Biografia
Brian Herskowitz has produced feature films including BEFORE SOMEONE GETS HURT (co-writer), BUCKY AND THE SQUIRRELS (Producer, Line Producer, Co-director - Uncredited), a comedy by director-writer Allan Katz (M*A*S*H*, BIG MAN ON CAMPUS), MUSICAL CHAIRS, directed by Susan Seidelman (DESPERATELY SEEKING SUSAN), and TIO PAPI, directed by Fro Rojas, which he co-wrote.
He wrote an unproduced pilot for Artists/Media Cooperation (CoOp - THE GUITAR, THIS REVOLUTION) in New York, where he spent ten years as Senior V.P. of Production and head of their West Coast Office. Working with Co-Op Productions, Brian line produced Candace Bushnell’s web series THE BROADROOM, starring JENNY GARTH, JENNIFER ESPOSITO, and TALIA BALSAM, as well as BEFORE SOMEONE GETS HURT. He served five years as Chief Creative Officer for Horror Equity Fund (HEF) and was Co-Executive Producer on STAR LEAF and ZBURBS as an Executive Producer. At HEF, he managed script reading and development, created pitch decks and proposals, and handled breakdowns, schedules, and full budgets for projects (both Union and Non-union, in the U.S. and Canada). He also evaluated all projects for commercial viability.
Brian departed HEF to focus on writing and directing. Recently, he joined Blockchain Media Concepts, an investor relations and marketing firm in the crypto, blockchain, and NFT sectors. He also consults with several production companies on creative and film finance matters. Currently, he runs Hard G, Inc., a production company he founded with his wife, actress Gina Hecht.
As a writer, Brian has completed over a dozen feature film scripts. His first screenplay, KAMI HITO E (THE THIN LINE), drew from his experience as an international Judo champion training in Tokyo. His first produced feature was the low-budget slasher DARKROOM. He recently finished his first novel and is working on a second. Brian volunteered to write, direct, and produce the documentary 1736: SOMEWHERE TO TURN, about a family crisis center for domestic abuse victims. He is active with L.A. Works, contributing by filling school supplies for underprivileged children, assisting food banks, and mentoring high school students.
Brian wrote and directed the award-winning short film ODESSA OR BUST, starring Jason Alexander (SEINFELD), Red Buttons (Academy Award winner), and Jason Schwartzman (RUSHMORE). Other shorts include JOANNE, a revenge story about a woman facing economic hardship and mid-life crisis; SNOUT, about farmyard animal dangers; and IT TAKES BRAINS, a horror/comedy. His new short series MURRAY GHOST, which he directed, produced, wrote, and edited, is currently touring festivals and has received honors at Festigious Fest and Just4Shorts. He is set to begin production on the low-budget horror film BEFORE MOONRISE in late fall 2022.
In television, Brian’s credits include staff writing for NBC’s sit-com BLOSSOM, multiple episodes of the syndicated series HERCULES: THE LEGENDARY JOURNEYS and ACAPULCO HEAT, as well as work on HBO’s DREAM ON, CBS’s RENEGADE, THE EXILE, MURDER, SHE WROTE, the TV movie MURDER OF MY AUNT, FOX’s YOUNG HERCULES, and CBS’s TOUR OF DUTY (associate producer), for which he was recognized by the TV Academy through the Emmy-winning post-production sound department. He co-wrote the FOX pilot MANTIC with Jason Alexander and worked as a punch-up writer on BOB PATTERSON and LISTEN UP.
In 2022, Brian completed his first novel based on his crime-thriller CONCEPTUS and is developing the second book in the series.
His theatrical directing credits include world premieres of I.A.N. (THE ITALIAN AMERICAN NETWORK), CONFESSION AND AVOIDANCE (based on the book by his father, prolific biographer Mickey Herskowitz), JESSICA AND THE COUCH POTATO, the West Coast premiere of SHUFFLE OFF THIS MORTAL BUFFALO, and CIRCLE OF WILL.
Brian has taught screenwriting for over thirty years, beginning with WRITER’S BOOT CAMP, later at UCLA EXTENSIONS, and for the past eighteen years serving as Lead Faculty for Boston University’s Writer in Hollywood graduate program in Los Angeles. His screenwriting textbook, PROCESS TO PRODUCT: A PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR THE SCREENWRITER, is available on Amazon and in bookstores.
He hosts a nine-episode podcast, IDENTITY THEFT, on Spotify, the first installment of the THRILLING STORIES podcast series.
Brian’s articles on screenwriting, producing, and film finance have appeared on Stage 32, MovieMaker Magazine, HorrorNews.Net, and numerous other blogs and publications.
He is a member of the Writers Guild of America West, the Producers Guild of America, a producing member of the Television Academy, and SAG-AFTRA.
Brian credits much of his passion for writing to his father, Mickey Herskowitz, who at age 89 has authored over 60 books, including bestsellers such as Self Portrait (with Gene Tierney), This and That (with Bette Davis), The Camera Never Blinks, The Camera Never Blinks Twice (with Dan Rather), and All My Octobers (with Mickey Mantle).
A world champion in Judo and Jiujitsu, Brian also holds a black belt in Kenpo Karate. He is married to actress Gina Hecht, known for the FX hit comedy DAVE, and they have two talented daughters, both working in the entertainment industry.
Websites: www.BrianHerskowitz.com | www.MurrayGhost.com
