Born and raised in New York City, William "Bill" Tannen graduated from Boston University and pursued a career in advertising. He created the famous "Girl Watchers" campaign for Diet Pepsi in 1967, which won four Clio Awards, and then created his own company, Sunday Productions, to produce TV commercials. Tannen moved to Los Angeles in 1972 and continued to direct commercials all over the world, garnering five more Clios in the process. Tannen directed his first feature film, "Flashpoint," in 1984, and went on to direct numerous films, TV series and music videos, the latter including the Commodore's "Night Shift" in 1985, which won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Video. Tannen has also taught director's workshops at the EICAR International Film School in Paris, France.
Read moreShow less
Biography from TMDB.
- August 31, 1942 (84)
- New York City, New York, USA
- Director, also producer and writer
- 8 on MovieCove · 13 credits in all
What are William Tannen's films like?
Across their 8 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Survival and Bonds.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 8
Light 3 · Serious 3 · Dark 2
Grounded 8 · Stylized 0 · Heightened 0
A split, not a type: Gentle 2 · Charged 2 · Intense 4
Steady 2 · Shifting 6 · Whiplash 0
Straight-faced 6 · Some laughs 2 · Funny 0
Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 4 · Relentless 1
Casual 4 · Engaged 3 · Full focus 1
Easy watch 5 · Affecting 3 · Heavy 0
Resolved 6 · Open-ended 2 · Ambiguous 0
Moods and endings
- Happy6
- Bittersweet2
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 William Tannen's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 7 of their 8 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (6).
Subscription and free streaming for William Tannen'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
13 credits, 8 with a MovieCove page.
Ozzie (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)
Night of Terror(2006)
Midcredits score: 24th percentile of all films
The Cutter(2005)
Midcredits score: 21st percentile of all films
Nobody Knows Anything!(2003)
Midcredits score: 4th percentile of all films
Love Lies Bleeding (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)
Money Play$(1998)
Midcredits score: 27th percentile of all films
Windrunner(1994)
Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films
The Goodbye Bird (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1994)
Inside Edge (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1993)
Cover-Up(1991)
Midcredits score: 5th percentile of all films
Hero and the Terror(1988)
Midcredits score: 20th percentile of all films
Deadly Illusion (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1987)
Flashpoint(1984)
Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all films
Career shape
A full career of 12 titles from 1984 to 2006.
Biggest box office
Hero and the Terror (1988)
Highest rated
Flashpoint (1984)
Most popular right now
Cover-Up (1991)
Film career
- 1988Screen debut· Hero and the Terror
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.
How do William Tannen's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 23rd percentile, the median of all 8; across their 8 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 25th percentile for acclaim.
- 50th to 74th1
- 25th to 49th2
- Below 25th5
Shape of the crowd
4 of their 8 titles are Mixed.
- Cult Classic2
- Crowd Pleaser2
- Mixed4
Reviewers score the atmosphere 60/100 and the pacing 29/100 in their films, across 7 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.
Who does William Tannen work with?
People who share at least 2 of William Tannen's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Dennis Shryack shares the most, 2.
Writers
- Dennis ShryackShared titles: Hero and the Terror (1988), Flashpoint (1984)See all 2 shared titles with Dennis Shryack
Actors
- Chuck NorrisShared titles: The Cutter (2005), Hero and the Terror (1988)See all 2 shared titles with Chuck Norris
- Carmine CaridiShared titles: Nobody Knows Anything! (2003), Money Play$ (1998)See all 2 shared titles with Carmine Caridi
- Zane ParkerShared titles: Money Play$ (1998), Windrunner (1994)See all 2 shared titles with Zane Parker
Cinematographers
- Peter MossShared titles: The Cutter (2005), Flashpoint (1984)See all 2 shared titles with Peter Moss
Producers
- Wayne RogersShared titles: Nobody Knows Anything! (2003), Money Play$ (1998)See all 2 shared titles with Wayne Rogers
