Silence as a Creative Tool in the Films of Paul Thomas Anderson

This paper shows how the use of silence complements other diegetic sounds and music in crafting a successful film soundtrack. Through careful examination of selected works by director Paul Thomas Anderson and comparison of scholarly articles on silence in film, the paper draws attention to the myriad of creative possibilities offered by the use of silence. Although silence has been used as a creative tool in the past by directors like Bergman, Godard and Antonioni, a younger generation, led by auteurs such as Anderson has taken these sonic experiments a step further to reveal new and innovative ways of synthesizing music, silence, dialogue and muteness and through this approach create films that have such a profound impact on their viewers.