Will Scheffer

Last updated
Will Scheffer
Born (1969-09-21) September 21, 1969 (age 55)
Education State University of New York, Purchase (BFA)
Occupation(s) Producer, Playwright
Notable work Big Love , Getting On
Spouse Mark V. Olsen

Will Scheffer is an American playwright, and was co-creator and executive producer of the television series Big Love and the American remake of Getting On with longtime life partner Mark V. Olsen. He is President and CEO of Anima Sola Productions, which he founded with Olsen in 1992 to create television and film content.

Contents

His writing credits include Big Love: In the Beginning, Ellis Island,[ citation needed ] Duck Town , Easter , In the Gloaming , The Pact , Citizen Baines , and Getting On . [1]

Life

Family

Scheffer's father, Ben, was a Holocaust survivor, [2] who emigrated from the Netherlands through Ellis Island in 1941. His mother, Sandra, was the daughter of Jews who fled Russia in 1916. [3]

Education

Scheffer attended State University of New York at Purchase where he earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts with Honors in Theater.[ citation needed ]

Career

In 1997, Scheffer received the Variety magazine "One of the Rising Writers to Watch" award. He has also taught and lectured at Bernard M. Baruch College, Lewis and Clark College and School of Visual Arts, Manhattan, New York City.

Personal life

Scheffer is openly gay; he and Olsen have been married to each other since the early 1990s. [4] [5] About their collaborative process, Scheffer said: "Mark and I talk everything through but don't actually write together. We take turns on drafts, passing them back and forth for multiple revisions. Sometimes I'll write the first draft and he'll revise and sometimes he'll write the first draft. On set it's looser and we'll have to revise together but we prefer to actually write in our own space. The 'fantasy' image of having desks facing each other and tossing lines back and forth doesn't work for us." [6]

Works

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"Pilot" is the series premiere of the American drama television series Big Love. The episode was written by series creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer, and directed by Rodrigo García. It originally aired on HBO on March 12, 2006.

"Viagra Blue" is the second episode of the American drama television series Big Love. The episode was written by series creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer, and directed by Charles McDougall. It originally aired on HBO on March 19, 2006.

"Home Invasion" is the third episode of the American drama television series Big Love. The episode was written by series creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer, and directed by Charles McDougall. It originally aired on HBO on March 26, 2006.

"Eclipse" is the fourth episode of the American drama television series Big Love. The episode was written by consulting producer David Manson and series creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer from a story by Manson, and directed by Michael Spiller. It originally aired on HBO on April 2, 2006.

"Affair" is the fifth episode of the American drama television series Big Love. The episode was written by co-executive producer Alexa Junge and series creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer from a story by Junge, and directed by Alan Taylor. It originally aired on HBO on April 9, 2006.

"Easter" is the eighth episode of the American drama television series Big Love. The episode was written by series creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer, and directed by Steve Shill. It originally aired on HBO on April 30, 2006.

"The Ceremony" is the twelfth episode and first season finale of the American drama television series Big Love. The episode was written by series creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer, and directed by Julian Farino. It originally aired on HBO on June 4, 2006.

"The Writing on the Wall" is the second episode of the second season of the American drama television series Big Love. It is the fourteenth overall episode of the series and was written by series creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer, and directed by Sarah Pia Anderson. It originally aired on HBO on June 18, 2007.

"Block Party" is the first episode of the third season of the American drama television series Big Love. It is the 25th overall episode of the series and was written by series creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer, and directed by Dan Attias. It originally aired on HBO on January 18, 2009.

"Empire" is the second episode of the third season of the American drama television series Big Love. It is the 26th overall episode of the series and was written by co-producer Dustin Lance Black and series creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer from a story by Black, and directed by Jim McKay. It originally aired on HBO on January 25, 2009.

"On Trial" is the fourth episode of the third season of the American drama television series Big Love. It is the 28th overall episode of the series and was written by series creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer, and directed by executive producer David Knoller. It originally aired on HBO on February 8, 2009.

"Free at Last" is the first episode of the fourth season of the American drama television series Big Love. It is the 35th overall episode of the series and was written by series creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer, and directed by producer Dan Attias. It originally aired on HBO on January 10, 2010.

"Winter" is the first episode of the fifth season of the American drama television series Big Love. It is the 44th overall episode of the series and was written by series creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer, and directed by David Petrarca. It originally aired on HBO on January 16, 2011.

"D.I.V.O.R.C.E." is the sixth episode of the fifth season of the American drama television series Big Love. It is the 49th overall episode of the series and was written by series creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer, and directed by Howard Deutch. It originally aired on HBO on February 20, 2011.

"When Men and Mountains Meet" is the series finale of the American drama television series Big Love. It is the tenth episode of the fifth season and the 53rd overall episode of the series. The episode was written by series creators Mark V. Olsen and Will Scheffer, and directed by Dan Attias. It originally aired on HBO on March 20, 2011.

References