Mike Medavoy
Sample some of the best American films over the past forty years and there's a good chance Mike Medavoy played a role in the success of many of them. From agent to studio chief to producer, he has been involved with over 300 feature films, of which 17 have been nominated and 7 have won Best Picture Oscars®, as well as numerous international film festival awards. Medavoy began his career at Universal Studios in 1964. He rose from the mail room to become a casting director. In 1965, he became an agent at General Artist Corporation and then vice-president at Creative Management Agency. Joining International Famous Agency as vice-president in charge of the motion picture department in 1971, he worked with such prestigious clients as Steven Spielberg, Francis Ford Coppola, Terrence Malick, Jane Fonda, Donald Sutherland, Gene Wilder, Jeanne Moreau, and Jean-Louis Trintignant. United Artists brought him in as senior vice-president of production, in 1974, where he was part of the team responsible for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), Rocky (1976), and Annie Hall (1977), which won Best Picture Oscars® in 1975, 1976, and 1977, respectively. Other notable films included Apocalypse Now (1979), Raging Bull (1980), Network (1976) and Coming Home (1978). In 1978, Medavoy co-founded Orion Pictures where, during his tenure, Platoon (1986), Amadeus (1984), RoboCop (1987), Hannah and Her Sisters (1986), The Terminator (1984), Dances with Wolves (1990) and The Silence of the Lambs (1991) were released. In 1990, after twelve successful years at Orion, Medavoy became chairman of TriStar Pictures, where he oversaw such critically-acclaimed box office hits as Philadelphia (1993), Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), Sleepless in Seattle (1993), Cliffhanger (1993), The Fisher King (1991), Legends of the Fall (1994) and Steven Spielberg's Hook (1991). As chairman and co-founder of Phoenix Pictures, Medavoy has brought to the screen The People vs. Larry Flynt (1996), The Mirror Has Two Faces (1996), U Turn (1997), Apt Pupil (1998), The Thin Red Line (1998), The 6th Day (2000), Basic (2003), Holes (2003), All the King's Men (2006), Zodiac (2007), Pathfinder (2007) and Miss Potter (2006), among others. These films have received numerous nominations, won two Golden Bears at the Berlin Film Festival, five Golden Satellite Awards, a cinematography award for John Toll from the ASC and nominations from the DGA and WGA for Terrence Malick. "The Thin Red Line" and "The People vs. Larry Flint" each received Oscar® nominations. Recently, Phoenix Pictures has released Shutter Island (2010), directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo, Ben Kingsley and Max von Sydow; Shanghai (2010), starring John Cusack and Gong Li; and Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan (2010), starring Natalie Portman, Vincent Cassel and Mila Kunis in 2010. "Black Swan" won numerous awards, including the Oscar® and Golden Globe for Best Actress (Natalie Portman) as well as the Independent Film Spirit Awards for Best Feature, Best Director (Darren Arnofosky), Best Female Lead (Natalie Portman) and Best Cinematography (Matthew Libatique). Medavoy also recently worked as executive producer on the documentary, The Wildest Dream (2010). Medavoy and Phoenix Pictures recently released What to Expect When You're Expecting (2012), starring Cameron Diaz, Jennifer Lopez, Elizabeth Banks, Anna Kendrick, and Chris Rock. In 2011, Medavoy announced his newest project surrounding the Chilean mining accident that left 33 men trapped underground for 69 days. Medavoy will collaborate with Chilean officials and Academy Award-nominated screenwriter Jose Rivera to create and authentic retelling of this story. Also in 2011, Medavoy also announced his collaboration with The Shanghai Film Group to create both a feature film and six-hour miniseries. The feature, an adaptation of the novel "The Cursed Piano", is a love story set in Japanese-occupied China concerning prosecuted Jews seeking refuge from an occupied Europe. The mini-series, Tears of a Sparrow (2011), will focus in greater detail on the experience of these Jews in Shanghai. Medavoy has received numerous awards, including the 1992 Motion Picture Pioneer of the Year Award, the 1997 Career Achievement Award from UCLA, and the Lifetime Achievement Award (1998) at the Cannes Film Festival. He was awarded the 1999 UCLA Neil H. Jacoby Award, which honors individuals who have made exceptional contributions to humanity. Medavoy also received the inaugural Fred Zinnemann Award (2001), presented by the Anti-Defamation League, the Israel Film Festival's Lifetime Achievement Award (2002), as well as a Career Achievement Award from the University of Central Florida (2002). In 2004, he received the Louis B. Mayer Motion Picture Business Leader of the Year Award from Florida Atlantic University and in 2005, he was the recipient of UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television and Producers Guild of America Vision Award. Also in 2005, Medavoy was inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame and received a star on Hollywood Boulevard. In 2007, he received the Stella Adler Actors Studio Marlon Brando Award and in 2008, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Jerusalem Film Foundation. In 2009, he was given the Honorary Doctorate at the Academy of Art in San Francisco and was named Chevalier of the French Government's Legion of Honor. Mike also received the Bernardo O'Higgins award from the Chilean government on February 16th, 2010. In 2011, Medavoy received the Raimondo Rezzonico Prize at the Locarno Film Festival. In 2012, at the 2012 Shanghai International Film Festival, Medavoy was bestowed with the Outstanding Achievement Award. Medavoy has also served as chairman of the jury of the Tokyo Film Festival, advisor to the Shanghai Film Festival and advisor to the St. Petersburg Festival. He was a member of the board of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences from 1977 to 1981. Medavoy is also one of the original founding members of the board of governors of the Sundance Institute (1978) and is chairman emeritus of the American Cinematheque and the Stella Adler Actors Studio in New York. Medavoy has made a mark not only within his industry, but in his community as well. He was appointed to the Board of Directors of the Museum of Science and Industry in Los Angeles by Governor Jerry Brown and was appointed by Mayor Richard Riordan as Commissioner on the Los Angeles Board of Parks and Recreations. He is a member of the board of directors of the University of Tel Aviv. He also serves on the board of trustees of the UCLA Foundation and is a member of the Chancellor's Associates, the Dean's Advisory Board at the UCLA School of Theatre, Film and Television and the Alumni Association's Student Relations Committee. He is also the co-chairman of the Burkle Center for UCLA's Center for International Relations and served as a member of the board of advisers at the Kennedy School at Harvard University for five years. In 2002, Governor Gray Davis appointed Mike to the California Anti-Terrorism Information Center's Executive Advisory Board; he is also a member of both the Council on Foreign Relations and the Homeland Security Advisory Council. Medavoy is also on the Baryshnikov Arts Center Advisory Committee in New York, and serves on the advisory board of the University of Southern California's Center on Public Diplomacy. Throughout his career, Mike Medavoy has also been active in politics. In 1984, he was Co-Finance Chair of the Gary Hart campaign. He also actively participated in President Clinton's campaigns in 1992 and 1996. In 2008, he supported the candidacy of Barack Obama, and his wife, Irena, was the Co-Finance Chair. In 2002, Simon & Schuster published Mr. Medavoy's best-selling book, You're Only As Good As Your Next One: 100 Great Films, 100 Good Films and 100 For Which I Should Be Shot - which was subsequently released in paperback in 2003. Mike's new book, entitled American Idol After Iraq; Competing for Hearts and Minds in the Global Media Age and published in 2009, reflects on the impact of media on U.S. foreign policy with co-author Nathan Gardels, editor of the National Political Quarterly. Mike was born in Shanghai, China in 1941 of Russian-Jewish parents, and lived in Chile from 1947 to 1957. He graduated from UCLA in 1963. He is married to Irena Ferris Medavoy, a founder of Team Safe-T and a charity executive and fund raiser for the Industry Task Force. Mike Medavoy has two sons, Brian Medavoy and Nicholas Medavoy, and resides in Beverly Hills, California.
Mike Meijer
Mike Meijer was born on September 26, 1964 in Netherlands. He is a production manager and actor, known for Vuurzee (2005), All Stars (1997) and De band (2003). He has been married to Larsia Braakman since January 10, 2000. They have one child.
Mike Meldman
Mike Meldman was born on 30 December 1958 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Battleship (2012), Ocean's Thirteen (2007) and Hall Pass (2011). He was previously married to Christy Nichols.
Mike Melnick
Mike Melnick is known for Temptation Island (2019).
Mike Melugin
Mike Melugin is an actor, known for Walker, Texas Ranger (1993), Knocked Up (2004) and Tucked Away (2007).
Mike Mendez
A native to Los Angeles, Mike Mendez was in the backyard making movies since the age of 10. At the age of 23, Mike made his first feature film "Killers," which was accepted into the Sundance Film Festival in 1997. The film was picked up by Alpine Pictures, who distributed the feature in the U.S. The film also received a worldwide theatrical release. He followed that up with the horror comedy "The Convent," which was also accepted into the Sundance Film Festival in 2000, as well as over 30 other film festivals worldwide. The film was released by Lionsgate in the U.S. In 2002, he produced a documentary for Universal Television and Showtime entitled "Masters of Horror," featuring interviews with some of the genre's most legendary filmmakers. In 2006, Mike's film "The Gravedancers" premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival and was released in theaters nationally by Lionsgate & After Dark Films as part of "8 Films To Die For". Along with producing short films for X-box and working on the television series "Beavis & Butthead", Mike's newest film is "Big Ass Spider!" for Epic Pictures, which premiered at the 2013 SXSW Film Festival. Starring "Heroes" alumni Greg Grunberg, it had a limited theatrical worldwide.
Mike Menendez
Mike Menendez is known for FBI: Most Wanted (2020), A Good Person (2023) and The Blacklist (2013).
Mike Merna
Mike Merna is an actor, known for Dark Tomorrow (2002), Detroit (2006) and Timequest (2000).
Mike Merrell
Mike Merrell is known for Krampus: The Christmas Devil (2013).
Mike Merrill
Mike Merrill is an American actor, producer, and entrepreneur who has charted his own path to success in top-rated TV and film, emerging as one of Hollywood's exciting rising stars to watch in a new generation of leading men. This year, Mike Merrill can be seen starring as Ty Washington in the second season of the Starz hit crime drama BMF, executive produced and created by Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson. In 2022, Mike starred as Martin Britton in Carl Weber's BET+ original, The Black Hamptons. The series garnered a 2023 NAACP Image Award nomination for Outstanding Television Movie, Limited Series or Dramatic Special. Based on the New York Times Bestseller, the family-drama miniseries follows the brewing feud between the 'Brittons' and the 'Johnsons,' two of the most powerful families in the upscale Black town of Sag Harbor, NY, where the difference between old and new money is very apparent. Additional television credits for Mike include CW's sports drama series All American, the Bounce TV Dramedy Finding Happy, BET Networks' American Soul and the NAACP Image Award-winning miniseries The Bobby Brown Story, and starring as Rodney in AMC's ALLBLK sexy drama, À La Carte. In film, Mike was recently seen in the BET+ original movies, A Wesley Christmas, starring as Dennis Dobson and Keys to the City, starring alongside Isaiah Washington (Grey's Anatomy) and Stephen Bishop (Money Ball).
