Charlie Kaufman, American director, producer, and screenwriter
Charles Stuart Kaufman (; born November 19, 1958) is an American screenwriter, producer, director, and novelist. He wrote the films Being John Malkovich (1999), Adaptation (2002), and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004). He made his directorial debut with Synecdoche, New York (2008), which film critic Roger Ebert called "the best movie of the decade" in 2009. Further directorial work includes the stop motion animated film Anomalisa (2015) and I'm Thinking of Ending Things (2020). In 2020, Kaufman made his literary debut with the release of his first novel, Antkind.

One of the most celebrated screenwriters of his era, Kaufman has been nominated for four Academy Awards: twice for Best Original Screenplay for Being John Malkovich and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (winning for the latter), once for Best Adapted Screenplay (with his fictional brother) for Adaptation, and once for Best Animated Feature for Anomalisa. Additionally, he has won three BAFTA Film Awards: two for Best Original Screenplay and one Best Adapted Screenplay. Three of Kaufman's scripts appear in the Writers Guild of America's list of the 101 greatest movie screenplays ever written.