If you were told that a School of Education alumnus began his post- graduate career as a summer intern at Warner Bros. in Los Angeles, got a permanent job with the media giant because he just kept showing up for work, was then promoted and promoted until he became chief of the company’s domestic movie roll-out strategy—and was one of the executives who green-lighted mega-hit Barbie … would you believe it?!
Meet Jeffrey Goldstein ’77, President of Domestic Distribution for Warner Bros. Pictures Group.
“I’m an OG at Warner Bros.!” exclaims Goldstein, referencing his long career. “I never planned out what I wanted to do. When I graduated college, I thought I would go into teaching special education. I just fell intoWarner Bros.”
Reprinted from Education Exchange 2024“The roots of it all started in Syracuse”
Goldstein’s fascinating career path began right after he graduated with his special education degree. Hewanted to take a year off before considering his next move. “I had an uncle who was in the entertainmentbusiness,” he recalls. “He said, if you are interested, I can get you a summer job at Warner Bros.”
Here’s where the story takes a slightly comical turn.
To explain, Goldstein draws an analogy with the George Costanza character from the TV sitcom Seinfeld. In one episode, George dramatically quits a job, only to regret his decision immediately. So he simply returns towork the next day as if nothing had happened, hoping no one will notice.
“I became the guy who wouldn’t leave, just like George Costanza,” says Goldstein with a laugh. “When myinternship ended, I had nowhere to go, so I just went back on Monday morning.”
Eventually, his superiors caught on. But instead of showing him the door, they suggested he apply for a sales job in Jacksonville, FL.
Goldstein admits this was the first time he moved somewhere with no support structure. He had followed hissister—Roberta Goldstein Manning ’76, a nursing student (“she was my best friend then), to Syracuse, and he had family in California during his internship. But there was no one in north Florida: “I got homesick. I wasmiserable. My boss even told me to take three weeks leave to visit my ‘mama’ during the holidays.”
Things got better. “From there, I had two dozen jobs all over the place. But the roots of it all started in Syracuse.”
“I had a bent for business”
From his beginnings as an intern, today Goldstein has full responsibility for domestic distribution of all Warner Bros. Pictures, New Line Cinema, Warner Bros. Pictures Animation, and DC Studios movies. He and his team oversee release dates and release patterns, business strategy, sales and administration, specialty formats, and exhibitor relations throughout the US and Canada.
“Syracuse has been very good to me.”
Since 2016, when Goldstein began in his current position, Warner Bros. Pictures has earned more than $10 billion at the domestic box office, with 49 films opening at the top of the box office and 36 titles crossing $100 million domestically. The hits, as they say, just keep on coming: Aquaman, The Batman, Crazy Rich Asians, Dune, Dunkirk, Elvis, It, Joker, Wonder Woman.
And then there is Barbie. The summer blockbuster of 2023 was certainly “in the pink,” garnering numerous studio and industry records. It earned $1 billion in just 17 days of release; it recorded daily, weekly, and weekend box office highs; and it was the studio’s fastest film to reach $400 million domestically.
So what connects Syracuse University, Hollywood, and a successful movie executive with an eagle eye for a movie hit?
“I got my entrepreneurial spirit by working jobs in the dining hall, as a residence advisor, and in the businessaffairs office,” says Goldstein. “While at Syracuse, I realized I had a bent for business, as well as the ability toteach others, mentor others, be curious—and still make money!”
“That’s the teacher piece of it”
“Syracuse has been very good to me,” Goldstein continues. “My years there formed me into the professional and person I am. It was a right sized school for me. You could be anonymous if you wanted to, or you could make connections that last a lifetime.”
He cites two legendary SOE professors who were an early influence. “Both Burton Blatt and Douglas Biklen were unbelievable. I learned so much from them about life and relating to others,” recalls Goldstein.
In fact, over the course of this conversation, Goldstein recites a litany of skills his education degree bestowed: teaching, mentoring, listening, public speaking, and managing, to name a few: “The thing I’m known for here is listening to colleagues and teams and elevating them. I’m able to manage up, down, and across—and that’s the teacher piece of it.”
When asked whether his special education training under two legends in the field of inclusion have played a role in his line of work, Goldstein observes that “diversity and inclusion are crucial for commerce.”
In the movie industry, he explains, you must be as inclusive as you can in order to serve a very broad audience (what Warner Bros. calls its “commitment to serving all audiences at the cineplex.”)
“To be successful you need to seek out a broad audience, cater to them, and address them,” Goldstein says. “You need to look at the world as diverse and positive as it is and include everyone you can.
“Find the things that make you smile”
Goldstein has this advice for graduates looking to leverage the so-called “soft skills” of an education degree into careers outside of teaching: “Keep your mind open and look for things you enjoy doing. Find the things that make you smile and that creatively inspire you. Be open and have curiosity to find out what you don’t know.”
“Find the things that make you smile and that creatively inspire you. Be open and have curiosity to find out what you don’t know.”
If you remain open to other paths, Goldstein encourages, you might end up doing something you never considered: “I always knew I liked movies and storytelling. I just didn’t know I’d be exceptionally good at telling what will work.”
It is clear as he speaks that another aspect of the “teacher piece” for Goldstein is the sheer enthusiasm he brings to his role. That joy and energy exude even on a Zoom call across a continent on a Friday afternoon. There’s no doubt he would have made an inspirational teacher.
The wider Warner Bros. Pictures team gets to experience this motivating force at CinemaCon, the annual Las Vegas movie industry trade show, held in spring ahead of blockbuster season: “Give me a microphone, and I can do one and a half hours,” Goldstein says, adding he often ties this spotlight appearance into a movie marketing campaign.
In April 2023 he appeared on the stage in a pink suit for the roll-out of Barbie. “As Barbie says, everybody looks better in pink!” Goldstein told the audience. He caught the attention of People and Deadline magazines who covered the event and caught the early buzz—foreshadowing that movie’s now-legendary marketing campaign.
“That’s one reason I’m the OG here. I love my job and that enthusiasm really resonates,” says Goldstein, smiling broadly.