Armyan Bernstein

Armyan Bernstein (Producer) is the Chairman of Beacon Communications, one of the industry’s most successful independent production companies. In 1997, Bernstein produced and financed the action thriller Air Force One, starring Harrison Ford, which went on to gross $300 million worldwide. This year, Bernstein has produced two films for release by Universal: End of Days, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and directed by Peter Hyams; and The Hurricane, starring Denzel Washington and directed by Norman Jewison. Bernstein is currently producing Thirteen Days, starring Kevin Costner and Family Man, starring Nicolas Cage. Both films will go into production this fall.

Beacon Communications is known for critically-acclaimed, award-winning films such as The Commitments, which was nominated for a Golden Globe Award as Best Picture in 1991 and went on to win four BAFTA awards; Keith Gordon’s critical triumph A Midnight Clear, starring Ethan Hawke; and David Mamet’s A Life in the Theatre, which won a Cable ACE Award for Best Dramatic or Theatrical Special. Beacon also produced A Thousand Acres, based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, starring Michelle Pfeiffer and Jessica Lange; Playing God, starring David Duchovny and Timothy Hutton; Sugar Hill, starring Wesley Snipes; Princess Caraboo, starring Phoebe Cates and Kevin Kline; and The Road to Wellville, directed by Alan Parker and starring Anthony Hopkins.

Bernstein was born and raised in Chicago. He went to college at the University of Wisconsin, and was a journalist with PBS and later ABC. He wrote the 1970’s cult classic Thank God It’s Friday, starring Debra Winger and Jeff Goldblum.

He then went on to write and co-produce Francis Ford Coppola’s legendary Vegas romance One From the Heart. Bernstein made his directing debut with Windy City, from his screenplay, which starred John Shea and Kate Capshaw. He wrote and directed Cross My Heart, starring Martin Short and Annette O’Toole for producer Lawrence Kasdan.

Bernstein also wrote and produced the Emmy Award-winning Earth Day Special for Warner Bros. and ABC.