EPISODE 223- R.J. CUTLER

R.J. Cutler is an award-winning producer and director who has made some of the most significant documentaries of the past quarter century. Cutler’s films include The War Room, A Perfect Candidate, The September Issue, The World According to Dick Cheney, Thin and Listen to Me Marlon. He has also been a pioneer in the area of non-fiction television, having created such landmark programs as “American High,” “Freshman Diaries,” “30 Days” and many others. Cutler’s scripted work includes conceiving and directing “Nashville,” directing the feature film If I Stay (starring Chloe Grace Moretz), and creating, writing, directing and producing the award-winning podcast The Oval Office Tapes. 

Other projects include the feature documentary Belushi, which he directed and produced and which will air on Showtime later this year. He is also the producer and director of The Untitled Billie Eilish Documentary, an intimate look at the last year in the life of the 18 year-old pop sensation whose music has been streamed over five billion times. Cutler’s documentary series “Dear…” will premiere on Apple TV+ this spring, and his musical drama “Bronzeville” (which he executive produces along with John Ridley, Alicia Keys, Benj Pasek, Justin Paul and Mark Platt) has been ordered straight-to-series by Showtime. Cutler has been nominated for an Academy Award and numerous other awards, and he is the recipient of two Emmys, two Peabody Awards, a GLAAD Award, two Cinema Eye Awards, and two Television Academy Honor Awards. In 2009, the Museum of Television and Radio held a four-day retrospective of Cutler’s work.

 Cutler and his wife Jane live in Los Angeles with their daughter Madeleine, their son Maxwell, and their dog Dexter.

Photo Credit- Matt Sayles

EPISODE 208- MARSHALL HERSKOVITZ

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.

EPISODE 206- KELLY AuCOIN

Kelly AuCoin is a series regular on the Showtime series Billions, on which he plays ‘Dollar’ Bill Stearn. He also currently plays Warren Sloan on Freeform/HULU’s The Bold Type. Recent other recurring TV roles includes Pastor Tim on FX’s The Americans, Hercules Mulligan on AMC’s TURN, and Gary Stamper on House of Cards. Other TV includes Blacklist, The Slap, Madam Secretary, Person of Interest, The Following, The Good Wife, Elementary, Blue Bloods, Unforgettable, Body of Proof, Gossip Girl, White Collar, The Sopranos, Without A Trace, and many Law & Order episodes of various suffixes. His film credits include the upcoming The Good House (Amblin), False Positive (A24) and A Shot Through The Wall, as well as previous apperances in, among others, The Post, The Wizard of Lies, Julie & Julia, The Kingdom, All That I Am (SXSW Award; Ensemble Acting), Drunk Parents, Benji The Dove, Police State, The Music Never Stopped, and The Word. Theatre credits include Octavius Caesar in Julius Caesar on Broadway opposite Denzel Washington, The 24 Hour Plays Broadway, and the first national touring company of Copenhagen.  He was part of the Drama Desk Award-winning ensemble cast of The Wayside Motor Inn (Signature Theatre), and his other Off-Broadway credits include Long Lost and Of Good Stock (Manhattan Theatre Club), The Call (Playwrights Horizons), Some Men (Second Stage), Boy (Primary Stages), Happy Now? (Primary Stages), Jailbait (Cherry Lane), The Ladies Of The Corridor (Peccadillo), and The Fifth Column (Mint Theater). Regional appearances include Yale Rep, La Jolla Playhouse, Williamstown, Syracuse Stage, Folger, Hartford Stage, TheatreVirginia, Virginia Stage, and New York Stage & Film.  He is a former member of the Oregon Shakespeare festival acting company. 

EPISODE 202- MARISA TOMEI

Marisa Tomei continues to bridge the gap between rich, dramatic performances and smart, comedic turns. Marisa won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Mona Lisa Vito in My Cousin Vinny. Tomei subsequently earned Academy Awards nominations for her performances in In the Bedroom and The Wrestler. 

Marisa recently wrapped her run as “Serafina Delle Rose” in the Roundabout Theatre Company’s production of the acclaimed Tennessee Williams play The Rose Tattoo, which marked Marisa’s return to the Broadway stage. She also recently wrapped production on Netflix’s action film, Sweet Girl, where she will appear alongside Jason Mamoa.

She star alongside Pete Davidson in Universal Pictures’ The King of Staten Island, a comedy film from Judd Apatow.

Recently, Marisa returned to the silver screen for ABC’s live special of Live In Front of a Studio Audience: Norman Lear’s All In The Family & The Jeffersons, where she starred as ‘Edith Bunker’ alongside Woody Harrelson, Jamie Foxx and Wanda Sykes. The one-night only events aired live on ABC on May 22 and December 18, 2019, and garnered three Emmy Award nominations, including Outstanding Variety Special (Live).

Last year, Marisa reunited with Ira Sachs for independent drama, Frankie, which had its world premiere in competition at the Cannes Film Festival in 2019. She also reprised her role of “Aunt May” in Sony Entertainment and Marvel Studios’ Spider-Man: Far From Home. The film released in theaters on July 2, 2019, dominating the box office weekend.

Her other notable film credits include: The Big Short, Love is Strange, Crazy, Stupid, Love, Ides of March, Loitering with Intent, Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, What Women Want, Happy Accidents, and Slums of Beverly Hills. She also recently appeared on television in Hulu’s “The Handmaid’s Tale,” and FOX’s “Empire,” among others. A veteran of the theater, Marisa starred as ‘George’ in Sarah Ruhl’s “How To Transcend a Happy Marriage” at Lincoln Center in 2017. Her previous Broadway credits include: Will Eno’s “The Realistic Joneses” (2014 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Ensemble Performance), Caryl Churchill's “Top Girls” (Drama Desk Award nomination), “Oh! The Humanity” and “Other Good Intentions,” “Marie and Bruce,” “Design for Living,” “We Won't Pay! We Won't Pay!,” “Waiting for Lefty,” “Rocket to the Moon,” “Demonology,” “Dark Rapture,” “Slavs!,” “The Comedy of Errors,” and “The Summer Winds,” among others. Tomei is a founding member of the Naked Angels Theater Company in New York City.