Zola Mashariki (born Los Angeles, United States) is an American attorney, film producer and executive. She is the head of

Audible Studios Audible is an American online audiobook and podcast service that allows users to purchase and stream audiobooks and other forms of spoken word content. This content can be purchased individually or under a subscription model where the user receiv ...

. Mashariki also served as the Head of Original Programming and Executive Vice President of

BET Network Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los A ...

. She was also the Senior Vice President of Production for

Fox Searchlight Pictures Searchlight Pictures, Inc. is an American film production company and a subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, which is part of the Walt Disney Company. Founded in 1994 as Fox Searchlight Pictures, Inc. for 20th Century Fox (later 20th Century St ...

Early life and career

Zola Mashariki Reyes was born in Los Angeles, California. Mashariki attended

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...

where she studied Arts and obtained a Bachelor of Arts from the institution in 1994. After attending Dartmouth College she enrolled in Harvard Law School in 1994 and obtained a

Doctor of Law A Doctor of Law is a degree in law. The application of the term varies from country to country and includes degrees such as the Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D. or S.J.D), Juris Doctor (J.D.), Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), and Legum Doctor (LL ...

. She taught at the University of South California. Mashariki started her career in 2000 when started working for

as the Senior Vice President, Production. Between 2000 and 2015 some of her successful projects with Searchlight were book adaptations including ''

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel ''The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel'' is a 2011 British comedy-drama film directed by John Madden. The screenplay, written by Ol Parker, is based on the 2004 novel ''These Foolish Things'' by novelist Deborah Moggach, and features an ensemble c ...

The Last King of Scotland ''The Last King of Scotland'' is a novel by journalist Giles Foden, published by Faber and Faber in 1998. Focusing on the rise of Ugandan President Idi Amin and his reign as dictator from 1971 to 1979, the novel, which interweaves fiction and ...

, The Secret Life of Bees, In America, Never Let Me Go'' and ''

Antwone Fisher Antwone Quenton Fisher (born August 3, 1959) is an American director, screenwriter, author, and cinema of the United States, film producer. His 2001 autobiographical book ''Finding Fish'' was a The New York Times Best Seller list, ''New York ...

.'' While at Searchlight during the acquisition process she also worked on ''

Slumdog Millionaire ''Slumdog Millionaire'' is a 2008 British drama film that is a loose adaptation of the novel '' Q & A'' (2005) by Indian author Vikas Swarup. It narrates the story of 18-year-old Jamal Malik from the Juhu slums of Mumbai. Starring Dev Patel ...

'' and ''

12 Years a Slave ''Twelve Years a Slave'' is an 1853 memoir and slave narrative by American Solomon Northup as told to and written by David Wilson. Northup, a black man who was born free in New York state, details himself being tricked to go to Washington, D.C., ...

.'' In 2015, she was announced as head of original programming at

BET Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los A ...

. Mashariki led the creative team and oversaw the programming for

and Centric Networks. Mashariki also executive produced and developed

The New Edition Story ''The New Edition Story'' is an American biographical three-part miniseries about the R&B group New Edition, from their rise to fame as a boy band from the Orchard Park Projects of Roxbury, Massachusetts, to becoming a successful adult act. It w ...

which gave BET its highest ratings in a decade and won two

NAACP Image Awards The NAACP Image Awards is an annual awards ceremony presented by the U.S.-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People ( NAACP) to honor outstanding performances in film, television, theatre, music, and literature. Similar to ...

. She has collaborated with

Laurence Fishburne Laurence John Fishburne III (born July 30, 1961) is an American actor. He is a three time Emmy Award and Tony Award winning actor known for his roles on stage and screen. He has been hailed for his forceful, militant, and authoritative charact ...

Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...

's miniseries ''

Madiba Iziduko (pl.) in Xhosa are family names that are considered more important than surnames among Xhosa people. Many Xhosa persons can trace their family history back to a specific male ancestor or stock. Mentioning the clan name of someone is the ...

'' and with

John Singleton John Daniel Singleton (January 6, 1968 April 28, 2019) was an American director, screenwriter, and producer. He made his feature film debut writing and directing ''Boyz n the Hood'' (1991), for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for B ...

on his series ''

Rebel A rebel is a participant in a rebellion. Rebel or rebels may also refer to: People * Rebel (given name) * Rebel (surname) * Patriot (American Revolution), during the American Revolution * American Southerners, as a form of self-identification; s ...

.'' Mashariki joined Good Films, LLC as its chief content officer where she was in charge of its 2020 film

Just Mercy ''Just Mercy'' is a 2019 American biographical legal drama film co-written and directed by Destin Daniel Cretton and starring Michael B. Jordan as Bryan Stevenson, Jamie Foxx as Walter McMillian, Rob Morgan, Tim Blake Nelson, Rafe Spall, an ...

, starring

Michael B. Jordan Michael Bakari Jordan (; born February 9, 1987) is an American actor. He is known for his film roles as shooting victim Oscar Grant in the drama ''Fruitvale Station'' (2013), boxer Adonis Creed in ''Creed'' (2015), and Erik Killmonger in ''Bl ...

Jamie Foxx Eric Marlon Bishop (born December 13, 1967), known professionally as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, comedian, and singer. He became widely known for his portrayal of Ray Charles in the 2004 biographical film '' Ray'', for which he won the ...

and

Brie Larson Brianne Sidonie Desaulniers (born October 1, 1989), known professionally as Brie Larson, is an American actress. Known for her supporting roles in comedies as a teenager, she has since expanded to leading roles in independent films and blockb ...

. She is the co-founder of the African Grove Institute for the Arts. Mashariki was named as the head of

in April 2021.

Filmography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mashariki, Zola Living people American film producers American lawyers 21st-century American women lawyers 21st-century American lawyers Year of birth missing (living people)