Jonathan Alpers

Jonathan Alpers was born and raised in Columbus, Ohio where he discovered his love for film at a drive-in movie while watching Herbie The Love Bug in the back of his fathers VW Bug. Alpers went on to study writing, directing and acting at Chicago's famed Columbia College where he staged his first play The One Who Waits...Waits under Second City co-founder Sheldon Patinkin. After college Jonathan went on to write over twelve screenplays and direct his first film "Lamb" with Chicago's Braveworld Productions. Jonathan's slightly slanted take on the world led him to work with some of his cinematic heroes. Legendary Coen Brothers producer Ben Barenholtz (Millers Crossing, Barton Fink, Eraserhead) acquired the rights to Jonathan's first screenplay The Story of Savannah and Slide and later Jonathan's beautifully life affirming redemption tale Peach. Ben Barenhotlz was so taken by Jonathan's writing that he hired Jonathan to pen the screenplay for "Azav", Barneholtz's own personal survival story. Ben Barenholtz and another Coen Brother's alum John Lyons (Boogie Nights, Austin Powers) teamed to develop Jonathan's farcical social satire Zombie Squad. Keeping it all in the family after John Lyons left independent producing to become the head of production at Focus Features. Jonathan's next few scripts, At The Devil's Table, and 18 were produced by John's producing partner Lucy Barzun Donnelly (Grey Gardens, Friends with Kids) and Joshua Astrachan (Gosford Park). Jonathan and Ben Barenholtz went on to acquire the rights to Kurt Busiek's critically acclaimed comic book series, Astro City which Jonathan adapted into his first television pilot with Johnny Depp's company, Infinitum Nihi, and the project was later acquired by yet another Coen brother alumni Eric Fullner and Tim Bevan's Working Title Films. Jonathan now lives in Los Angeles's Silver Lake neighborhood and has had a very busy year. His latest screenplay The Odd Symphony is being packaged by the producing team of Pamela Rosenberg and Erin Martin and he has just completed his second TV pilot Revival.