Directory Profile

Paul Kowalski is an award-winning writer-director whose films center around identity, exile and obsession, often featuring dark psychologies and the supernatural. His feature, "Paper Tiger", premiered at Austin Film Festival in 2020, winning the Audience Award and a Jury mention, and was subsequently sold by The Gersh Agency and distributed by Gravitas Ventures.

Born in the UK to nomadic Polish immigrants, Paul grew up in England, the Middle East, Poland, Africa, Southeast Asia and across the US – sparking a natural impulse to reconcile contrasting views of the world. While studying literature and writing at Brown University, he published a collection of short stories and made his earliest films. Kowalski later received his MFA in film directing at the AFI Conservatory. His films have won recognition from the ASC, Beijing Film Academy and CINE, as well as playing at the Canadian Cinematheque, Aesthetica, Raindance, Austin and Beverly Hills film festivals.

Paul is a BAFTA Newcomer and USC film directing professor – and in 2021 was named by Austin Film Festival as one of “25 Screenwriters To Watch”. He is a Polish and British citizen, and lives in LA with his wife, actress Sorel Carradine.