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Frank Marshall
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Frank Marshall

With an impressive number of landmark films to his credit as a producer, Frank Marshall has also excelled as a director, and found the time to devote himself to numerous endeavors in public service and sports.

Marshall has more than 50 films under his belt as producer, including Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Poltergeist, Gremlins, The Goonies, The Color Purple, An American Tail, Empire of the Sun, Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, The Land Before Time, the Back to the Future trilogy, Cape Fear and The Sixth Sense.

His recent film producing credits include three international blockbusters: Marshall served as producer on the award-winning Seasbiscuit, directed by Gary Ross and starring Tobey Maguire, Jeff Bridges and Chris Cooper; he also produced M. Night Shyamalan's Signs, starring Mel Gibson, and executive-produced The Bourne Identity, starring Matt Damon. He also served as executive producer on the Bernie Mac comedy Mr. 3000. He is slated to produce (along with George Lucas) the upcoming Steven Spielberg-directed Indiana Jones 4.

The filmmaker has already made several trips to the Academy Awards, having been nominated in the Best Picture category in 1982 for Raiders of the Lost Ark and again in the same category for The Color Purple with fellow producers Steven Spielberg, Quincy Jones and Kathleen Kennedy. One of his more recent projects, M. Night Shyamalan's 1999 box office smash The Sixth Sense, was nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Last year's Seabiscuit received seven Oscar nominations, including Best Picture.

As a director, Marshall's credits include the summer 1995 hit adventure, Congo, based on Michael Crichton's best-selling novel; the sensitive true-life drama, Alive, from Piers Paul Read's non-fiction book; the thriller Arachnophobia; and an episode of the Emmy Award-winning HBO miniseries, From the Earth to the Moon.

Marshall began his motion picture career as assistant to Peter Bogdanovich on the director's cult classic, Target. He was then asked by Bogdanovich to serve as location manager for The Last Picture Show and What's Up, Doc? before graduating to associate producer on the filmmaker's next five movies, including Paper Moon and Nickelodeon.

Marshall was line producer on Martin Scorsese's The Last Waltz, the heralded musical documentary on The Band. He then began a two-film association with director Walter Hill, first as associate producer on The Driver, then as executive producer of The Warriors, both of which have also attained a certain cult status among cineastes. Marshall was also line producer of Orson Welles' legendary unfinished film, The Other Side of the Wind, to which he periodically returned from 1971 through 1976.

Raiders of the Lost Ark marked the beginning of Marshall's epochal collaboration with Steven Spielberg, George Lucas and Kathleen Kennedy. Following the productions of E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial and Poltergeist (which he produced), in 1981 he formed industry powerhouse Amblin Entertainment with Spielberg and Kennedy. During his tenure at Amblin, Marshall also produced such films as Fandango, Young Sherlock Holmes, Innerspace, *batteries not included, Dad, The Money Pit, Noises Off, Always and Hook, as well as his directorial debut, Arachnophobia.

Marshall left Amblin in the fall of 1991 to pursue his directing career. Together with Kathleen Kennedy, he formed The Kennedy/Marshall Company under which Alive was the company's first release. In 1995, he directed Congo and produced the highly acclaimed film The Indian in the Cupboard with Kennedy and Jane Startz. In 1997, he directed his episode of From the Earth to the Moon, which centered around the Apollo 11 moon landing. Upcoming directing projects for Marshall include Antarctica for Disney.

The Kennedy/Marshall Company's most recent productions include Snow Falling on Cedars, A Map of the World, The Sixth Sense; Olympic Glory, the first official large format film of the Olympic Games; and director Simon Wincer's large format film The Young Black Stallion. Upcoming Kennedy/Marshall projects include The Talisman, based on the novel by Stephen King & Peter Straub, with a screenplay by Ehren Kruger (The Ring); the sequel to the blockbuster franchise Jurassic Park IV; Nicole Kidman starring in Emma's War, based on Deborah Scroggin's book for director Tony Scott; and Johnny Depp starring for director Julian Schnabel in The Diving Bell and the Butterfly.

Marshall continues to find time for his love of music, sports and magic. He has produced several record albums over the years and continues to run in distance races worldwide. Combining his passions for music and running, he, along with America's premiere miler Steve Scott, founded the Rock 'N' Roll Marathon, which debuted in 1998 in San Diego as the largest first-time marathon in history.

Marshall is a Vice President of the United States Olympic Committee, a board member of The Los Angeles Sports Council, Co-Chairman of The L.A. Mentoring Partnership and a member of the UCLA Foundation Board of Governors. He is a recipient of the acclaimed American Academy of Achievement Award, the UCLA Alumni Professional Achievement Award and the California Mentor Initiative's Leadership Award.


Note: This profile was written in or before 2004.

Frank Marshall Facts

OccupationProducer, Director
BirthdaySeptember 13, 1946 (77)
SignVirgo
BirthplaceLos Angeles, California, USA

Selected Filmography

Not available.