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Kerstin Emhoff

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Kerstin Emhoff
Born
Kerstin Mackin

(1967-03-18) March 18, 1967 (age 57)
Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.
EducationBoston University (BFA)
OccupationFilm producer
Years active1998–present
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1992; div. 2009)​
Children2, including Ella
AwardsNews & Documentary Emmy Award (2012)

Kerstin Emhoff (née Mackin; born March 18, 1967)[1] is an American film producer and the co-founder and CEO of the commercial production company Prettybird and creative studio Ventureland.[2] She is a member of the Directors Guild of America, Producers Guild of America, and Television Academy.

Emhoff won a News & Documentary Emmy Award in 2012. As the CEO of Ventureland, Emhoff has executive produced documentaries including The Deepest Breath, Bobi Wine: The People's President, If These Walls Could Sing, and AKA Jane Roe.

Life and career

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Kerstin Jennifer Emhoff was born in Minnesota, the daughter of Kathleen "Katie" (née Davies) and James Mackin. She has two brothers, Seth Mackin and Kyle Mackin. Her parents divorced in 1982, and her father later remarried.[3] After film school at Boston University,[4] Emhoff moved to Los Angeles, where she got a job at a small production company and "was immediately hooked into the world of short form."[5] By 2002, Emhoff was a principal (and executive producer) at HSI Productions.[6] HSI creatives at that time included Paul Hunter, Hype Williams, and Diane Martel.[7]

Prettybird

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In 2007, Emhoff, together with Hunter, left HSI to co-found the production company Prettybird.[8] Emhoff is Prettybird's CEO.[9] Ad Age named Prettybird as Creativity's Production Company of the Year twice, in 2015[10] and 2021.[11]

She was executive producer of Manhunt: The Search for Bin Laden (2013), which won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special, and produced Emmy Award-winning The Tillman Story. [12]

Ventureland

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In 2020, she joined with two of her Prettybird partners (Ali Brown and Paul Hunter) and long-time collaborator John Battsek[12] to co-found Ventureland,[13] a multi-platform entertainment company. Based in Los Angeles and London, Ventureland produces documentaries, scripted content, podcasts, and branded entertainment.[14] As the CEO of Ventureland, Emhoff has executive produced documentaries including The Deepest Breath, Bobi Wine: The People's President, If These Walls Could Sing, and the 2020 documentary AKA Jane Roe.[15][16][17]

Emhoff was on the board of directors of the Association of Independent Commercial Producers (AICP) for over ten years, and was the AICP President for Western United States.[18] In 2015, she chaired the AICP annual show "The Art & Technique of the American Commercial."[19] In 2020, she served as President of the Film Craft jury at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.[20]

When Ava DuVernay partnered with Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti, Netflix, HBO and others to set up the Evolve Entertainment Fund (EEF), Emhoff was named to its first Advisory Board.[21] According to Billboard, "The EEF is a public-private partnership between the City of Los Angeles, industry leaders in entertainment and digital media, non-profit organizations and educational institutions which is dedicated to building career pathways into film, television and music for women, people of color and low-income Angelenos through paid internships, focused mentoring and an ongoing series of workshops and panels."[22]

Personal life

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She was raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and has mainly Swedish ancestry. In 1992, she married Douglas Emhoff, with whom she has two children, Cole and Ella. Their marriage ended in divorce sixteen years later following an affair that Douglas Emhoff had with one of his then-young daughter’s teachers [23] Kerstin, however, had chosen to retain her married name, legally and professionally.[24] Kerstin Emhoff's ex-husband later married Kamala Harris.[25]

Kerstin Emhoff's two children have described the coparenting relationship between Emhoff and their stepmother, Kamala Harris, as "very healthy".[26] She attended the 2021 presidential inauguration, where Harris was sworn in as vice president of the United States.[26] In 2024, her defense of Harris as a "loving, nurturing, fiercely protective" co-parent was widely quoted.[27][28]

Selected filmography

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Awards

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References

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  1. ^ "Kerstin Emhoff". United States Public Records, 1970–2009.
  2. ^ "Kerstin Emhoff". PRETTYBIRD.co. Retrieved November 20, 2022.
  3. ^ Mackin vs Mackin Public Record Divorce Records 1986
  4. ^ "Kerstin Emhoff's production company brings artistic visions to life".
  5. ^ Capper, Addison (2020). "5 Minutes with… Kerstin Emhoff". Little Black Book. Retrieved August 15, 2020. The co-founder and executive producer of Prettybird is Kerstin Emhoff. Under her guidance the company has picked up Grammys, Emmys, D&ADs, Cannes Lions, Clios and more. It bagged the first ever Music Grand Prix at Cannes in 2016 for Beyonce's 'Formation', directed by Melina Matsoukas. What's more, Kerstin recently launched Pipelines, a not-for-profit initiative that's geared towards increasing opportunities in adland for diverse, young people
  6. ^ "HSI, LOS ANGELES, NEW YORK, FOUNDED 1986". Ad Age. September 1, 2003. Retrieved August 15, 2020. Principals: Stavros Merjos, CEO, Billy Sandwick, Executive Producer NY, Kerstin Emhoff...Roster HSI: Arni & Kinski, Lenny Bass, Peter Berg, Irv Blitz, Benny Boom, Kevin Bray, Scott Burns, Gerard de Thame, F. Gary Gray, Paul Hunter...
  7. ^ "5 Minutes with… Taj Critchlow". Little Black Book. 2019. Retrieved August 15, 2020. we both worked at HSI Productions. It was the Death Star of production companies, the alpha omega...That's where I learned how to multitask, how to hustle, but most importantly how to run a premium production company on that level. If you think about all of the alumni that came out of HSI - Paul Hunter and Kerstin Emhoff, who run Prettybird now, me and X at Popp Rok. Stavros [Merjos, HSI's founder] created this amazing platform from where we just sprung out.
  8. ^ Diaz, Ann-Christine (December 18, 2007). "Paul Hunter and Kerstin Emhoff Launch Prettybird". Ad Age. Retrieved August 15, 2020. Former HSI director Paul Hunter and executive producer Kerstin Emhoff have given flight to Prettybird, a new production company that they say will put a premium on creative fluidity and partnerships while being positioned to address the industry's shifting production needs. 'We came from a very big company where we definitely spent a lot of time crossing over from music videos to commercials or commercials to movies, or print photography to commercials,' Emhoff says. 'It's exciting to start from scratch...'
  9. ^ Del Barco, Mandalit (June 12, 2020). "Cameras Can Roll In Hollywood Again". NPR.org. Retrieved August 16, 2020. Kerstin Emhoff, president of Prettybird, said her production company was able to work remotely throughout the pandemic shutdown, on a documentary, a digital series and commercials (including one for Uber)...'it's going to be slower because you can't have everyone working all at once. But we don't have a choice. We have to make this work.'
  10. ^ Diaz, Ann-Christine (September 28, 2015). "Prettybird is Creativity's 2015 Production Company of the Year". Ad Age. Retrieved August 15, 2020. Founded in 2007 by top director Paul Hunter and industry vet Kerstin Emhoff, it tackled the surliest, most head-scratching production terrain while finessing more traditional, established content forms
  11. ^ Diaz, Ann-Christine (June 7, 2021). "Prettybird's Top Talents Shaped the Year's Biggest Ideas". Ad Age.
  12. ^ a b Wiseman, Andreas (January 21, 2020). "Docs Supremo John Battsek Exits Passion Pictures After 20 Years To Set Up LA & London-Based Ventureland With Prettybird Trio". Deadline. Retrieved August 15, 2020. Battsek and Emhoff have previously teamed up to produce Emmy-winning projects Manhunt: The Inside Story Of The Hunt For Bin Laden and The Tillman Story, as well as The Final Year, Sergio and Legion Of Brothers. The duo have worked together on-and-off for more than a decade and the majority of Passion's U.S. productions have been based out of Prettybird's LA facilities.
  13. ^ "Ventureland". Ventureland. Retrieved 2023-10-20.
  14. ^ Morgan, Jillian (January 21, 2020). "John Battsek, Prettybird team launch multi-platform prodco Ventureland". Real Screen. Retrieved August 15, 2020. Emhoff, Brown and Hunter, partners at California-based prodco Prettybird, are known for producing music videos and commercials of the last decade with a roster of talent that includes Melina Matsoukas, Tim & Eric, The Daniels, Janicza Bravo and others.
  15. ^ Ramos, Dino-Ray (March 4, 2020). "FX Acquires First Documentary Feature 'AKA Jane Roe', Sets Premiere Date For Roe V. Wade Film".
  16. ^ "FX Sets 'AKA Jane Roe' as First Feature Documentary". The Hollywood Reporter. 4 March 2020.
  17. ^ D'Addario, Daniel (May 20, 2020). "'AKA Jane Roe': TV Review".
  18. ^ "AICP - Kerstin Emhoff". www.aicp.com. Doubling as a producer and an Executive Producer, Emhoff has been involved in a wide range of PRETTYBIRD's eclectic work including: Intel & Lady Gaga's David Bowie Tribute at the 2016 Grammy Awards... Kerstin has produced over 13 movies and documentaries, including HBO's 2013 Primetime Emmy Award Winner Manhunt: The Inside Story of the Hunt for Bin Laden and the Oscar shortlisted documentary The Tillman Story.
  19. ^ "PRETTYBIRD's Kerstin Emhoff Named Chair of 2015 AICP Show". Shoot. December 4, 2014. Retrieved August 15, 2020. Kerstin Emhoff, co-founder/executive producer of PRETTYBIRD, will serve as chairperson of the 2015 AICP Show: The Art & Technique of the American Commercial. As part of her AICP Show Chair duties, Emhoff will preside over AICP Week
  20. ^ "Film Craft Lions | Awards | Cannes Lions 2020". www.canneslions.com.
  21. ^ Patten, Dominic (February 12, 2018). "Ava DuVernay, Netflix, HBO & Dan Lin Partner With City Of L.A. On Inclusion Incentive". Retrieved August 15, 2020. Teaming-up with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Issa Rae Productions, Dan Lin's Rideback, ARRAY, WME, Netflix, HBO, Film Independent, CAA, UTA, Anonymous Content, Lionsgate, Charles D King's MACRO, Oprah Winfrey Network, the Sundance Institute, Shondaland, Ryan Murphy, Innovative Artists and Warner Bros, among others, the EEF intends to raise over $5 million
  22. ^ Mims, Taylor (July 25, 2019). "AEG Partners with Los Angeles Mayor to Launch 2019 Evolve Entertainment Diversity Initiative". Billboard. Retrieved August 15, 2020. The EEF is a public-private partnership between the City of Los Angeles, industry leaders in entertainment and digital media, non-profit organizations and educational institutions which is dedicated to building career pathways into film, television and music for women, people of color and low-income Angelenos through paid internships, focused mentoring and an ongoing series of workshops and panels.
  23. ^ Dovere, Edward-Isaac (August 3, 2024). "Emhoff acknowledges affair during first marriage after tabloid report | CNN Politics". CNN.
  24. ^ Jessica M. Goldstein (October 5, 2020). "The Good Husband". Marie Claire. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  25. ^ Wright, Jasmine; Stracqualursi, Veronica (January 15, 2021). "Harris and Emhoff recall first date: 'It felt like we had known each other forever'". CNN. Retrieved January 18, 2021.
  26. ^ a b Kindelan, Katie (January 20, 2021). "How Kamala Harris' diverse, multicultural family will make history". Good Morning America. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  27. ^ "Vance Denigrated Harris for Being Childless. Her Blended Family Is Defending Her". The New York Times. July 25, 2024. Retrieved July 26, 2024. She is loving, nurturing, fiercely protective, and always present. I love our blended family and am grateful to have her in it.
  28. ^ "Doug Emhoff's ex-wife defends Harris against sexist criticisms of her as childless". CNN. July 25, 2024. 'These are baseless attacks. For over 10 years, since Cole and Ella were teenagers, Kamala has been a co-parent with Doug and I,' Kerstin Emhoff said in a statement first provided to CNN.
  29. ^ "Winners Announced for the 33rd Annual News & Documentary Emmy® Awards | The Emmy Awards - The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences". Archived from the original on 2020-09-29. Retrieved 2020-08-13.
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