He was educated at the School of Visual Arts in New New York
He originally wanted to be a musician but abandoned the ambition when he entered film school. They still maintain a house in Norway. Previously he had worked in television, music videos, commercials and short films.
He had been named Film Talent of the Year by the newspaper Dagbladet in 1999.
Since Buddy, he has made the movie Fallen Angels in 2008 and Headhunters (Hodejegerne) in 2011. Headhunters is based on the 2008 novel by same name written by Jo Nesbø.
lieutenant became the highest-grossing Norwegian film that year. He made his English language debut with the historical drama The Imitation Game, about the life of mathematician Alan Turing, starring Benedict Cumberbatch.
The Imitation Game immediately became an international success, and was nominated for eight Oscars at the 87th Academy Awards, including Best Picture and a Best Director nomination for Tyldum himself.
He has been attached to the adaptation of the novel Pattern Recognition by William Gibson.