Jeff Pollack

Jeffrey Ian Pollack November 15 1959 December 23 2013 was an American film director screenwriter television producer and writer He was known as the cocreator writer and producer of the 90s sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel Air Following graduation from University of Southern California Film School in the early 1980s Jeff Pollack traveled through Asia both as a tourist and documentarian After three years on the roadand in the rice fields and junglePollack returned to the US dabbling in real estate development before devoting himself to an entertainment career Pollack cocreated the NBC TV series The Fresh Prince of Bel Air with friend and business partner Benny Medina who was the inspiration for the shows title character played by thenrapper Will Smith He wrote produced and directed for the show until its end Pollack and Medina also launched and ran a managementproduction company together MedinaPollack Entertainment later becoming Handprint with clients that included Jennifer Lopez Mariah Carey and Tyra Banks Pollack produced two Billboard Music Awards ceremonies in 1992 and 1993 produced the TV documentary Jennifer Lopez in Concert and worked with Banks on her talk show In 1994 under the banner of MedinaPollack Entertainment Pollack wrote produced and directed the urban feature film Above the Rim starring Tupac Shakur Leon Duane Martin and Marlon Wayans In 1995 Pollack and Medina renamed their company Handprint Entertainment which has grown into one of Hollywoods most successfulcitation needed fullservice management and production companies Since that time Pollack took a production role on the Fox sitcom Getting Personal and remained behind the camera as director of the 1997 film Booty Call starring Jamie Foxx Tommy Davidson Vivica A Fox and Tamala Jones His spec screenplay Gifted was one of Spec Scouts top 2013 submitted scripts scoring above 90 of the scripts circulating by Alist agents and managers