Robert Mandel (born 1945) is a film and television director and producer from

Oakland Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is ...

, California. He is best known for directing ''

School Ties ''School Ties'' is a 1992 American drama film directed by Robert Mandel and starring Brendan Fraser, Matt Damon, Chris O'Donnell, Randall Batinkoff, Andrew Lowery, Cole Hauser, Ben Affleck, and Anthony Rapp. Fraser plays the lead role as Dav ...

'', which includes early film roles in the careers of

Brendan Fraser Brendan James Fraser ( ; born December 3, 1968) is an American-Canadian actor. List of awards and nominations received by Brendan Fraser, His accolades include an Academy Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a nomination for a Golden Globe A ...

Matt Damon Matthew Paige Damon ( ; born October 8, 1970) is an American actor, film producer, and screenwriter. He was ranked among ''Forbes'' most bankable stars in 2007, and in 2010 was one of the highest-grossing actors of all time. He has received va ...

Ben Affleck Benjamin Géza Affleck (born August 15, 1972) is an American actor and filmmaker. His accolades include two Academy Awards, two BAFTA Awards, and three Golden Globes. Affleck began his career as a child when he starred in the PBS educatio ...

Cole Hauser Cole Kenneth Hauser (born March 22, 1975) is an American actor. He is known for film roles in ''Higher Learning'', '' School Ties'', '' Dazed and Confused'', ''Good Will Hunting'', '' Pitch Black'', ''Tigerland'', '' Hart's War'', ''Tears of the ...

and

Chris O'Donnell Christopher Eugene O'Donnell (born June 26, 1970) is an American actor. After modeling and acting in numerous commercials as a teenager, he made his film debut in the comedy-drama film ''Men Don't Leave'' (1990). Following supporting roles in ...

Biography

Robert Mandel was born in

, California, but grew up in

Queens Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...

, New York, where he developed an early interest in theater. Mandel attended

Bucknell University Bucknell University is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal-arts college in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1846 as the University at Lewisburg, it now consists of the College of Arts a ...

before pursuing stage directing at Manhattan Theatre Club and

The Public Theater The Public Theater is an arts organization in New York City. Founded by Joseph Papp, The Public Theater was originally the Shakespeare Workshop in 1954; its mission was to support emerging playwrights and performers.Epstein, Helen. ''Joe Papp: ...

in the early 1970s. In the late 1970s, Mandel attended M.F.A. studies at

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

and then at the

AFI Conservatory The AFI Conservatory is a private non-profit graduate film school in the Hollywood Hills district of Los Angeles. Students (called "Fellows") learn from the masters in a collaborative, hands-on production environment with an emphasis on stor ...

, where he graduated in 1979. During his studies at the American Film Institute, Mandel won the

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English film director. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featu ...

Award for his thesis film ''Night at O'Rears.'' The film went on to win the First Prizes at Filmex in Los Angeles and the USA Film Festival in Dallas, Texas, and was also exhibited at the New York Film Festival at Lincoln Center. Mandel went on to become a successful film director, as well as a television series director, having directed '' Lost'', ''

Nash Bridges ''Nash Bridges'' is an American police procedural television series created by Carlton Cuse. The show stars Don Johnson and Cheech Marin as two Inspectors with the San Francisco Police Department's Special Investigations Unit (SIU). The seri ...

'' and ''

The Practice ''The Practice'' is an American legal drama television series created by David E. Kelley centering on partners and associates at a Boston law firm. The show ran for eight seasons on ABC, from March 4, 1997, to May 16, 2004. It won an Emmy i ...

''. Notably, he directed the pilot episode for ''

The X-Files ''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction on television, science fiction drama (film and television), drama television series created by Chris Carter (screenwriter), Chris Carter. The original series aired from September 10, 1993, to Ma ...

'' and the sixth episode of ''

Prison Break ''Prison Break'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime Drama (film and television), drama television series created by Paul Scheuring for Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox. The series revolves around two brothers: Lincoln Burrows (Dominic P ...

''. Mandel was initially hired to direct ''Carrie 2: Say You're Sorry'' but quickly left the production over "creative differences." Katt Shea took over as director for the film, which was eventually released as '' The Rage: Carrie 2''. In addition to his work in film and television, Mandel served as the dean of AFI Conservatory for nine years, from 2005 to 2014.

Filmography

Film

*''Nights at O'Rear's'' (1980) *''

Independence Day An independence day is an annual event memorialization, commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or Sovereign state, statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or after the end of a milit ...

'' (1983) *'' F/X'' (1986) *'' Touch and Go'' (1986) *'' Big Shots'' (1987) *''

'' (1992) *''

The Substitute ''The Substitute'' is a 1996 American action thriller film directed by Robert Mandel and starring Tom Berenger, Ernie Hudson, Marc Anthony, William Forsythe, Raymond Cruz and Luis Guzmán. It was filmed at Miami Senior High School. Pl ...

'' (1996)

Television

*'' Perfect Witness'' (1989) *'' The Haunted'' (1991) *''

'' (1993) - pilot *''

Sisters A sister is a woman or a girl who shares parents or a parent with another individual; a female sibling. The male counterpart is a brother. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to r ...

'' (1994) - 1 episode *''

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

'' (1995) *''Special Report: Journey to Mars'' (1996) *''

Dellaventura ''Dellaventura'' is an American crime drama television series created by Richard Di Lello, Julian Neil and Bernard L. Nussbaumer, that aired on CBS from September 23, 1997, to January 13, 1998. The show was based on the life of NYPD detective An ...

'' (1997) - 1 episode *''

'' (1997-2000) - 6 episodes *''

'' (1998) - 1 episode *''Thin Air'' (2000) *''WW 3'' a.k.a. ''Winds of Terror'' (2001) *''

The District ''The District'' is an American crime drama and police procedural television series that aired on CBS from October 7, 2000, to May 1, 2004. The show followed the work and personal life of the chief of Washington, D.C.'s police department. P ...

'' (2001) - 1 episode *'' Hysteria – The Def Leppard Story'' (2001) *''

A Season on the Brink ''A Season on the Brink'' is a 1986 book by John Feinstein which detailed the 1985–86 season of Indiana University's men's basketball team, led by the controversial coach Bob Knight. Granted almost unprecedented access to the Indiana Univers ...

'' (2002) *'' The Secret Life of Zoey'' (2002) *'' Lost'' (2005) - 1 episode *''

'' (2005) - 1 episode *''

Dominion A dominion was any of several largely self-governance, self-governing countries of the British Empire, once known collectively as the ''British Commonwealth of Nations''. Progressing from colonies, their degrees of self-governing colony, colon ...

'' (2015) - 2 episodes *'' Game of Silence'' (2016) - 1 episode

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mandel, Robert 1945 births Living people Film directors from California American film producers American television directors Bucknell University alumni Columbia University School of the Arts alumni