Curtis Hanson produced, co-wrote and directed L.A. Confidential, which received nine Academy Award nominations, including three personal nominations for Hanson for Best Director, Best Picture and Best Screenplay Based on Another Medium, winning the Oscar in this last category.

Hanson produced and directed 8 Mile, and Wonder Boys, which also received several Oscar nominations, winning for Best Song. His next film is Lucky You, a Warner Bros. movie set in the world of high stakes poker, starring Drew Barrymore, Eric Bana and Robert Duvall.

Hanson's other directing credits are The River Wild, The Hand That Rocks the Cradle, Bad Influence and The Bedroom Window, which he also wrote. His additional screenplay credits include White Dog, Never Cry Wolf and The Silent Partner.

Hanson is also a noted champion of film preservation. He has served as the Chairman of the UCLA Film and Television Archive since 1999 and was the first recipient of the Film Preservation Award bestowed by the Film Foundation and the Directors Guild of America in 2003.