Biographie
Lin Oliver's career centers on creating high-quality entertainment primarily for family audiences. After nine years as Senior Vice President of Television and Home Video at MCA/Universal, Oliver launched her production company at TriStar Pictures, where she wrote, developed, and produced family features under a three-year exclusive contract. She later made her company independent, establishing offices on Beverly Boulevard in Los Angeles. Her company quickly built a diverse portfolio of family entertainment projects, including feature films, TV movies, series, and direct-to-video productions. Lin Oliver Productions recently completed its second year under contract with Hallmark Entertainment, producing acclaimed family movies and mini-series for television.
Many of Oliver's productions are adaptations of well-known children's books. As co-founder and Executive Director of The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators—a 15,000-member organization including top figures in children's publishing—Oliver has exceptional insight into the children's book industry and its most respected creators. She recently completed production of a feature-length animated adaptation of E.B. White's classic novel, THE TRUMPET OF THE SWAN, for Columbia TriStar Home Video. The film was released theatrically in May 2001, featuring voice performances by Jason Alexander, Mary Steenburgen, Reese Witherspoon, and Carol Burnett, with the video premiere following in August 2001.
Her latest family television film, FINDING BUCK McHENRY, aired on Showtime Family Films and starred Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee. The film earned numerous accolades, including the Parent's Choice Gold Medal, the Cine Golden Eagle Award, and nominations for the NAACP Image Award and an Emmy. Oliver is also writing and producing two films for Showtime Family Originals: A CHRISTMAS FOR FORT ZACK (in partnership with Hallmark Entertainment) and ALIENS ATE MY HOMEWORK (in association with Kushner Locke), adapted from Bruce Coville's bestselling children's book.
Oliver created and executive produces the animated children’s series CORDUROY, produced with Nelvana. This acclaimed series, based on the beloved children's book character, airs on PBS as part of its Saturday morning children's programming. Since founding her company, Oliver has written and produced THE SECRET OF THE RUBY RING for Scottish Television and Hallmark Entertainment. Another family film, LARAMIE, was co-produced with TF ONE, a French television company. She also wrote and produced four CORDUROY animated specials for Viacom Productions, which led to the current PBS series.
Additional credits include writing THOROUGHBRED ADVENTURES, a pilot for Saban Entertainment/Fox Kids; CHEECH THE SCHOOL BUS DRIVER for CBS; and HANDS ON, a reality pilot for Crayola/Hallmark. She developed three feature films with Kennedy-Marshall Productions. Oliver also consults for Learning Curve International, a distributor of premium toys and educational products, where she created a media and publishing imprint. She wrote and produced six award-winning books, audio tapes, and videos based on the Lionel Model Trains brand, titled The Great Railway Adventures.
Before her current projects, Oliver had a two-year producing deal at Universal, where she created and executive produced the television series Harry and the Hendersons, a co-production with Amblin, Universal, and Fox Television. The show ran for seventy-two episodes, airing weekly on Fox stations. Oliver not only executive produced but also wrote about one-third of the episodes. The series was nominated three times for the Environmental Media Award and won the 1991 Youth in Film Award.
Previously, Oliver spent nine years as an MCA executive, serving as Senior Vice President of MCA Television and Vice President overseeing programming for MCA Home Video. At MCA-TV, she managed development and production for first-run syndication, basic cable, and children's programming, launching long-running family series such as OUT OF THIS WORLD, LASSIE, and MY SECRET IDENTITY, while collaborating with Steven Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment. At MCA Home Video, she developed and produced 25 original titles, including several interactive laserdiscs that received Grammy nominations for Best Children's Video.
Lin Oliver also co-founded and serves as Executive Director of The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, a national organization with over 15,000 members involved in writing, illustrating, editing, and representing children's books. As an author, she has published numerous children's books with Harcourt Brace, Warner Books, Harper Collins, and LCI. Oliver holds a B.A. from U.C. Berkeley, a Master's in Educational Psychology from U.C.L.A., and has completed coursework and exams toward a Doctorate in Educational Psychology from U.C.L.A., with plans to finish her dissertation in the future.
