Jezebel Productions

Jezebel Productions is an independent film production company, founded in 1984 by Greta Schiller and Andrea Weiss. The company has been based in New York City and London since 1998. Films include International Sweethearts of Rhythm (1986), Tiny and Ruby: Hell Divin' Women (1988), and Maxine Sullivan: Love To Be In Love (1991), a trilogy about women in jazz; Woman of the Wolf (1994); Paris Was A Women (1995); A Bit of Scarlet (1997); Seed of Sarah (1998); The Man Who Drove With Mandela (1998); Escape To Life: The Erika and Klaus Mann Story (2000); I Live At Ground Zero (2002); and Recall Florida (2003). Prior to founding Jezebel Productions, Schiller was Producer/Director and Weiss served as Research Director for Before Stonewall (1985), an Emmy Award- winning documentary that traced the social, political, and cultural development of the gay and lesbian community in New York City.

Greta Schiller has produced and directed documentries for European Television and for MayaVision International, and has been awarded numerous grants and prizes for her work, including the first Fulbright Arts Fellowship in Film. Her films are held in many prestigious collections around the world.

Andrea Weiss earned a B.A. in English and Women's Studies from the State Univerisity of New York at Binghamton in 1977, an M.A. in English and Women's Studies from the University of Oklahoma in 1981, and a Ph.D. in history from Rutgers University. She has taught women's studies, history, film studies, and film/video production at a variety of institutions. She is currently a Professor in the Film/Video Program of the Department of Media and Communication Arts at the City College of New York, where she has taught since 2003.

In addition to making independent films, she is the author of Vampires and Violets: Lesbians in Film (1993), Paris Was A Woman: Portraits from the Left Bank (1995)--which formed the basis for the Jezebel productions documentary of the same name-- and In the Shadow of Magic Mountain: The Erika and Klaus Mann Story (2008), about the children of Thomas Mann. She is also the co-author with Greta Schiller of Before Stonewal l (1987). Weiss has written many book chapters, articles and film reviews, and has been awarded numerous fellowships and grants. She has taught at the International Film and Photo Workshops, New York University, the City University of New York, and the National Film and Television School of Great Britain.

From the guide to the Jezebel Productions Records MS 534., 1971-2003 (ongoing), (Sophia Smith Collection)