Jeffrey Katzenberg: Co-founder of DreamWorks and Founder of WndrCo
Business Owner · Media & Entertainment
Jeffrey Katzenberg ran Walt Disney Studios from 1984 to 1994, co-founded DreamWorks SKG and its Shrek franchise, then founded WndrCo and the short-lived Quibi.
About Jeffrey Katzenberg: Co-founder of DreamWorks and Founder of WndrCo
Jeffrey Katzenberg (born December 21, 1950, in New York City) is an American media proprietor and film producer. He served as chair of Walt Disney Studios from 1984 to 1994, overseeing production and business operations for the company's feature films. After leaving, he co-founded DreamWorks SKG in 1994, serving as CEO and executive producer of its animated franchises, including Shrek, Madagascar, Kung Fu Panda and How to Train Your Dragon, until stepping down from the title in 2016. That year he founded the venture capital firm WndrCo, which invests in digital media, and in 2020 he launched Quibi, a now-defunct short-form mobile video platform that lost US$1.35 billion in seven months. Katzenberg was born to a Jewish family, the son of Anne, an artist, and Walter, a stockbroker, and graduated from the Ethical Culture Fieldston School in 1969. At 14 he volunteered on John Lindsay's successful New York mayoral campaign, earning the nickname "Squirt", and after a year at NYU he dropped out to work full-time as an advance man for Lindsay. His film career began as an assistant to producer David V. Picker; in 1974 he became an assistant to Barry Diller, chairman of Paramount Pictures, who moved him into marketing and then assigned him to revive Star Trek, resulting in Star Trek: The Motion Picture. He rose to president of production under Michael Eisner, overseeing films including 48 Hrs., Terms of Endearment and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, and when Eisner became Disney CEO in 1984 he brought Katzenberg as studio chairman. Katzenberg has also been a major Democratic donor and served as a co-chair of the 2024 campaigns of Joe Biden and then Kamala Harris. Sources: English Wikipedia (Jeffrey Katzenberg, accessed September 2026).
Basic Information
Founder, WndrCo; co-founder, DreamWorks SKG; former chair, Walt Disney Studios
Company Details
WndrCo / DreamWorks SKG
Film, Animation, Venture Capital
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