Mimi Leder was born in New York, New York in 1952. The daughter of a filmmaker, she found her industry beginnings working between numerous roles on her father’s sets, which helped her develop the Director’s instincts she would employ in her own work years later. At the age of 20, she would take this experience and join the American Film Institute on the path of Cinematography but would always lean toward the art of Directing. Following AFI, she worked as a Script Supervisor on Hill Street Blues and found her first Directorial opportunity making a short film for one of the show’s Directors. Having made an impression, she was hired onto another series, quickly making a name for herself and jumpstarting her Directorial career.
Leder’s portfolio encompasses a breadth of work, including the television series China Beach, ER, The Leftovers and The Morning Show. Her feature film portfolio includes The Peacemaker, Deep Impact and On The Basis of Sex. She’s worked with Directors including Gregory Hoblit, John Wells, Rod Holcomb, Michael Mann and Steven Spielberg. Her success as a Director is greatly influenced by such tactics as working intensely with Actors to capture fresh, genuine performances, having tone and thematic meetings to completely understand the material, and creating meaningful relationships with Showrunners, Producers and Writers to put the most of herself in her work.
Leder has previously served on the Western Director Council, the National Board and on the Television Creative Rights Committee and has also served on the Negotiating Committee in 2014 and 2017. She has been a member of the Director’s Guild since 1985.