MARSHALL HERSKOVITZ is a writer, producer, and director who has won numerous awards for his work in television and film. Born in Philadelphia, he attended Brandeis University, then moved to Los Angeles in 1975, where he attended the American Film Institute. One of his classmates was Edward Zwick, and there the two created what is currently the longest-surviving creative partnership in Hollywood: The Bedford Falls Company, named for the town in Frank Capra’s It’s A Wonderful Life. In the ensuing decades they created such TV series as thirtysomething, My So-Called Life, and Once and Again; and Herskovitz variously produced and/or wrote many films with Zwick, including Legends of the Fall, Traffic, The Last Samurai, and Blood Diamond. Herskovitz also directed Jack the Bear and the cult-favorite Dangerous Beauty.

In 2007, Herskovitz created the groundbreaking online series and social network quarterlife, which at the time was the internet’s most successful scripted series, and the first online series to transition to network television.

A longtime environmentalist, Herskovitz has served on the board of several organizations dedicated to fighting climate change.

He is a past president of the Producers Guild of America.

In this episode, we talk about:

•  The Last Samurai and working with Tom Cruise

• His first role in the Entertainment industry and his first job while still at film school.

• If AFI (American Film Institute) prepared him for the industry and what he took from it

• The transition from writer to Showrunner and the birth of the hit show thirtysomething

•  Working with his partner Edward Zwick and their initial different strengths and weaknesses.

•  How he and Ed work together now; who directs and who writes.

•  Working on some of his biggest projects

•  Tips for aspiring actors

About the Guest:

Twitter

Wikipedia IMDb

Host:

Instagram: @MentorsontheMic @MichelleSimoneMiller

Twitter: @MentorsontheMic @MichelleSimoneM

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/mentorsonthemic

Website: www.michellesimonemiller.com

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/24mmichelle