Jeff Kaufman |
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| President | Executive Producer | |||
| Story Industries | |||
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PO Box 46516, Los Angeles, California, 90046, United States |
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About Jeff Kaufman
BIO
JEFF KAUFMAN is an award-winning journalist, TV and New Media producer and showrunner, and an adviser to audience-facing businesses.
He leads STORY INDUSTRIES, which collaborates with select Media, Corporate, Non-profit and Individual Clients to Create Content, Build Brands, Sharpen Staffs and Streamline Systems, enabling on- and offline businesses to identify, reach and engage audiences on the air, on the web and on the go. Since 1997, it has developed and produced Character- and Story-Driven Documentary, Magazine, Competition, Travel, Comedy-Variety and Live-Events programming for ABC, The WB, CNBC, Fine Living, FX, VH1, Endemol USA, Telepictures Productions, Twentieth Television, CBS Television Stations, NBC Owned Stations, AOL, Warner Bros Online and more.
The Company participated in the conceptualization, design and launch of one of the web’s first successful hyper-local news sites; refocused and relaunched a network O&O's signature magazine series; played a key role in a new TV duopoly’s effort to fuse two news staffs, processes, and cultures into one; and designed the transformation of a successful local service provider into a personality-driven multiplatform brand.
Kaufman’s three decades as a producer of news and nonfiction programming for local and national audiences; adviser to audience-facing businesses on content, branding and promotion; and mentor to next-generation media professionals are reflected in the Company’s vision: Better Living Through Storytelling. Better Storytelling Through Story Industries.
During 25 years as a news director, executive producer, producer, writer, reporter and anchor at TV and radio stations in Southern California and Colorado, Kaufman's newscasts, breaking news and long-form programming were honored with five Emmys, including the only one awarded to any coverage of the OJ Simpson murder trial; Golden Mikes; and awards from The Associated Press and The Los Angeles Press Club.
As technical adviser to the HBO drama series, The Newsroom, Kaufman helps the cast and crew achieve a level of authenticity in staging and performance that meshes with the realism of creator Aaron Sorkin's scripts. Earlier, Kaufman provided script and performance guidance for the portions of director Michael Mann's 1995 theatrical release, Heat, that were filmed in the KNBC newsroom.
For three years, Kaufman was broadcast producer of Entertainment Tonight. He has produced nonfiction series and specials for network and cable prime-time and syndication. For two years beginning in 2008, he co-hosted The Homecast Show, a live daily internet radio program that delivered recession survival strategies with a dose of humor.
In 2004, at the invitation of the Schools of Journalism and Business of Shantou University, he led a seminar in Beijing on nonfiction TV for Chinese TV producers. Kaufman has been a moderator, panelist and mentor at seminars for young journalists sponsored by The Associated Press Television-Radio Association. For three years, he taught broadcast news writing at his alma mater, the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism at the University of Southern California.
His Journalism and History Degrees are from USC, but Kaufman also knows the view from the other side of the 405: he was born at UCLA hospital.
CONTACT
E info [at] storyindustries [dot] com
PROFESSIONAL CHRONOLOGY
PRESIDENT, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER, Story Industries, 1997 - Present
TECHNICAL ADVISER, The Newsroom, Farnsworth Entertainment Productions for HBO, 2011
CO-HOST, CO-PRODUCER, The Homecast Show, Danny Lemos Creative, 2008 – 2009
CO-EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/SHOWRUNNER, ToddTV, Endemol USA for FX, 2003 –2004
PARTNER / EXECUTIVE PRODUCER, Story Industries (Joint Venture), 2002 – 2004
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/SHOWRUNNER, Domino Day 2001, Endemol USA for ABC, 2001
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/DEVELOPMENT DEAL, Telepictures Productions (Warner Bros Television), 2000 – 2001
Executive Producer, Judge Mathis: From Gang to Gavel, Syndicated
Executive Producer, The Power of One, The WB
Producer/Director, Live From The Red Carpet, WarnerBros.com
VICE PRESIDENT CREATIVE AFFAIRS, Buccieri & Weiss Entertainment, 1999 – 2000
BROADCAST PRODUCER, Entertainment Tonight, Paramount Television, 1995 – 1999
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER, OJ Simpson: The Trial, KNBC/Los Angeles and CNBC, 1994 – 1995
SCRIPT ADVISER AND ON-SET LIASON, Heat, Warner Bros Pictures, 1994
NEWSCAST PRODUCER, SPECIAL PROJECTS PRODUCER, KCAL-TV/Los Angeles, Walt Disney Company, 1990 – 1994
NEWSCAST PRODUCER, KTTV/Los Angeles, Fox Television Stations, Inc, 1989 – 1989
NEWSCAST PRODUCER, KCNC-TV/Denver, NBC Television Stations Division, 1986 – 1989
PRINCIPAL ANCHOR, WEEKEND ANCHOR, MAGAZINE HOST, NEWS REPORTER, KJCT-TV/Grand Junction, Colorado, 1984 – 1986
NEWS DIRECTOR, KNWZ ("K-News") [formerly KEZY] Radio/Anaheim, California, 1983
WRITER, EDITOR (Producer), KFWB All News Radio/Los Angeles, Westinghouse Broadcasting Company, 1980 – 1983 and 1983 – 1984
MORNING NEWS PRODUCER, ASSISTANT NEWS DIRECTOR, KIIS-FM and AM Radio/Los Angeles, Gannett Broadcasting, 1980 – 1982
NEWSWRITING INTERN, KNX Newsradio/Los Angeles, CBS Radio, 1979 – 1980
Jeff Kaufman Links
