A Polish-French film director, producer, writer and actor. Born in Paris to Polish parents, the family moved to Poland in 1937. After surviving the Holocaust, he became a critically acclaimed director. His 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 5 more Oscar nominations, and in 2002 received the Academy Award for Best Director for his film, The Pianist.

He left Poland in 1961 to live in France for several years, then moved to the UK where he collaborated with Gérard Brach on 3 films, beginning with Repulsion (1965). In 1968 he moved to the USA, immediately cementing his directing status with the groundbreaking Academy Award winning horror film Rosemary's Baby (1968). In 1969, his pregnant wife, Sharon Tate, was murdered by members of the Manson Family. Following her death, he returned to Europe and spent much of his time in Paris, but did not make another film until Macbeth (1971). The following year he went to Italy to make What? (1973) and spent the next 5 years living near Rome. However, he went to Hollywood to direct Chinatown (1974), which was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, and was a critical and box-office success. His next film, The Tenant (1976), completed the 'Apartment Trilogy', following Repulsion and Rosemary's Baby. He continued to make films such as The Pianist (2002), which echoed some of his earlier life experiences. The film won 3 Academy Awards including Best Director. He then released the successful films Oliver Twist (2005), To Each His Own Cinema (2007), and The Ghost Writer (2010).