Seth Zvi Rosenfeld (born November 16, 1961) is an American playwright, TV writer/producer and filmmaker. Seth credits a youth cemented to a loud corner on Amsterdam Avenue in NYC with setting his imagination afire. A lot of his early work both in plays and film are love-letters to that corner. That would include the Play ''Servy-N-Bernice 4Ever'' and the film
A Brother's Kiss
King of the Jungle and the NetFlix series

The Get Down ''The Get Down'' is an American musical drama television series created by Baz Luhrmann and Stephen Adly Guirgis. The series debuted on Netflix on August 12, 2016, and was cancelled after the first season. Produced by Sony Pictures Television ...

. It has been said that his work chronicles the collisions of cultures in Urban America.Hamill, Denis
"Direct Route From The City With Gritty `Brother's Kiss,' Zvi Rosenfeld Proves That Mean Streets Can Lead To Powerful Career"
''NY Daily News'', May 4, 1997

Personal life

Rosenfeld was born in New York City and was raised in the Bronx and Manhattan. His early interests included graffiti, poetry, and basketball, all of which figure prominently in Rosenfeld's work. Formerly, he was married to actress and activist Rosie Perez. He was then married t
Kerri-Ann McCalla
a Jamaican-born screenwriter and film producer, until her passing of natural causes in 2018.

Career

Theatre

Rosenfeld began his career as a playwright with the

Ensemble Studio Theatre The Ensemble Studio Theatre (EST) is a non-profit membership-based developmental theatre located in Hell's Kitchen, New York City. It has a dual mission of nurturing individual theatre artists and developing new American plays. Overview The E ...

and the now defunct Double Image and Angel Theatre companies. His first project was the play entitled ''The Writing on the Wall'', produced by the Westbeth Theatre Center and for which

New Line Cinema New Line Cinema is an American film production studio owned by Warner Bros. Discovery and is a film label of Warner Bros. It was founded in 1967 by Robert Shaye as an independent film distribution company; later becoming a film studio after ...

purchased the rights. Other plays include ''The Blackeyed Brothers'', which won the Samuel French short play award and was produced by Double Image Theatre;"Seth Zvi Rosenfeld Bio and Play Details"
/ref> ''A Brother's Kiss'' and ''After the Marching Stopped'', produced by Angel Theatre at Intar and retitled ''Brothers Mothers and Others''; ''Servy-n-Bernice 4ever'', directed by Terry Kinney and produced commercially Off-Broadway at the

Provincetown Playhouse The Provincetown Playhouse is a historic theatre at 133 MacDougal Street between West 3rd and West 4th Streets in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It is named for the Provincetown Players, who converted the former ...

; ''A Passover Story'', commissioned by the late

Joseph Papp Joseph Papp (born Joseph Papirofsky; June 22, 1921 – October 31, 1991) was an American theatrical producer and director. He established The Public Theater in what had been the Astor Library Building in Lower Manhattan. There Papp created ...

for

The Public Theater The Public Theater is a New York City arts organization founded as the Shakespeare Workshop in 1954 by Joseph Papp, with the intention of showcasing the works of up-and-coming playwrights and performers.Epstein, Helen. ''Joe Papp: An American Li ...

; ''The Flatted Fifth'', ''Everything is Turning Into Beautiful'', and ''Downtown Race Riot'', produced by

The New Group The New Group, is a New York City Off-Broadway theatrical troupe founded by Artistic Director Scott Elliott, that produced its first play, Mike Leigh's '' Ecstasy'', in 1995. The New Group is run by founding Artistic Director, Scott Elliott, an ...

. Other works include the tiny plays ''La Familia'', ''My Starship'', and ''PS: I'm glad you sent your hair'' for

Naked Angels ''Naked Angels'' is a 1969 American outlaw biker film directed by Bruce D. Clark. Starring Michael Greene (actor), Michael Greene as Mother, Jennifer Gan as Marlene, and Richard Rust as Fingers, it provides an insider's perspective at the lifesty ...

and the Hip-Hop Theatre festival. Many of his plays have been published by

Samuel French Samuel French (1821–1898) was an American entrepreneur who, together with British actor, playwright and theatrical manager Thomas Hailes Lacy, pioneered in the field of theatrical publishing and the licensing of plays. Biography French foun ...

. His play ''Handball'' was workshopped by New York Stage and Film before being produced at Summerstage in New York City.

Film

Rosenfeld transitioned into screenwriting after

New Line New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

snapped up the rights to his play, ''The Writing on the Wall'', and then Columbia bought ''Servy-n-Bernice 4Ever''. He's developed scripts and doctored others for most of the major studios. His films have appeared in national and international festivals including Venice and Deauville, and he was invited to participate in the

Sundance Institute Sundance Institute is a non-profit organization founded by Robert Redford committed to the growth of independent artists. The institute is driven by its programs that discover and support independent filmmakers, theatre artists and composers fr ...

's Writers and Directors labs. Rosenfeld wrote the feature film, ''Sunset Park'', for Jersey Films/TriStar. His directorial debut, ''

A Brother's Kiss ''A Brother's Kiss'' is a 1997 American independent drama film written and directed by Seth Zvi Rosenfeld and starring Nick Chinlund and Michael Raynor. It is based on the 1988 play by Rosenfeld. It is also Rosenfeld's directorial debut. ''A Br ...

'', was based on the Off-Broadway play he wrote and tells a gritty tale of sibling love and loyalty set in East Harlem. Reviews praised the performances and attributed Rosenfeld's upbringing as creating "a realistic sense of street life with hardly a false note." Rosenfeld wrote and directed the films, ''

'' and '' King of the Jungle'' starring

John Leguizamo John Alberto Leguizamo Peláez (; ; born July 22, 196013:04) is an American actor, comedian, and film producer. He has appeared in over 100 films, produced over 20 films and documentaries, made over 30 television appearances, and has produced ...

Marisa Tomei Marisa Tomei ( , ; born December 4, 1964) is an American actress. She came to prominence as a cast member on '' The Cosby Show'' spin-off '' A Different World'' in 1987. After having minor roles in a few films, she came to international attentio ...

and Rosie Perez, and his award-winning short,''Under the Bridge'', which ran for several years on BRAVO. His most recent film is ''Sunday at Il Posto Accanto'', starring

Danny Hoch Daniel Hoch (born November 23, 1970) is an American actor, writer, director and performance artist. He has acted in larger roles in independent and art house movies and had a few small roles in mainstream Hollywood films, with increasing exp ...

and

Victor Rasuk Victor Rasuk (born January 15, 1984) is an American actor. Early life Rasuk was born in New York City, to Dominican parents. His mother worked as a seamstress, and his father at an auto shop. He has one brother, actor Silvestre Rasuk, with whom ...

Television

Rosenfeld directed ten episodes of an internet series called ''We Deliver'', partnered with Geebee Dajani, which followed the travails of a marijuana delivery service. This project was an early pioneer using the internet as a delivery platform for episodic dramas.TRICKY'S ON HIS WAY WITH HIS ATTACHE: sputnik7 and Palm Pictures Make Money From Selling Pot
Eddy Moretti, March 2001. Interview,

Vice Magazine ''Vice'' (stylized in all caps) is a Canadian-American magazine focused on lifestyle, arts, culture, and news/politics. Founded in 1994 in Montreal as an alternative punk magazine, the founders later launched the youth media company Vice Media, ...

Over the past decade Seth has worked extensively in TV. Developing scripts for streamers and premium cable. Cutting his teeth in the writer's room for HBO's
How to Make it in America
" He wrote and produced several pilots for HBO, SHOWTIME, FX, CBS, FOX, DISNEY+ and A&E, one of them, "

" went to series on Netflix directed by Baz Lurhmann. He served as Baz's right hand for 2 seasons. Most recently he served as second in command on the Amazon series " Them", which he has been nominated for a Writers Guild of America award.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rosenfeld, Seth Zvi 1961 births Living people Writers from New York City 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights American male screenwriters American male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American male writers Film directors from New York City Screenwriters from New York (state)