Paul Schrader will receive the Ojai Film Festival’s inaugural Storyteller Award and present the West Coast premiere of his latest film, “The Basics of Philosophy,” this November, TheWrap has exclusively learned.
The writer-director will accept the award following a screening of Martin Scorsese’s “Taxi Driver,” which Schrader wrote, on Nov. 7 at 1:30 p.m. at Chaparral Auditorium. The film is marking its 50th anniversary this year. Schrader will also participate in a conversation with the audience.
Later that evening, Schrader will introduce “The Basics of Philosophy” at 8 p.m. at the Ojai Art Center Theater, where actor Bill Pullman will also be in attendance. The film had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival in September.
“I’ve always been an admirer of the Ojai Film Festival, and I’m very happy to be presenting my newest film ‘The Basics of Philosophy,’” the filmmaker said in a statement to TheWrap of the honor. “I’m as excited to celebrate ‘Taxi Driver’ on its 50th anniversary.”
Jack Huston stars in Schrader’s latest film as John Jorrisen, a philosophy professor at a Midwestern college who is writing a book on Spinoza when the death of his wealthy, estranged father upends his life. It’s revealed that Jorrisen once did something monstrous, which his late father helped cover up while taking care of his teenage victim’s future.
Scorsese serves as an executive producer on the project, while Pullman, Sofia Boutella, Dana Delany, Karl Glusman and Shiloh Fernandez also star in the film.
In his review out of the Venice premiere, TheWrap’s Siddhant Adlakha wrote that the film “poses piercing questions of absolution and atonement, which Schrader unspools gradually and meticulously,” adding, “Huston delivers a haunted performance as a man who knows exactly what he’s done, and who believes that even his desire to be forgiven may be a bridge too far.”
The festival’s Storyteller Award recognizes distinctive voices in writing and directing whose work has shaped cinema and challenged the status quo, per the festival.
“As envisioned, these Storytellers have shaped cinema, defined the times, and challenged the status quo. There’s no one more appropriate to receive this, our inaugural Storyteller Award, than Paul Schrader,” Artistic Director at the Ojai Film Festival Ted Melfi said.
In addition to “Taxi Driver,” Schrader wrote several other films directed by Scorsese, including “Raging Bull,” “The Last Temptation of Christ” and “Bringing Out the Dead.” His directing credits include “American Gigolo,” “Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters,” “Affliction,” “The Card Counter,” “Master Gardener” and “Oh, Canada.”
Schrader received an Academy Award nomination for original screenplay for “First Reformed.” In 2022, the Venice Film Festival presented him with its Golden Lion for lifetime achievement.
The 27th annual Ojai Film Festival runs for six days in November in Ojai, Calif. Tickets and passes are available at ojaifilmfestival.com.
