Mike Rich is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 screenwriter

Screenwriter

Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...

 best known for his writing on sports-related films.

Early life

A graduate of Oregon State University

Oregon State University

Oregon State University is a coeducational, public research university located in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. The university offers undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees and a multitude of research opportunities. There are more than 200 academic degree programs offered through the...

's College of Business, Rich began his media career as a news reporter for a Portland

Portland, Oregon

Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...

 radio station, KINK

KINK

KINK, also kink.fm, is an American commercial broadcast FM radio station in Portland, Oregon. The station began broadcasting Christmas Day, 1968 as “KINK – The Underground Link”...

. In 1998, he was awarded a Nicholl Fellowship in Screenwriting by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is a professional honorary organization dedicated to the advancement of the arts and sciences of motion pictures...

 for his first film script Finding Forrester

Finding Forrester

EnglishFinding Forrester is a 2000 American drama film written by Mike Rich and directed by Gus Van Sant. A black American teenager, Jamal Wallace , is invited into a prestigious private high school. By chance, Jamal befriends a reclusive writer, William Forrester , through whom he refines his...

. This film was named after his high school English teacher, Mrs. Forster, from Enterprise High School

Enterprise High School (Oregon)

Enterprise High School is a public high school in Enterprise, Oregon, United States.-Academics:In 2008, 92% of the school's seniors received their high school diploma. Of 39 students, 36 graduated, 0 dropped out, and 3 are still in high school....

 in Enterprise, Oregon

Enterprise, Oregon

Enterprise is a city in and the county seat of Wallowa County, Oregon, United States. The population was 1,895 at the 2000 census, with an estimated population of 1,940 in 2007.- History :...

.

Filmography

• Finding Forrester
  Finding Forrester
  EnglishFinding Forrester is a 2000 American drama film written by Mike Rich and directed by Gus Van Sant. A black American teenager, Jamal Wallace , is invited into a prestigious private high school. By chance, Jamal befriends a reclusive writer, William Forrester , through whom he refines his...
  
  (2000)
• The Rookie
  The Rookie (2002 film)
  The Rookie is a 2002 drama sports film directed by John Lee Hancock. It is based on the true story of Jim Morris, who had a brief, but famous Major League Baseball career in 1999. The film stars Dennis Quaid, Rachel Griffiths, Jay Hernandez, and Brian Cox....
  
  (2002)
• Radio (2003)
• Miracle
  Miracle (film)
  Miracle is a 2004 American biographical sports film about the United States men's hockey team, led by head coach Herb Brooks, that won the gold medal in the 1980 Winter Olympics. The USA team's victory over the heavily favored Soviet team in the medal round was dubbed the Miracle on Ice...
  
  (uncredited) (2004)
• Invincible
  Invincible (2006 film)
  Invincible is a 2006 family film directed by Ericson Core set in 1976. It is based on the true story of Vince Papale, who played for the Philadelphia Eagles from 1976–78. Mark Wahlberg portrays Papale and Greg Kinnear plays Papale's coach, Dick Vermeil...
  
  (uncredited) (2006)
• The Nativity Story
  The Nativity Story
  The Nativity Story is a 2006 drama film based on the nativity of Jesus starring Keisha Castle-Hughes and Shohreh Aghdashloo. Filming began on May 1, 2006 in Matera, Italy and in Morocco. New Line Cinema released it on December 1, 2006 in the United States and one week later on December 8 in the...
  
  (2006)
• Secretariat
  Secretariat (film)
  Secretariat is a 2010 biographical film produced by Walt Disney Pictures and Mayhem Pictures, and directed by Randall Wallace. The film chronicles the life of thoroughbred race horse Secretariat, winner of the Triple Crown in 1973...
  
  (2010)

External links

• Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting