Bill Einreinhofer

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Bill Einreinhofer
Bill Einreinhofer.jpg
Born
Alma mater
Years active1978-present

Bill Einreinhofer is an American television producer, director, writer and educator. Early in his career, he was an executive producer at WNET in New York and for the PBS series Innovation . In his later career, he has focused on documentary work in and about China.

Contents

He is Chair Emeritus of the Broadcast Journalism department at the New York Film Academy. He has also taught and co-taught media and journalism seminars in Asia. He is a member of the Directors Guild of America.

Early life and education

Einreinhofer was born and raised in Rutherford, New Jersey. [1]

Einreinhofer attended Saint Peter's University, where he worked as a DJ and producer at the campus radio station. He graduated in 1974 with a degree in history. [2] He holds a master's degree in communication from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he began making documentaries in the 1970s. [3]

Career

Einreinhofer began his career in the late 1970s. From 1978 to 1982, he produced multiple mini documentaries for the New Jersey Nightly News (WNET and New Jersey Public Television). [2] In 1982, he was a producer-writer for Dateline: New Jersey and was producer-host for the syndicated series Jazz Evolution. [4] That year, he was named executive producer for WNET's New Jersey programing. [4]

He conceived and was executive producer of Innovation , the long running PBS science, health and technology news series. [5] This included supervising production of the Innovation mini-series People in Motion. [6] [7] Hosted by Itzhak Perlman and Marlee Matlin, People in Motion was praised [8] for its focus on technology as a means of empowerment for people with disabilities.

By 1993, he was the executive producer of scientific programing for WNET. [9] [10]

He was executive producer of the independent feature film Invisible Love (2020), the story of a young, idealistic woman repeatedly betrayed by the men in her life. A China/Vietnam/US co-production, the film is set during the 1930s in what was then known as French Indochina. [11] The film was selected Best International Feature at the 2021 Paris International Film Festival. [12]

Bill Einreinhofer is also responsible for numerous corporate video productions.[ citation needed ] He is a member of the Directors Guild of America. [13]

His op-ed essays have appeared online [14] and in numerous publications including The New York Times . [15] [16] [17]

Coverage of China

Einreinhofer first visited China in 1989, while working on Innovation. [3] He has produced an extensive body of work in and about China. His first program was the public television documentary China Now: To Get Rich Is Glorious, which explored what China's leaders dubbed "socialism with Chinese characteristics." [18]

He was series producer of Beyond Beijing, a four-part documentary series which seen by television viewers in 43 countries, [19] as well as a 120-minute educational and home video version. [20] Tied to the 2008 Summer Olympics, the series explored the six Chinese cities in addition to Beijing that hosted Olympic events. [21] [22] [23] [24]

Einreinhofer was the presenter and script consultant for seasons one and two of the international version of Century Masters, a documentary series on figures in 20th-century Chinese history. The se [25]

Teaching

He is Chair Emeritus of the Broadcast Journalism department at the New York Film Academy, having joined the faculty of the school in 2013. [26] In 2020, he conceived, and co-taught, a three-week Moscow Journalism Summer School, which attracted early career journalists from across Russia. [27] [28] Later in the year he co-taught a seminar on "Production 'Best Practices' in the Era of COVID-19" at Astana Media Week, an online gathering of 1,000+ media executives from throughout Central Asia. [29] Both projects were supported by the U.S. State Department. [30]

He was previously an adjunct professor [31] in the Communications program at Felician College on their Rutherford, New Jersey campus. From 2012 through 2018 he was the producer/writer of an ongoing pro bono series of local oral history videos, Rutherford Historic Narratives, created for the Rutherford Civil Rights Commission. [1]

Filmography

Documentaries
YearTitleSubjectDistributorNotesRef
China Now: To Get Rich Is Glorious Socialism with Chinese characteristics
2005So Very Far From HomeAmerican children in Japanese-occupied China during World War IIAmerican-Chinese co-production [32]
The Hidden ChinaAmerican investors visiting China [33]
Sichuan StoriesWork of Save The Children in China
2012Every Day Is A HolidayA Chinese-American woman and her Chinese immigrant father [34] [35] [36]
2018Shanghai 1937: Where World War II Began1937 Battle of Shanghai American Public Television (APT) in the U.S.;

ZDF in Germany [37]

2022Unsettled History: America, China and the Doolittle Tokyo Raid1942 Doolittle Raid of Tokyo American Public Television (APT) [38]
2023China: Frame by FrameEinreinhofer's experiences covering ChinaNational Educational Telecommunications Association (NETA) [39] [40] [41]
2024Valor and Memory Flying Tigers [42]
2025Your Serve or MineHistory of "ping pong diplomacy" between the U.S. and China [43] [44]

Awards

YearAwardCategoryWorkResultRef
1982-1983 New York Emmy Awards Outstanding Magazine Format ProgrammingInnovationWon [45]
1983-1984New York Emmy AwardsOutstanding Special Interest ProgrammingInnovationWon [46]
1987-1988New York Emmy AwardsOutstanding Writer (Non-News)"Not Just Pets" (Innovation)Won [47]

Archives

The University of Southern California is home to the Bill Einreinhofer China Archive. [48] Hosted by USC’s East Asian Library, the collection has over 1,500 digital video, image, audio, and text files, available to scholars, researchers, students and the general public. A portion of the material can be viewed online. [49]

In fall 2023, Einreinhofer donated materials to the O'Toole Library at Saint Peter's University. [2]

References

  1. 1 2 "This is Bill Einreinhofer". This Is Rutherford. 2019-11-06. Retrieved 2025-10-02.
  2. 1 2 3 Mitchell, Kate (2024-07-29). "Bill Einreinhofer Library Donation - O'Toole Library Blog". Theresa and Edward O'Toole Library. Saint Peter's University . Retrieved 2025-10-02.
  3. 1 2 Kaulessar, Ricardo. "Bergen filmmaker's new documentary charts his three decades traveling to China". North Jersey Media Group. Retrieved 2025-10-02.
  4. 1 2 Broadcasting. Broadcasting Publications Incorporated. 1982. p. 117.
  5. Corry, John (October 25, 1984) "Innovation Series". The New York Times. Retrieved July 15, 2013.
  6. "Just Try to Slow These People Down (Published 1995)". The New York Times . 1995-03-30. Archived from the original on 2025-03-30. Retrieved 2025-10-02.
  7. Brennan, Patricia (1996-04-04). "'People in Motion' tells of disabled achievers". The Vindicator. The Washington Post. pp. C6.
  8. "They Get Around Being Disabled 'People In Motion' Is Moving". Philly.com. Archived from the original on 2014-07-14. Retrieved 2025-10-02.
  9. The Independent. Foundation for Independent Video and Film. 1993. p. 32.
  10. Studies of Broadcasting. Theoretical Research Center, Radio & TV Culture Research Institute, Nippon Hoso Kyokai. 1993. p. 150.
  11. "Invisible Love From NYFA Chair Bill Einreinhofer Wins Big At Paris International Film Festival". New York Film Academy . Retrieved 2021-03-14.
  12. "Paris International Film Festival 2021 Official Winners" retrieved March 14, 2021.
  13. Bill Einreinhofer, Directors Guild of America member profile. Directors Guild of America. Retrieved August 22, 2013.
  14. "The Invisible Campaign". northjersey.com. Retrieved August 14, 2013.
  15. Einreinhofer, William Jr. (January 16, 1977) "The Ever-Widening Oil Slick". The New York Times. Retrieved August 14, 2013.
  16. Einreinhofer, William Jr. (May 15, 1977) " 'Success' as a Narcotics King". The New York Times. Retrieved August 14, 2013.
  17. Einreinhofer, William Jr. (January 8, 1978) "Newark, The Lively Melting Pot". The New York Times. Retrieved August 14, 2013.
  18. "China Now: To Get Rich Is Glorious" Shooting People Retrieved June 28, 2013.
  19. "Beyond Beijing". TVF International . Retrieved 2025-10-02.
  20. "Beyond Beijing: Exploring China's Cities" Choices Documentary & Educational Media Distributor Retrieved September 3, 2013.
  21. "Beyond Beijing: Shanghai" Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  22. "Beyond Beijing: Tianjin" Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  23. "Beyond Beijing: Qingdao & Qinhuangdao" Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  24. "Beyond Beijing: Shenyang & Hong Kong" Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  25. 王乔 (2018-09-13). "Emmy Award winning director tells the China story". China Daily . Retrieved 2025-10-02.
  26. "Faculty Directory". New York Film Academy . Retrieved 2025-10-02.
  27. "Entertainment Programs In the Era of COVID - evening shows from home in casual style". astanamediaweek.kz (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2021-05-12. Retrieved 2025-10-02.
  28. nyfa. "Broadcast Journalism Update - Back to School Edition (September 2020)". NYFA. Retrieved 2025-10-02.
  29. 'Astana Media Week 2020' Retrieved December 18, 2020
  30. "NYFA Journalism Summer School" Retrieved December 18, 2020
  31. "Our Felician" Retrieved July 10, 2013.
  32. Chiu, Wendy (April 26, 2013) “Wartime China Documentary Presented at Film Festival” Archived 2013-06-01 at the Wayback Machine World Journal Retrieved July 18, 2013.
  33. "Production Team". The Hidden China Movie Documentary. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2025-10-02.
  34. "Every Day Is A Holiday: About the Movie" Retrieved June 28, 2013
  35. "Here & Now with Robin Young and Jeremy Hobson" WBUR-FM Retrieved June 28, 2013.
  36. "Every Day Is A Holiday" Retrieved June 28, 2013.
  37. "Shanghai 1937" retrieved December 18, 2020
  38. Chang, Jun (2022-06-06). "Rescued US pilots rise to the occasion". China Daily . Retrieved 2025-10-02.
  39. "CHINA: FRAME BY FRAME | NETA". www.netaonline.org. 2023-04-29. Retrieved 2025-10-02.
  40. Cutler, Jacqueline (2023-05-24). "N.J. filmmaker focuses his lens on China in new PBS doc 'China: Frame by Frame'". nj.com. Retrieved 2025-10-02.
  41. “China: Frame by Frame” retrieved August 9, 2023.
  42. Valor and Memory . Retrieved 2025-10-02 via www.pbs.org.
  43. Zhang, Minlu (2025-05-02). "Documentary revisits ping-pong days of 1971". China Daily . Retrieved 2025-10-02.
  44. Your Serve or Mine . Retrieved 2025-10-02 via www.pbs.org.
  45. "1982–1983 New York Emmy Awards" (PDF). New York Emmy Awards. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-04-30. Retrieved June 28, 2013.
  46. "1983–1984 New York Emmy Awards" (PDF). New York Emmy Awards. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-05-07. Retrieved June 28, 2013.
  47. "1987–1988 New York Emmy Awards" (PDF). New York Emmy Awards. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-05-07. Retrieved June 28, 2013.
  48. "Einreinhofer (Bill) China Archive" Retrieved August 9, 2023
  49. "New Acquisition: Bill Einreinhofer China Archive | USC China". china.usc.edu. Retrieved 2025-10-02.