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Andrea Arnold

Andrea Arnold

Director, writer and producer · Born April 5, 1961 (65) · Dartford, Kent, England

Oscar winner · 2 BAFTA Awards · 5 other major award bodies

Andrea Arnold, OBE (born 5 April 1961; Dartford) is an English filmmaker and former actor. She won an Academy Award for her short film Wasp in 2005. Her feature films include Red Road (2006), Fish Tank (2009), and American Honey (2016), all of which have won the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival. Arnold has also directed four episodes of the Amazon Prime Video series Transparent, as well as all seven episodes of the second season of the HBO series Big Little Lies. Her documentary Cow premiered at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival and played at the 2021 Telluride Film Festival.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
April 5, 1961 (65)
From
Dartford, Kent, England
Works as
Director, writer and producer
Titles
9 on MovieCove · 17 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 39 days to Oct 28Down 34% in 30 days

What are Andrea Arnold's films like?

Across their 8 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Bonds.

Themes

share of theme weight
Self
23%
Bonds
19%
Survival
17%
Power
14%
Morality
14%
Society
11%
Ideas
3%
Family bonds2 titles, browse their movies with this themeRevenge2 titles, browse their movies with this themeCommunity2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFreedom2 titles, browse their movies with this themeClass2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 6 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Dark: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their dark movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 0 · Serious 0 · Dark 6

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

Grounded 3 · Stylized 3 · Heightened 0

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

Gentle 1 · Charged 1 · Intense 4

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

Steady 2 · Shifting 3 · Whiplash 1

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 5 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 0

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 4 · Even-paced 2 · Relentless 0

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

Casual 0 · Engaged 5 · Full focus 1

Heavy: How much it costs you emotionally; whether you need recovery time. Browse their heavy movies.
Demand · Emotional cost
easyheavy

Easy watch 0 · Affecting 1 · Heavy 5

Open-ended: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their open-ended movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 2 · Open-ended 2 · Ambiguous 2

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
6
Melancholic
6
Contemplative
2
Cold
1
Hopeful
2
Other
6

How their films linger

Haunting6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 2 with a twist

  • Bittersweet2
  • Tragic2
  • Ambiguous2
  • Other1

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 Andrea Arnold's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 8 of their 9 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Andrea Arnold'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

17 credits, 9 with a MovieCove page.

  • Bird(2024)

    Director · Producer · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 84th percentile of all films

  • Cow(2021)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all films

  • Big Little Lies(2017)

    Show 7 episodes · Director · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all shows

  • American Honey(2016)

    Director · Writer

    Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all films

  • I Love Dick(2016)

    Show 4 episodes · Director · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 23rd percentile of all shows

  • Transparent(2014)

    Show 4 episodes · Director

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all shows

  • Wuthering Heights(2011)

    Director · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films

  • Fish Tank(2009)

    Director · Writer

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films

  • Cinema 16: European Short Films (U.S. Edition) (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)

    Director · Writer

  • Red Road(2006)

    Director · Writer

    Midcredits score: 77th percentile of all films

  • Coming Up (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)

    Show 1 episode · Director

  • Wasp (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)

    Director · Writer

  • Dog (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2001)

    Director · Writer

  • Milk (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1998)

    Director · Writer

  • Motormouth (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1988)

    Show 150 episodes · Actor

  • No. 73 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1982)

    Show 159 episodes · as Dawn Lodge

  • Featherwood (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Director

Career shape

A full career of 17 titles, 16 of them dated from 1982 to 2024.

Biggest box office

American Honey (2016)

$2.9M worldwide

Highest rated

Big Little Lies (2017)

Midcredits 97th

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting2 of 17: 2 only acting, 0 with another roleDirecting15 of 17: 4 only directing, 11 with another role · typical Midcredits score81stWriting9 of 17: 0 only writing, 9 with another role · typical Midcredits score81stProducing3 of 17: 0 only producing, 3 with another role

17 titles, 11 with more than one role — directing and writing overlap on 9 of them.

By decade

1980s2 · acting1990s1 · crew2000s6 · crew2010s5 · crew2020s2 · 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

an Oscar, 2 BAFTA Awards and 6 other major awards from 21 major nominations, 2005–2025.

WinNomination
  1. 2025
    • BAFTA Award, nominated · Outstanding British Film of the Year
  2. 2024
    • Cannes award, won
    • Cannes award, nominated ×2
  3. 2022
    • BAFTA Award, nominated · Best Documentary
  4. 2021
    • Cannes award, nominated
  5. 2020
    • Producers Guild Award, nominated · Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television, Drama
  6. 2017
    • BAFTA Award, nominated · Outstanding British Film of the Year
    • +1 other major body · 1 nomination
      • Independent Spirit Award, nominated · Best Director
  7. 2016
    • Cannes award, won ×2
    • Cannes award, nominated
  8. 2011
    • Venice award, nominated
Show 5 earlier years
  1. 2010
    • BAFTA Award, won
  2. 2009
    • Cannes award, won
    • Cannes award, nominated
  3. 2007
    • BAFTA Award, won
  4. 2006
    • Cannes award, won
    • Cannes award, nominated
  5. 2005
    • Oscar, won · Best Short Film, Live Action
    • +1 other major body · 1 win
      • Sundance award, won · International

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 Andrea Arnold's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 81st percentile, the median of all 6; across their 6 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 83rd percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

83rdpercentile
Typical film, the median of 6

Approval · how many liked their films

78thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 6

Reach · how many have seen their films

94thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 6

Midcredits score across 9 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up6
  • 50th to 74th1
  • 25th to 49th1
  • Below 25th1

Shape of the crowd

6 of their 9 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved1
  • Cult Classic1
  • Crowd Pleaser6
  • Mixed1

Most divisive · director, producer

I Love Dick (2016)

71st percentile spread · 21% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · director, producer

Big Little Lies (2017)

Midcredits 97th · 94% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 80/100 and the pacing 34/100 in their films, across 6 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 Andrea Arnold's work okay for kids?

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

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore5 titles44–79 · median 73 · intenseheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity7 titles44–74 · median 70 · intenseheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity4 titlesmedian 85 · severeMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs4 titlesmedian 66 · intenseMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense4 titlesmedian 67 · intenseMedian 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 Andrea Arnold work with?

People who share at least 2 of Andrea Arnold's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Robbie Ryan shares the most, 5.

Cinematographers and editors

Producers