring he and his collaborators a formidable burst of mainstream...
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The Making of Drugstore Cowboy
2008
Making Paranoid Park
0/0
Behind the scenes documentary of Gus Van Sant's "Paranoid Park." Felix Andrew: director, cinematographer, editor. Dane La Chiusa: titles and original...
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Making Paranoid Park
1989
Drugstore Cowboy
7.084/609
Portland, Oregon, 1971. Bob Hughes is the charismatic leader of a peculiar quartet, formed by his wife, Dianne, and another couple, Rick and Nadine, w...
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Drugstore Cowboy
2018
Illegal Civilization 3
5/2
Features Kevin White, Aramis Hudson, Zach Saraceno, Nico Hiraga, and Olan Prenatt skating, having fun, and getting into all of the hijinks that we’ve...
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Illegal Civilization 3
2001
Rescued from the Closet
6.5/2
Rescued from the Closet is a 2001 documentary consisting of interviews originally recorded for the 1995 film The Celluloid Closet. It explores the his...
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Rescued from the Closet
1991
Red Hot Chili Peppers - Funky Monks
7.093/27
An intimate look at Los Angeles-based funk rock foursome Red Hot Chili Peppers' creative process as they join producer Rick Rubin at a Hollywood Hills...
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Red Hot Chili Peppers - Funky Monks
2012
Reflecting On A Journey: Good Will Hunting 15 Years Later
0/0
Documentary featurette for the 15th Anniversary Edition of Good Will Hunting, including interviews with Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Robin Williams, Gus V...
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Reflecting On A Journey: Good Will Hunting 15 Years Later
1998
The Director's Vision: Hollywood's Best Discuss Their Craft
0/0
The nominees for the 1998 Oscar for Best Director — Steven Spielberg, James Cameron, James L. Brooks, Gus Van Sant and Curtis Hanson — discuss their c...
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The Director's Vision: Hollywood's Best Discuss Their Craft
2023
Andy by Gus
0/0
Filmmaker Gus Van Sant steps into the shoes of a stage play director for the first time. A glimpse into his creation process and his adaptation to the...
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Andy by Gus
Nightmare Typhoon
0/0
Gus receives some anonymous phone calls from a woman with whom he finally arrange some meetings. She never appears.
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Nightmare Typhoon
2011
Two Films, One Legacy
0/0
New program about The Times of Harvey Milk and Gus Van Sant’s Milk, featuring Epstein, Van Sant, actor James Franco, and Milk friends Cleve Jones, Ann...
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Two Films, One Legacy
2017
Ain't It Funny
0/0
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