Janet Yang

Ms. Yang is the president of Janet Yang Productions, as well as the production company, The Manifest Film Company. From 1989 to 1996, Yang served as president of Ixtlan, the company she formed with Academy Award-winning writer/director Oliver Stone, spearheading all aspects of the company’s development and production. Prior to her association with Oliver Stone, Yang got her start in production working closely with Steven Spielberg and his producers. In 1985, she was hired to be Spielberg's eyes and ears in China for the filming of the historic production of EMPIRE OF THE SUN (Warner Bros). She was responsible for liaising with both national and local levels of the Chinese government for its largest production to date. She then segued into a production position at Universal, supervising Spielberg’s Amblin account. Yang began her career in Hollywood when she was hired by several major studios to re-introduce American cinema to the Chinese marketplace after a long hiatus. From 1985 to 1987, she represented three major studios -- Universal, Paramount, and MGM/UA -- and in an act of diplomatic prowess, was able to broker the first sale of American studio movies to China since 1949. Before joining MCA/Universal, Yang was president of World Entertainment in San Francisco. Janet Yang holds a B.A. from Brown University in Chinese studies and an M.B.A. from Columbia University. She is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences; a member of the Committee of 100, an organization of prominent Chinese-Americans; an advisory board member of Asia Society Southern California, and an advisory board member of CAPE, the Coalition of Asian-Pacific Americans in Entertainment. Yang is fluent in Mandarin Chinese. She splits her time between Los Angeles and China.