Roman Polanski
Known for: Directing
Roman Polański (born 18 August 1933) is a Polish-French film director, producer, writer and actor. Born in Paris to Polish parents, Polański relocated with his family to Poland in 1937. After surviving the Holocaust, he continued his education in Poland and became a critically acclaimed director of both art house and commercial films. Polański's first feature-length film, Knife in the Water (1962), made in Poland, was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. He has since received five more Oscar nominations, and in 2002 received the Academy Award for Best Director for his film, The Pianist. He has also been the recipient of two Baftas, four Césars, a Golden Globe and the Palme d'Or. He left Poland in 1961 to live in France for several years, then moved to the United Kingdom where he collaborated with Gérard Brach on three films, beginning with Repulsion (1965). In 1968 he moved to the United States, immediately cementing his burgeoning directing status with the 1968 groundbreaking Academy Award winning horror film Rosemary's Baby. In 1969, Polański's pregnant wife, Sharon Tate, was murdered while staying at the Polańskis' Benedict Canyon home above Los Angeles by members of the Manson Family. Following Tate's death, Polański returned to Europe and spent much of his time in Paris and Gstaad, but did not make another film until he filmed Macbeth (1971) in England. The following year he went to Italy to make What? (1973) and subsequently spent the next five years living near Rome. However, he traveled to Hollywood to direct Chinatown (1974) for Paramount Pictures, with Robert Evans serving as producer. The film was nominated for eleven Academy Awards, and was a critical and box-office success; the script by Robert Towne won for Best Original Screenplay. Polański's next film, The Tenant (1976), was shot in France, and completed the "Apartment Trilogy", following Repulsion and Rosemary's Baby. In 1977, after a photo shoot in Los Angeles, Polański was arrested for the sexual abuse of a 13 year old girl. He was charged with rape but pleaded guilty to unlawful sex with a minor. To avoid sentencing, Polański fled to his home in London, and then moved on to France the following day. He has had a U.S. arrest warrant outstanding since then, and an international arrest warrant since 2005. Polański continued to make films such as The Pianist (2002), a World War II-set adaptation of Jewish-Polish musician Władysław Szpilman's autobiography of the same name, which echoed some of Polański's earlier life experiences. Like Szpilman, Polański escaped the ghetto and the concentration camps while family members were killed. The film won three Academy Awards including Best Director, the Cannes Film Festival's Palme d'Or, and seven French César Awards including Best Picture and Best Director. He then released the successful films Oliver Twist (2005), To Each His Own Cinema (2007), and The Ghost Writer (2010), completed while under house arrest. In September 2009, Polański was arrested by Swiss police, at the request of U.S. authorities, when he traveled to receive a lifetime achievement award at the Zurich Film Festival. In October 2009, the U.S. requested his extradition; however, on July 12, 2010, the Swiss rejected that request and instead declared him a "free man" after releasing him from custody.
Filmography
Series
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
Self
1962
Series
Wetten, dass..?
Self
1981
Series
Apostrophes
Self
1975
Series
Ciné regards
Self
1978
Series
The Dick Cavett Show
Self - Guest
1968
Series
Spécial cinéma
Self
1974
Series
Les Rendez-vous du dimanche
Self
1975
Series
Le Grand Échiquier
Self
1972
Film
Rush Hour 3
Det. Revi
2007
Series
Cérémonie des César
Self - Presenter
1976
Film
Chinatown
Man with Knife
1974
Bavarian Film Awards
Self
1979
Series
Leçon de Cinéma
Self
2004
Wortwechsel
Self
1982
Film
An Officer and a Spy
Concertgoer (uncredited)
2019
Na sowas!
Self
1982
Film
Ciné regards: Tess: Roman Polanski
Self
1979
Film
The Tenant
Trelkovsky
1976
Series
28 minutes
Self
2012
Film
Carnage
Neighbor
2011
Film
The Fearless Vampire Killers
Alfred
1967
Series
The Playboy Murders
Self (archive footage)
2023
Film
Repulsion
Spoon Player
1965
Series
Scene by Scene
Self
1997
Film
Frantic
Taxi Driver (uncredited)
1988
Wedden, dat..?
Self
1986
Series
E! True Hollywood Story
1996
Series
Helter Skelter: An American Myth
Self - Widower of Sharon Tate (archive footage)
2020
Film
Chaos: The Manson Murders
Self
2025
Film
Breakdown: 1975
Self - Director of Chinatown (archive footage)
2025
Film
The Magic Christian
Solitary Drinker
1969
Film
Knife in the Water
Young Man (voice)
1962
Film
A Special Day
Self
2012
Film
Seduced and Abandoned
Self
2013
Na siehste!
Self
1987
Series
Un film et son époque
Self
2003
Film
Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired
Self (archive footage)
2008
Film
Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley's Island of Dr. Moreau
Self (archive footage)
2014
Film
A Pure Formality
Inspector
1994
Film
In The Tracks Of - Alexandre Desplat
Self
2020
Film
What?
Mosquito
1972
Film
Blood for Dracula
Gambler
1974
Film
Kanal
Resistance Member pushed into a Sewer (uncredited)
1957
Film
Playboy: The Story of X
Self (archive footage)
1998
Film
Dead Tired
Roman Polanski
1994
Film
Quiet Chaos
Steiner
2008
Film
Steve McQueen: The Man & Le Mans
Self (archive footage)
2015
Film
Heart of the Festival
Self (archive footage)
2002
Film
La scripte
Lui-même
2026
Film
Mansfield 66/67
Self - Filmmaker(archive footage)
2017
Film
Manson: Music from an Unsound Mind
Self (archive footage)
2019
Film
The Unbeatable Bruce Lee
2001
Film
Easy Riders, Raging Bulls: How the Sex 'n' Drugs 'n' Rock 'n' Roll Generation Saved Hollywood
Self
2003
Film
Easy Riders, Raging Bulls: How the Sex 'n' Drugs 'n' Rock 'n' Roll Generation Saved Hollywood
Self (archive footage)
2003
Film
A Generation
Mundek
1955
Film
Roman Polanski: A Film Memoir
Self
2012
Apropos Film
Self
1967
Film
The Revenge
Józef Papkin
2002
Film
Close Up
Self (archive footage)
2012
Film
Con bravura
Caroler
1972
On the Trail of the New Wave
Self (archive footage)
2009
Film
Light Keeps Me Company
Self
2000
Film
Polanski, Horowitz. The Wizards From the Ghetto
Self
2021
Film
Komeda: A Soundtrack for a Life
Self
2010
Film
Henri Langlois vu par...
Self
2014
Film
Innocent Sorcerers
Dudzio
1960
Film
Being Bo Widerberg
Self (archive footage)
2025
Film
Lionpower from MGM
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
1967
Film
Elle s'appelait Françoise
Self
1996
Memories of a Young Pianist
Man in Tavern (archive footage)
2009
Film
Goodbye, Till Tomorrow
Romek
1960
Film
Dracula in the Movies
(archive footage)
1992
Film
The New Cinema
Self
1968
Film
Elvis: That's the Way It Is
Self (uncredited)
1970
Film
Polanski, le travail à l'oeuvre
Self
2019
Hugh Hefner: Once Upon a Time
Self (archive footage)
1992
Film
Weekend of a Champion
Self
1972
Film
Remembering 'Rosemary's Baby'
Self
2012
Film
Tonite Let's All Make Love in London
Self
1967
Film
Two Gangsters and an Island
Self
2003
Last Pictures
Self
2000
Film
Polanski Meets Macbeth
Self
1972
Film
Sharon Tate: Murdered Innocence
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
2002
Film
Mia Farrow: Shadows and Light
Self - Filmmaker (archive footage)
2025
Film
Deneuve, la reine Catherine
Self (archive footage)
2022
Polanski par Polanski
Self
2006
Komeda, Komeda...
Self
2012
Film
Bad Luck
Tutor (uncredited)
1960
Film
Valerie
2019
Film
Lotna
Musician (uncredited)
1959
7 sur 7
Self
1981
Film
Toil And Trouble: Making 'Macbeth'
Self
2014
Film
Back in the USSR
Kurilov
1992
Film
Spine Tingler! The William Castle Story
Self (archive)
2007
Film
When Angels Fall
Old Woman
1959
The Stalking Moon
Fabrice Fournier
Empire of the Censors
Self
1995
Film
Wraki
Romek
1957
Film
Tess: From Novel to Screen
Self
2004
Film
The Family
Self
2023
Film
Godzina bez słońca
1955
Film
Catherine Deneuve, belle et bien là
Self (archive footage)
2010
Film
The Nomad
Self
1967
Film
Trzy starty
Basia's Brother
1955
Film
Mia and Roman
Himself
1968
Film
The River of Diamonds
Random Citizen
1964
Film
Nikodem Dyzma
Porter (uncredited)
1956
Film
Françoise Dorléac, une promesse
Self
2018
Film
The Evolution of Snuff
1978
Film
Once Upon a Time... 'Tess'
Self
2007
Tribute to Alfred Lepetit
Self
2000
Polanski y los ojos del mal
Himself
2002
Film
The Ten Commandments of Creativity
Self
2000
Bicycle
Boy who wants to buy a bicycle
2008
Film
Roman Polanski: Odd Man Out
Self (archive footage)
2012
Film
Two Men and a Wardrobe
Bad Boy
1958
Face of Evil: The Charles Manson Murders
2015
Film
Il falso bugiardo
Self (archive footage)
2008
Film
Three Stories
Genek "Mały" (segment 2)
1953
Film
Valley of the Dolls: A World Premiere Voyage
Himself
1967
Film
What Will My Wife Say to This?
Dancer
1958
Film
Samson
Partner of Malina's Blackmailer (uncredited)
1961
Film
Weekend of a Champion
Himself
2013
Film
Filming 'Tess'
Self
2004
Film
Ciao, Federico!
Self (uncredited)
1970
Film
Tess: The Experience
Self
2004
Film
A British Horror Film
Self
2003
Film
Ostrożnie yeti
Driver
1961
Film
Chassé-croisé
1982
Film
Dracula: The True Story
Himself
1997
Twist by Polanski
2006
Rosemary's Baby: A Retrospective
Self
2000
Film
Magical Bicycle
Adaś
1955
Film
The Last Days of Sharon Tate
Self (archive footage)
1999
Film
Koniec nocy
'Mały'
1957
Film
Françoise Dorléac, from The Man from Rio to The Young Girls of Rochefort
self
2021
Knife in the Water: A Ticket to the West
Self
2003
Film
The Lamp
A passer-by (uncredited)
1959
Film
En attendant Godot
Lucky
1989
Film
Sex, Lies and Jerzy Kosinski
1995
Film
Clive James Meets Roman Polanski
1984
Film
The Fat and the Lean
the lean
1961
Film
Cracow by Polanski
2010
The Best of Twist: Sets, Costumes & Photography
2006
Film
Roman by Polanski
2015