Hiller directed many anthology dramas, including Matinee Theater, Climax!, and Playhouse 90, as well as popular series such as Gunsmoke, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Ben Casey and Route 66. In 1962, Hiller received Emmy nominations for his directorial work on Playhouse 90 and Naked City.
He then moved to the big screen, directing a string of highly successful and critically acclaimed films like The Americanization of Emily; The Out-of-Towners; Love Story (for which he received a Golden Globe Award, a DGA Nomination, and an Oscar ® Nomination); The Hospital, for which he received a Golden Bear Nomination and a Silver Bear Award at the Berlin International Film Festival; The Man in the Glass Booth; Silver Streak; The In-Laws; Outrageous Fortune; and The Babe.
Arthur Hiller served two terms as President of the Directors Guild of America (1989-1993), four terms as President of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (1993-1997), and championed directors' creative rights as a member of the National Film Preservation Board of the Library of Congress from 1989-2005. For his service to the Guild, the DGA presented Hiller with an Honorary Life Membership (1993) and the Robert B. Aldrich Award (1999). In 2002, he received the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award.