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Sean Baker

Sean Baker

Producer, director, writer, editor, cinematographer and actor · Born February 26, 1971 (55) · Summit, New Jersey, USA

4 Oscars · BAFTA Award winner · Golden Globe nominee · 7 other major award bodies

Sean Baker (born February 26, 1971) is an American filmmaker. He is best known for directing independent feature films about the lives of sex workers, including Take Out (2004), Starlet (2012), Tangerine (2015), The Florida Project (2017), Red Rocket (2021), and Anora (2024), the last of which won him the Palme d'Or at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, as well as Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Film Editing. He is also known for creating the Fox/IFC puppet sitcom Greg the Bunny (2002–2006) and its spin-offs.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
February 26, 1971 (55)
From
Summit, New Jersey, USA
Works as
Producer, director, writer, editor, cinematographer and actor
Titles
14 on MovieCove · 25 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 155 days to Oct 26Up 1% in 30 days

What are Sean Baker's films like?

Across their 12 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Survival.

Genres

Drama5 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 86th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Drama movies
Comedy4 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 87th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Comedy movies
Documentary3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 52nd percentile
: browse their Documentary movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Bonds
27%
Survival
25%
Self
15%
Society
15%
Power
9%
Morality
9%
Survival6 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds3 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship2 titles, browse their movies with this themeSelf-worth2 titles, browse their movies with this themeClass3 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 12 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Serious: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their serious movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

A split, not a type: Light 3 · Serious 4 · Dark 5

Grounded: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their grounded movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 11 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 0

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 2 · Charged 7 · Intense 3

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

A split, not a type: Steady 5 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 3

Some laughs: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their some laughs movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

A split, not a type: Straight-faced 6 · Some laughs 4 · Funny 2

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

A split, not a type: Slow burn 8 · Even-paced 2 · Relentless 2

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 5 · Engaged 7 · Full focus 0

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 7 · Open-ended 4 · Ambiguous 1

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
6
Melancholic
6
Contemplative
5
Warm
4
Bittersweet
3
Other
8

How their films linger

Hopeful7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 1 with a twist

  • Bittersweet6
  • Ambiguous6

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Sean Baker's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 11 of their 14 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Sean Baker's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

25 credits, 14 with a MovieCove page; 11 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Sandiwara (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2026)

    Director · Editor · Writer

  • Together Forever (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2026)

    Thanks

  • Left-Handed Girl(2025)

    Editor · Producer · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films

  • Modern Whore(2025)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 52nd percentile of all films

  • The Last Showgirl(2024)

    Thanks

    Midcredits score: 60th percentile of all films

  • Anora(2024)

    Director · Casting · Editor · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films

  • The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed(2023)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 37th percentile of all films

  • Love in the Time of Fentanyl(2022)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films

  • Devil in Suburbia(2022)

    Show 6 episodes · Post Production Supervisor

    Midcredits score: 62nd percentile of all shows

  • Red Rocket(2021)

    Director · Casting · Driver · Editor · Producer · Sound Designer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films

  • Joel Calls Indie Film Type Dudes (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    Actor

  • Herschell Gordon Lewis: The Godfather of Gore (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2019)

    Director · Camera Operator · Producer · Sound · as Self

  • Colours (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2019)

    Assistant Director · Executive Producer

  • Konbini Vidéo Club (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2018)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

  • The Florida Project(2017)

    Director · Editor · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all films

  • Tangerine(2015)

    Director · Camera Operator · Casting · Casting Director · Cinematographer · Editor · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • Starlet(2012)

    Director · Camera Operator · Editor · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 83rd percentile of all films

  • Prince of Broadway(2008)

    Director · Cinematographer · Editor · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films

  • Warren the Ape(2010)

    Show 12 episodes · Director · Creator · Executive Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all shows

  • Take Out(2004)

    Director · Cinematographer · Editor · Producer · Sound · Writer

    Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films

  • Stalker (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)

    Editor

  • Greg the Bunny (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)

    Show 1 episode · Director · Cinematographer · Creator · Editor · Sound Designer · Writer

  • Four Letter Words (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2000)

    Director · Editor · Writer

  • Hi-Fi (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2000)

    Director · Writer

  • Ti Amo! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director · Casting · Editor · Producer · Writer

Career shape

A full career of 25 titles, 24 of them dated from 2000 to 2026.

Biggest box office

Anora (2024)

$57M worldwide

Highest rated

The Florida Project (2017)

Midcredits 96th

Most popular right now

Anora (2024)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting2 of 25: 2 only acting, 0 with another roleDirecting14 of 25: 0 only directing, 14 with another role · typical Midcredits score86thWriting14 of 25: 0 only writing, 14 with another role · typical Midcredits score86thProducing15 of 25: 3 only producing, 12 with another role · typical Midcredits score86thCinematography4 of 25: 0 only cinematography, 4 with another roleEditing13 of 25: 1 only editing, 12 with another role · typical Midcredits score87thOther crew13 of 25: 3 only other crew, 10 with another role · typical Midcredits score84th

25 titles, 16 with more than one role — producing and directing overlap on 10 of them.

By decade

2000s5 · crew2010s8 · 1 acting · 7 crew2020s11 · 1 acting · 10 crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

Awards

4 Oscars, a BAFTA Award and 7 other major awards from 31 major nominations, 2009–2025.

WinNomination
  1. 2025
    • Oscar, won · Best Achievement in Directing
    • Oscar, won · Best Achievement in Film Editing
    • Oscar, won · Best Motion Picture of the Year
    • Oscar, won · Best Original Screenplay
    • Golden Globe, nominated · Best Director - Motion Picture
    • Golden Globe, nominated · Best Screenplay - Motion Picture
    • BAFTA Award, won · Best Casting
    • BAFTA Award, nominated · Best Director
    • BAFTA Award, nominated · Best Editing
    • BAFTA Award, nominated · Best Film
    • BAFTA Award, nominated · Best Screenplay (Original)
    • +5 other major bodies · 5 wins and 3 nominations
      • Directors Guild Award, won · Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Theatrical Feature Film
      • Writers Guild Award, won · Original Screenplay
      • Producers Guild Award, won · Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures
      • Critics Choice Award, nominated · Best Director
      • Critics Choice Award, nominated · Best Editing
      • Critics Choice Award, nominated · Best Original Screenplay
      • Independent Spirit Award, won · Best Director
      • Independent Spirit Award, won · Best Feature
  2. 2024
    • Cannes award, won
  3. 2021
    • Cannes award, nominated
  4. 2018
    • Independent Spirit Award, nominated · Best Director
    • Independent Spirit Award, nominated · Best Feature
  5. 2017
    • Cannes award, nominated
  6. 2016
    • Independent Spirit Award, nominated · Best Director
    • Independent Spirit Award, nominated · Best Feature
  7. 2015
    • Sundance award, nominated · Best of Next!
  8. 2013
    • Independent Spirit Award, won
    • Independent Spirit Award, nominated
Show 1 earlier year
  1. 2009
    • Independent Spirit Award, nominated ×2

Major bodies only: the Oscars, Primetime Emmys, Golden Globes, BAFTAs and Screen Actors Guild Awards are named; Cannes, Venice, the Berlinale, Sundance, the directors', writers' and producers' guilds, the Grammys, Critics Choice and the Independent Spirit Awards count as other major bodies. Festival and regional prizes are not counted. Source: IMDb.

How do Sean Baker's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 86th percentile, the median of all 12; across their 12 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 86th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

86thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 12

Approval · how many liked their films

82ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 12

Reach · how many have seen their films

86thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 12

Midcredits score across 14 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up9
  • 50th to 74th4
  • 25th to 49th1

Shape of the crowd

9 of their 14 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved1
  • Cult Classic1
  • Crowd Pleaser9
  • Mixed3

Most divisive · producer

Modern Whore (2025)

82nd percentile spread · 31% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · director, writer, producer, editor

The Florida Project (2017)

Midcredits 96th · 83% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 78/100 and the pacing 45/100 in their films, across 9 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is Sean Baker's work okay for kids?

Across up to 7 MovieCove titles with content scores, sex & nudity, profanity and alcohol & drugs run heavier than most films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore7 titles13–43 · median 37 · moderatenear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity7 titles49–80 · median 73 · intenseheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity7 titles51–92 · median 90 · severeheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs7 titles50–87 · median 70 · intenseheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense6 titles15–55 · median 34 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 39

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.

Who does Sean Baker work with?

People who share at least 2 of Sean Baker's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Shih-Ching Tsou shares the most, 6.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Cinematographers

Producers

Mixed roles