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- Producer
- Writer
- Music Department
Jeffrey Jacob Abrams was born in New York City and raised in Los Angeles, the son of TV producer parents. At 15, he wrote the music for Don Dohler's Nightbeast (1982). In his senior year of college, he and Jill Mazursky teamed up to write a feature film, which became Taking Care of Business (1990). He went on to write and produce Regarding Henry (1991) and Forever Young (1992). He also co-wrote Gone Fishin' (1997) with Mazursky. Along with other Sarah Lawrence alumni, he experimented with computer animation and was contracted to develop pre-production animation for Shrek (2001).
Abrams worked on the screenplay for Armageddon (1998) and co-created (as well as composing the opening theme of) Felicity (1998), which ran for four seasons. He founded the production company Bad Robot in 2001 with Bryan Burk. He created and executive-produced Alias (2001) and Lost (2004), composing the theme music for both, and co-writing episodes of "Lost". He also co-wrote and produced thriller Joy Ride (2001). He made his feature directing debut with Mission: Impossible III (2006), reinvigorating the series. He produced the hit mystery film Cloverfield (2008) and co-created Fringe (2008).
He directed the Star Trek (2009) reboot, proving successful with fans and newcomers to the franchise. He next directed Super 8 (2011), co-produced by Steven Spielberg and produced Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011). He returned to direct the follow-up to his reboot, Star Trek Into Darkness (2013). Disney and Lucasfilm announced J.J. as their choice for director of the first episode in the new 'Star Wars' trilogy, Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens (2015). He initially resisted, as he didn't want to travel away from his family to London, but Kathleen Kennedy convinced him that his voice would be the best to reinvigorate this franchise, as he had done with two others before. He also produced Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (2015) and Star Trek Beyond (2016), and executive-produced Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi (2017). When it was announced that Colin Trevorrow would no longer direct Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker (2019), it was announced that J.J. would return to complete the trilogy he started.- Producer
- Director
- Writer
Todd Phillips is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter.
Growing up on Long Island, New York, Todd Phillips fell in love with feature film teen comedies made in the 1980s, and claims they were his biggest influence in becoming a filmmaker. While studying film at New York University, he made a documentary called Hated (1994), using his credit cards to finance the filmâEUR(TM)s $13,000 budget. About an excessive punk rocker, GG Allen, the student film won an award at the New Orleans Film Festival and went on to be released both theatrically and on DVD. Phillips' next project was a documentary called Frat House (1998), which followed the trials of young men trying to get accepted into a fraternity. The film won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival, but soon became banned from public viewing when the young men involved objected, and lawyers for their families stepped in.
While working on a commercial for Pepsi, Phillips met comedian Tom Green. He was writing the screenplay for his new film, Road Trip, and asked Green if he would be in it. Green agreed on the spot, and Phillips went on to make his first fictional movie, an homage to the types of films he grew up with. Road Trip was made on a budget of $15.6 million, and nearly made the money back in its opening weekend despite mixed reviews, most of which agreed it was in bad taste, with some finding that funny while others found it offensive.
Phillips continued on in the same genre with Old School (2003), about three grown men who try to return to their frat boy days. Phillips says, "Things go in cycles and right now people use the term gross out of comedy a lot and I find it very dismissive. I think it's very easy to be gross and very hard to be funny. The ones that work are actually very funny at their root. I, as a director, want to stick with comedies for a little while. It's the movies I grew up on and the stuff I like to see."
Phillips' next project was action comedy Starsky & Hutch, based on the hit television series that ran from 1975 to 1979. The film, starring Owen Wilson and Ben Stiller, is also set in the '70s. He's hoping to turn another '70s TV show, The Six Million Dollar Man, into a feature film starring Jim Carrey, but in the meantime, filmed the comedy School for Scoundrels (2006), starring Jon Heder and Billy Bob Thornton. His next film, The Hangover 2009, was an enormous success, spawning a 2011 sequel that he also directed. In between those two movies he directed Robert Downey Jr. and Hangover star Zach Galifianakis in the comedy Due Date 2010.
More recent films include The Hangover Part II (2011), The Hangover Part III (2013), and War Dogs (2016).
Move away from his favorite genre, he next took on the film Joker (2019), starring Joaquin Phoenix in the title role. The film debuted to much acclaim, and both Joaquin and Phillips received numerous award nominations, including Best Director nods for Phillips from the Academy Awards, Golden Globes and the BAFTAs.- Producer
- Writer
- Director
Sam Esmail was born on 17 September 1977 in Hoboken, New Jersey, USA. He is a producer and writer, known for Mr. Robot (2015), Homecoming (2018) and Leave the World Behind (2023). He has been married to Emmy Rossum since 28 May 2017. They have two children.- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
- Producer
- Camera and Electrical Department
Jon Jennings is known for The Phantom of the Opera (2004), Sex Education (2019) and In the Loop (2009).- Writer
- Producer
- Actor
Louis C.K. was born on 12 September 1967 in Washington, District of Columbia, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for Louie (2010), American Hustle (2013) and Horace and Pete (2016). He was previously married to Alix Bailey.- Director
- Actor
- Producer
Jerry Levine is an actor, director, and producer. His experience encompasses all genres across multiple platforms, finding success both in front of the camera, behind the lens, and in the theater.
As an actor Jerry's feature film debut came in the blockbuster comedy TEEN WOLF, playing the iconic character, "Stiles", opposite Michael J Fox. Jerry would go on to star opposite Tom Cruise in Oliver Stone's Academy Award nominated . He's also worked with legendary directors Barry Levinson (WAG THE DOG), Rob Reiner (THE GHOSTS OF MISSISSIPPI) and Ivan Reitman (CASUAL SEX?). Jerry has appeared in over one hundred episodes of TV, both as a series regular and recurring guest. Some of his credits include a recurring role on the Emmy award winning WILL AND GRACE. Along with episodes of MONK, and as Elaine's love interest in the "The Big Salad" episode of SEINFELD. Jerry can next be seen on FX playing the role of Robert Kraft, owner of the New England Patriots, in Ryan Murphy's American Sports Story.
In addition to his acting work, Jerry has directed over one hundred episodes of TV. Most recently he served as the Co-EP and directed all episodes of HIT THE ROAD (DirecTV's Audience Network), a single-camera, musical comedy starring Jason Alexander. Jerry was the longtime Producer/Director on the hit series EVERYBODY HATES CHRIS and has directed episodes of IT'S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA, RAISING HOPE, MONK, ELEMENTARY, CHICAGO MED, JOAN OF ARCADIA, HAWAII 5-0, MACGYVER, CSI/NY, and THE TWILIGHT ZONE, among others.
Jerry's directorial film debut BIG AL, a short film based on a play he produced and directed at The Fountainhead Theatre in Los Angeles, was produced by Showtime Networks. BIG AL was televised on Showtime and was nominated for 3 Cable Ace Awards including: Best Theatrical Special, Best Director, and winning the award for Best Actor.
An avid fan of the stage, both in New York and Los Angeles, Jerry created ACT ONE, a production company sponsored by Showtime. Jerry served as Founding Producer and Artistic Director, producing over thirty, one act plays at The Met Theatre in Los Angeles. In New York, Jerry worked on over 30 plays at the renowned Roundabout Theatre. Jerry sits on the Board of Directors of The Lighthouse International Film Festival.
Jerry holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting from Boston University College of Fine Arts, and a master's degree in psychology from Antioch University, Los Angeles. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife (television executive/producer, Nina Tassler). They have two children who also reside in Los Angeles.- Producer
- Director
- Writer
Randy Zisk was born on 3 January 1959 in Dallas, Texas, USA. He is a producer and director, known for Monk (2002), Midnight Caller (1988) and Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (1993). He was previously married to Jennifer Grant.