Jeff Skoll Makes Movies That Matter

I chose Jeffrey Skoll’s TED Talk, in which he describes his independent film company, Participant Media. Participant produces films and documentaries that attempt to make a difference in the world by raising awareness about particular events or issues, historical or contemporary. A few of the more significant films it has produced are The Informant!, An Inconvenient Truth, Charlie Wilson’s War, The Visitor, Good Night, and Good Luck., and Syriana. This Talk interested me because I hope to work in the film industry and I thought this was the most interesting film-related Talk. Skoll’s description of his goals and his explanation of how Participant Media got started were fascinating and inspiring because of the way he was able to very successfully blend film, social awareness, and philanthropy.

Skoll was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada in 1965. When he was fourteen, his father was diagnosed with cancer. It was at this point that his father told him that he regretted not having accomplished all his goals in life—a sentiment which has driven Skoll ever since. In his TED Talk, he cites his father’s regret as being instrumental to the perseverance he has in business and in life.

In 1987, Skoll graduated from the University of Toronto’s electrical engineering program. After travelling for a while, he started two companies in Toronto: Skoll Engineering and Micros on the Move Ltd. In 1993, he enrolled in Stanford Business School and after graduating in 1995 he worked at Knight-Ridder for about a year. In 1996, he met Pierre Omidyar—the founder of eBay—who subsequently hired him as president of the company and Skoll created the company’s business plan. He remained president of eBay until 1998. Six years later, he founded Participant Productions (now called Participant Media) with the goal of producing socially relevant films with wide commercial appeal. The company has since earned 11 Oscar nominations in addition to raising awareness of several social issues. For example, An Inconvenient Truth has expanded the discussion of global warming and is now screened in schools around the world. North Country, starring Charlize Theron and released in 2005, was a relative commercial failure but is nevertheless credited with rallying support in Washington for the renewal of the 2005 Violence Against Women Act.

Skoll’s life and choices display an enormous amount of determination, courage, creativity, and resourcefulness. He has routinely invested in, as he puts it, “good people doing good things” and that philosophy has paid off. As he says in his Talk, Hollywood is a ruthless business environment, but he was willing and able to successfully build a company that is not only financially prosperous, but also culturally significant. His generosity and intelligence have allowed him to make a difference in the world through film, which is truly incredible.

In college, I hope to major in Media and Cultural Studies (with a focus in Film Studies), International Studies, and/or Political Science. I would love to intern or work at a film company or a newspaper/publication of some sort during college because I’m interested in film, writing, and politics. The first job I would apply for would also be in one of those fields, but I am not sure what that would be. To be honest, I don’t know enough about the film industry or my own talents to know specifically what I’d like to do in film. My main goal in college is really learning about things that I enjoy, not training myself for a specific job. I am also considering going to law school because my experience with the Mock Trial team at Saint Francis as well as my Government class this semester have gotten me interested in law and politics. I realize, though, that all these plans are tentative because a lot of people’s interests change in their first couple years of college; all I know at this point is that I want to end up doing a job that I really love.