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Paul Thomas Anderson's cinema honoured by new book and some masterful artworks

For obvious reasons, those of us wanting to enjoy a decent new film down the cinema may be in for a long wait. A new book from film mag Little White Lies should scratch that itch in the meantime, exploring as it does the career of one of cinema's modern masters with a little help from some of our favourite illustrators.

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Paul Thomas Anderson: Masterworks book cover by Adam Hayman featuring an orange and mauve gradient design against a floral patterned background

Out now on Abrams Books, Paul Thomas Anderson: Masterworks celebrates the auteur behind such classics as Boogie Nights, There Will Be Blood, The Master, and more.

Befitting a director famous for his strong visual sense, the release comes with killer illustrations by the likes of Laura Callaghan, Tim McDonagh, Alice Tye and Shyama Golden, who we interviewed recently. Shyama's responsible for the book's charming endpapers, which channel William Morris and some Californian vibes. Laura Callaghan meanwhile has a stab at the infamous pool party scene in Boogie Nights, popping with her trademark colour and laden with exquisite figures.

Shyama Golden's embroidered endpapers for Paul Thomas Anderson: Masterworks, featuring stylised botanicals with orange flowers and white cranes on a pale blue background
Laura Callaghan's illustration of the pool party scene from Boogie Nights, bursting with colourful figures and vibrant detail across an open book spread

The book itself made special use of techniques that honour each of Anderson's cult classics, including embroidery (Phantom Thread), letterpress (The Master) and screenprint (Boogie Nights), capturing the memorable type and style of each movie's branding. You can see some of the craft that went into these in this fittingly cinematic promo. Find some stills below.

Embroidered circuit board with a needle and thread in black and white, representing the Phantom Thread technique used in the Paul Thomas Anderson book
Close-up of a letterpress printing block showing embossed metal type used to create tactile impressions, honouring Paul Thomas Anderson's The Master
Computer screen displaying a screenprinted barcode design used in the Paul Thomas Anderson: Masterworks book, honouring the visual style of Boogie Nights

Written by film critic Adam Nayman and lovingly assembled by the talented team of in-house designers at Little White Lies, Masterworks is crammed full of original illustrations, archival photos and stills from Anderson's full filmography.

There are also brand new interviews with some of Anderson's frequent collaborators, including composer Jonny Greenwood, costume designer Mark Bridges, and production designer Jack Fisk. There are even deep dives into his music video work for Fiona Apple, Joanna Newsom, HAIM and Radiohead.

Paul Thomas Anderson: Masterworks is available now and can be ordered from abramsandchronicle.co.uk.

Book spread showing bold black text reading "THERE WILL BE BLOOD" on a striking red background with texture details, from Paul Thomas Anderson: Masterworks
Open book spread showing a man in a brown suit and hat sitting on a wooden chair against a blue sky on the left page, with a large letter T and text on the right page
Open book showing green football pitch diagram with white text reading "Hard Eight" across the pages
Open book showing text on left page and yellow illustrated diagram on right page explaining oil drainage with cross-sections of a house, church and soil layers
Open book spread showing black and white portraits of two men on the left page and several smaller black and white photographs arranged on the right page
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