Mike Cahill

Director, editor, writer, cinematographer and producer · Born July 5, 1979 (47) · New Haven, Connecticut, USA

Mike Cahill (born July 5, 1979) is an American film director and screenwriter. He is best known as the director of the sci-fi films Another Earth (2011) and I Origins (2016)

Biography from TMDB.

Born: July 5, 1979 (47)
From: New Haven, Connecticut, USA
Works as: Director, editor, writer, cinematographer and producer
Titles: 7 on MovieCove · 11 credits in all
Links: IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 37 days to Oct 26Up 10% in 30 days

What are Mike Cahill's films like?

Across their 6 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Ideas and Society.

Genres

Drama3 titles77^th

Documentary2 titles75^th

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight

Ideas

26%

Society

18%

Bonds

17%

Survival

15%

Morality

14%

Self

10%

Truth2 Romantic love2

What they feel like to watch

their average across 5 films

ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category

Earnest

Tone · Sincerity

ironicearnest

Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 5

Serious

Tone · Weight

lightdark

Light 1 · Serious 3 · Dark 1

Stylized

Tone · Style

naturalisticheightened

A split, not a type: Grounded 3 · Stylized 2 · Heightened 0

Gentle

Feel · Intensity

gentleintense

Gentle 3 · Charged 2 · Intense 0

Steady

Feel · Swings

steadyswings

Steady 3 · Shifting 2 · Whiplash 0

Straight-faced

Feel · Humor

noneconstant

Straight-faced 4 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 0

Slow burn

Demand · Pace

slowrelentless

Slow burn 5 · Even-paced 0 · Relentless 0

Engaged

Demand · Attention

casualfull focus

A split, not a type: Casual 3 · Engaged 0 · Full focus 2

Affecting

Demand · Emotional cost

easyheavy

Easy watch 2 · Affecting 2 · Heavy 1

Open-ended

Demand · Resolution

resolvedambiguous

A split, not a type: Resolved 2 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 3

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Contemplative

5

Melancholic

4

Tense

3

Warm

2

Bittersweet

2

Other

3

How their films linger

Thought-provoking4 Wistful2 Bittersweet2

How their films end · 4 with a twist

Bittersweet3
Ambiguous3

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 Mike Cahill's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 4 of their 7 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (2).

Also on these channels

Lionsgate+1 title, show their title on Lionsgate+
Qello Concerts1 title, show their title on Qello Concerts

Subscription and free streaming for Mike Cahill'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

11 credits, 7 with a MovieCove page.

Bliss(2021)
Director · Screenplay
Midcredits score: 24th percentile of all films
Nightflyers(2018)
Show 1 episode · Director · Producer
Midcredits score: 10th percentile of all shows
Rise (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2018)
Show 1 episode · Director
The Magicians(2015)
Show 1 episode · Director · Executive Producer
Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all shows
I Origins(2014)
Director · Editor · Producer · Writer
Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films
Another Earth(2011)
Director · Cinematographer · Editor · Producer · Writer
Midcredits score: 77th percentile of all films
Bear Island (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)
Film Processor
Everyone Stares: The Police Inside Out(2006)
Editor
Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all films
The Recordist (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)
Still Photographer
Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man(2005)
Cinematographer · Editor · Online Editor
Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all films
Boxers and Ballerinas (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)
Director · Cinematographer · Editor · Writer

Career shape

A full career of 11 titles from 2004 to 2021.

Biggest box office

Another Earth (2011)

$1.9M worldwide

Highest rated

I Origins (2014)

Midcredits 90^th

By role

only this rolewith another role

Directing7 of 11 · 76^thWriting4 of 11Producing3 of 11Cinematography3 of 11Editing5 of 11Other crew3 of 11

11 titles, 6 with more than one role — directing and editing overlap on 3 of them.

By decade

2000s5 · crew2010s5 · crew2020s1 · crew

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 Mike Cahill's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 76^th percentile, the median of all 5; across their 5 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 74^th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

74^thpercentile

Typical film, the median of 5

Approval · how many liked their films

76^thpercentile

Typical film, the median of 5

Reach · how many have seen their films

94^thpercentile

Typical film, the median of 5

Midcredits score across 7 titles, by percentile

75^th and up4
50^th to 74^th1
Below 25^th2

Shape of the crowd

4 of their 7 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

Universally Loved1
Crowd Pleaser4
Mixed2

Most divisive · director, producer

Nightflyers (2018)

51^st percentile spread · 24% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · director, writer, producer, editor

I Origins (2014)

Midcredits 90^th · 79% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 68/100 and the pacing 31/100 in their films, across 5 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.