Steve Stabler is currently Chairman and CEO of Commotion Pictures. Throughout his career, Stabler has given many first time directors their start. Among those directing their first feature film for Stabler were Peter and Bobby Farrelly (Dumb and Dumber, Kingpin

Kingpin (film)

Kingpin is a 1996 slapstick comedy film directed by the Farrelly brothers and starring Woody Harrelson, Randy Quaid, Vanessa Angel, and Bill Murray...

), Kevin Spacey

Kevin Spacey

Kevin Spacey, CBE is an American actor, director, screenwriter, producer, and crooner. He grew up in California, and began his career as a stage actor during the 1980s, before being cast in supporting roles in film and television...

 (Albino Alligator

Albino Alligator

Albino Alligator is a 1997 film directed by Kevin Spacey in his directorial debut. It stars Matt Dillon, Gary Sinise and William Fichtner as three small-time criminals who take hostages when they are cornered by the police...

), Jon Turteltaub

Jon Turteltaub

Jonathan Charles "Jon" Turteltaub is an American film director and producer. He is a graduate of Wesleyan University and the USC School of Cinematic Arts...

 (Driving Me Crazy, Think Big

Think Big (film)

Think Big is a 1990 adventure/comedy film directed by Jon Turteltaub starring the "Barbarian Brothers" Peter and David Paul. The film follows the misadventures of a pair of twin brother truck drivers who aide a teenage runaway...

, Phedon Papamichael

Phedon Papamichael

Phedon Papamichael is a cinematographer and film director.Born in Athens, Greece, Papamichael came to the United States at age six when his father went to work as a production designer for John Cassavetes. He studied photography and art at the University of Munich, graduating with a degree in Fine...

 (Sketch Artist), and Tom Schulman

Tom Schulman

Thomas H. Schulman is an American screenwriter most famous for his screenplay Dead Poets Society which won the Best Screenplay Academy Award for 1989....

 (8 Heads in a Duffel Bag

8 Heads in a Duffel Bag

8 Heads in a Duffel Bag is a 1997 black comedy film starring Joe Pesci and David Spade. It was the directorial debut of screenwriter Tom Schulman...

).

Motion Picture Corporation of America

In 1986, Stabler and long time business partner Brad Krevoy

Brad Krevoy

Brad Krevoy is an American film producer, who has been directly involved in the development, finance, production, acquisition, and distribution of more than 100 motion picture and television projects...

 co-founded Motion Picture Corporation of America

Motion Picture Corporation of America

Motion Picture Corporation of America is an American film production company founded by Brad Krevoy in 1986 to focus on producing, acquiring, and distributing commercial motion picture and television productions.-History:...

 which became one of the most prolific suppliers of moderately budgeted independent films in the industry. Among his successful titles were Threesome

Threesome

A threesome is a group of three engaged in the same activity. In relation to a sexual activity a threesome refer to the activity involving three people of any gender or sexual orientation...

 starring Stephen Baldwin

Stephen Baldwin

Stephen Andrew Baldwin is an American actor, director, producer and author. One of the Baldwin brothers, he is known for his roles as William F. Cody in the western show The Young Riders and as Stuart in the movie Threesome...

 and Laura Flynn Boyle. The film became one of the most profitable independent features ever made. He also produced Dumb and Dumber with Jim Carrey

Jim Carrey

James Eugene "Jim" Carrey is a Canadian-American actor and comedian. He has received two Golden Globe Awards and has also been nominated on four occasions. Carrey began comedy in 1979, performing at Yuk Yuk's in Toronto, Ontario...

 and Jeff Daniels

Jeff Daniels

Jeffrey Warren "Jeff" Daniels is an American actor, musician and playwright. He founded a non-profit theatre company, the Purple Rose Theatre Company, in his home state of Michigan...

 and Kingpin with Bill Murray

Bill Murray

William James "Bill" Murray is an American actor and comedian. He first gained national exposure on Saturday Night Live in which he earned an Emmy Award and later went on to star in a number of critically and commercially successful comedic films, including Caddyshack , Ghostbusters , and...

 and Woody Harrelson

Woody Harrelson

Woodrow Tracy "Woody" Harrelson is an American actor.Harrelson's breakthrough role came in the television sitcom Cheers as bartender Woody Boyd...

. In addition, Beverly Hills Ninja

Beverly Hills Ninja

Beverly Hills Ninja is a 1997 action comedy film directed by Dennis Dugan, written by Mark Feldberg and Mitch Klebanoff, and starring Chris Farley. The main plot revolves around Haru , who was found by a clan of ninjas as an infant in an abandoned treasure chest and was raised by them...

starring Chris Farley

Chris Farley

Christopher Crosby "Chris" Farley was an American comedian and actor. Farley was a member of Chicago's Second City Theatre and cast member of the NBC sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live from 1990 to 1995....

. As well as If Lucy Fell

If Lucy Fell

If Lucy Fell is a 1996 romantic comedy starring Sarah Jessica Parker, Eric Schaeffer and Ben Stiller. The film is rated R and runs for 92 minutes...

starring Sarah Jessica Parker

Sarah Jessica Parker

Sarah Jessica Parker is an American film, television, and theater actress and producer.She is best known for her leading role as Carrie Bradshaw on the HBO television series Sex and the City , for which she won four Golden Globe Awards, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, and two Emmy Awards...

 and Ben Stiller

Ben Stiller

Benjamin Edward "Ben" Stiller is an American comedian, actor, writer, film director, and producer. He is the son of veteran comedians and actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara....

.

Orion Pictures

In 1996, John Kluge's  Metro Media International Group purchased Motion Picture Corporation of America and Stabler became co-president of Orion Pictures

Orion Pictures

Orion Pictures Corporation was an American independent production company that produced movies from 1978 until 1998. It was formed in 1978 as a joint venture between Warner Bros. and three former top-level executives of United Artists. Although it was never a large motion picture producer, Orion...

 where he was responsible for production, marketing, and distribution of motion pictures and television. While at Orion, Stabler produced nine films and oversaw the marketing and distribution. While at Orion, Stabler produced films for Academy Award-winner Tom Schulman (Dead Poets Society

Dead Poets Society

Dead Poets Society is a 1989 American drama film directed by Peter Weir and starring Robin Williams. Set at the conservative and aristocratic Welton Academy in Vermont in 1959, it tells the story of an English teacher who inspires his students through his teaching of poetry.The script was written...

) and released films such as 1997's Academy Award and Golden Globe nominee for Best Foreign Language Film, Prisoner of the Mountains

Prisoner of the Mountains

Prisoner of the Mountains , also known as Prisoner of the Caucasus, is a 1996 Russian war drama film directed by Sergei Bodrov and written by Bodrov, Arif Aliyev and Boris Giller...

(directed by Sergei Bodrov

Sergei Bodrov

Sergei Vladimirovich Bodrov is a two-time Academy Award-nominated Russian-American film director, screenwriter, and producer.Bodrov was born in Khabarovsk, Russian SFSR, USSR . In the post-Soviet period he emigrated to the United States. His son, actor Sergei Bodrov, Jr...

), and the critically acclaimed Ulee's Gold

Ulee's Gold

Ulee's Gold is a 1997 film written and directed by Victor Nuñez, and starring Peter Fonda in the title role. Co-stars include Patricia Richardson, Christine Dunford, Tom Wood, Jessica Biel, J. Kenneth Campbell, Steven Flynn, Dewey Weber, and Vanessa Zima...

(directed by Victor Nunez

Victor Núñez

Víctor Núñez Rodríguez is a Costa Rican professional football player who currently plays for Club Sport Herediano in the Primera Division de Costa Rica.-Personal:...

, presented by Jonathan Demme

Jonathan Demme

Robert Jonathan Demme is an American filmmaker, producer and screenwriter. Best known for directing The Silence of the Lambs, which won him the Academy Award for Best Director, he has also directed the acclaimed movies Philadelphia, Rachel Getting Married, the Talking Heads concert movie Stop...

, and starring Academy Award-winner Peter Fonda

Peter Fonda

Peter Henry Fonda is an American actor. He is the son of Henry Fonda, brother of Jane Fonda, and father of Bridget and Justin Fonda...

).

Destination Film Distribution Company

In 1996, Stabler co-founded and was chairman and CEO of Destination Film Distribution Company. Seeking to develop and enhance the success that the distributors of Stabler's previous films achieved, Stabler obtained 100 million dollars in financing and built from scratch a North America distribution company. While at Destination, Stabler successfully produced marketed and distributed eight films including Drowning Mona

Drowning Mona

Drowning Mona is a 2000 comedy-mystery film starring Danny DeVito as Wyatt Rash, a local police chief from Verplanck, New York, who investigates the mysterious death of Mona Dearly, a spiteful, loud-mouthed, cruel and highly unpopular woman, who drove her son's car off a cliff and drowned in a...

with Bette Midler

Bette Midler

Bette Midler is an American singer, actress, and comedian, also known by her informal stage name, The Divine Miss M. She became famous as a cabaret and concert headliner, and went on to star in successful and acclaimed films such as The Rose, Ruthless People, Beaches, and For The Boys...

 and Danny DeVito

Danny DeVito

Daniel Michael DeVito, Jr. , better known as Danny DeVito, is an American actor, comedian, director and producer. He first gained prominence for his portrayal of Louie De Palma on the ABC and NBC television series Taxi , for which he won a Golden Globe and an Emmy.DeVito and his wife, Rhea Perlman,...

, Bats

Bats (film)

Bats is a 1999 horror film, directed by Louis Morneau and produced by Destination Films. The film stars Lou Diamond Phillips, Dina Meyer, Bob Gunton and Leon.-Plot:...

with Lou Diamond Phillips

Lou Diamond Phillips

Lou Diamond Phillips is an American film, television, and stage actor and director. His breakthrough came when he starred in the film La Bamba. He earned a supporting actor Golden Globe Award nomination for his role in Stand and Deliver and a Tony Award nomination for his role in The King and I...

 and Dina Meyer

Dina Meyer

Dina Meyer is an American film and television actress, best known for her roles as Dizzy Flores in Starship Troopers and Detective Allison Kerry in the Saw films. She portrayed Mrs. Hong as a recurring guest star on ABC's Scoundrels.-Personal life:Meyer was born in Queens, New York...

, Eye of the Beholder

Eye of the Beholder (film)

Eye of the Beholder is a 1999 thriller film starring Ewan McGregor and Ashley Judd, based on the novel of the same name by Marc Behm. It was written and directed by Stephan Elliott...

with Ashley Judd

Ashley Judd

Ashley Judd is an American television and film actress, who has played lead roles in films including Ruby in Paradise, Kiss the Girls, Double Jeopardy, Where the Heart Is and High Crimes...

 and Ewan McGregor

Ewan McGregor

Ewan Gordon McGregor is a Scottish actor. He has had success in mainstream, indie, and art house films. McGregor is perhaps best known for his roles as heroin addict Mark Renton in the drama Trainspotting , young Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Star Wars prequel trilogy , and poet Christian in the...

, Beautiful (directed by Sally Fields) with Minnie Driver

Minnie Driver

Minnie Driver is an English actress and singer-songwriter. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the 1997 film Good Will Hunting, as well as for an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe for her work in the television series The Riches.- Early life...

, Thomas and the Magic Railroad

Thomas and the Magic Railroad

Thomas and the Magic Railroad is a 2000 British/American film based on the well-known TV series Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends and the United States TV series Shining Time Station. The film was co-produced by Gullane Entertainment and the Isle of Man Film Commission. It was written, produced...

with Alec Baldwin

Alec Baldwin

Alexander Rae "Alec" Baldwin III is an American actor who has appeared on film, stage, and television.Baldwin first gained recognition through television for his work in the soap opera Knots Landing in the role of Joshua Rush. He was a cast member for two seasons before his character was killed off...

 and Peter Fonda, Slackers

Slackers

Slackers is a 2002 romantic comedy film directed by Dewey Nicks and stars Jason Schwartzman, Devon Sawa, Jason Segel, and Michael Maronna.-Plot:...

with Jason Schwartzman

Jason Schwartzman

Jason Francesco Schwartzman is an American actor and musician. He is perhaps best known for his roles in the Hollywood films Rushmore, Spun, I Heart Huckabees, Shopgirl, Marie Antoinette, The Darjeeling Limited, Funny People, and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World...

 and Jason Segel

Jason Segel

Jason Jordan Segel is an American television and film actor, screenwriter, composer, puppeteer and musician, known for his work with producer Judd Apatow on the short-lived television series Freaks and Geeks and Undeclared, the films Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Knocked Up, I Love You, Man,...

, Buying the Cow

Buying the Cow

Buying the Cow is a 2002 American comedy film directed by Walt Becker and starring Jerry O'Connell and Bridgette L. Wilson.-Plot:Although he has had a relationship with her for five years now, David is too afraid to commit to his girlfriend Sarah, who is pressuring him into proposing to her...

with Jerry O'Connell

Jerry O'Connell

Jeremiah "Jerry" O'Connell is an American actor, best known for his roles in the TV series Sliders, Andrew Clements in My Secret Identity, Vern Tessio in the film Stand by Me, Charlie Carbone in Kangaroo Jack, and Detective Woody Hoyt on the drama Crossing Jordan...

 and Bridgette Wilson

Bridgette Wilson

Bridgette Leann Wilson-Sampras is an American actress, singer and model. A Miss Teen USA in 1990, Wilson holds several acting roles in television and movies, including the role of Veronica Vaughn in the movie Billy Madison, the role of Elsa Shivers in the movie I Know What You Did Last Summer, and...

, and Whipped

Whipped (film)

-Plot:Three single men gather at a local restaurant every Sunday so they can discuss each other's sex lives; however, when each one of them falls for the beautiful Mia , their weekly ritual becomes something of a trial, and their once strong friendships are put at risk.-Cast:* Amanda Peet as Mia*...

with Amanda Peet

Amanda Peet

Amanda Peet is an American actress, who has appeared on film, stage, and television. After studying with Uta Hagen at Columbia University, Peet began her career in television commercials, and progressed to small roles on television, before making her film debut in 1995...

 and Brian Van Holt

Brian Van Holt

-Early life:Van Holt was born in Waukegan, Illinois and raised in California. Despite his Dutch surname, he is of mainly Scotch-Irish ancestry. Van Holt has a degree in Sociology from UCLA. At 18 years of age, he struck the perfect image of a Huntington Beach, California surfer...

.

Commotion Pictures

Commotion Pictures has completed feature films for the R.L. Stein book series Mostly Ghostly

Mostly Ghostly

For the 2008 movie, see Mostly Ghostly: Who Let the Ghosts Out?.Mostly Ghostly is a book of series written by children's horror author R. L. Stine...

with Madison Pettis

Madison Pettis

Madison Michelle Pettis is an American teen actress, best known for playing Sophie Martinez on the Disney Channel sitcom Cory in the House and as Peyton Kelly in the 2007 film The Game Plan.-Life and career:...

 and Sterling Beaumon

Sterling Beaumon

Sterling Martin Beaumon, born June 2, 1995, is an American teen actor and singer. He is best known for his lead roles as Max Doyle in the 2008 film Mostly Ghostly: Who Let the Ghosts Out? and as young Benjamin Linus in the ABC television series, Lost...

 for Universal Pictures

Universal Pictures

-1920:* White Youth* The Flaming Disc* Am I Dreaming?* The Dragon's Net* The Adorable Savage* Putting It Over* The Line Runners-1921:* The Fire Eater* A Battle of Wits* Dream Girl* The Millionaire...

 and best selling game Dungeons and Dragons: Dragonlands with Michael Rosenbaum

Michael Rosenbaum

Michael Owen Rosenbaum is an American actor and director. He is best known for portraying Lex Luthor on the Superman-inspired television series Smallville and Dutch on FOX's Breaking In, and for providing the voice for the Flash in the DC animated universe...

 and Kiefer Sutherland

Kiefer Sutherland

Kiefer Sutherland is an English-born Canadian actor, producer and director, best known for his portrayal of Jack Bauer on the Fox thriller drama series 24 for which he has won an Emmy Award , a Golden Globe award , two Screen Actors Guild Awards and two Satellite...

 for Paramount Pictures

Paramount Pictures

Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...

. As well as Recipe for Disaster with John Larroquette

John Larroquette

John Edgar Bernard Larroquette, Jr. is an American film, television and Broadway actor. His roles include Dan Fielding on the series Night Court, Mike McBride in the Hallmark Channel series McBride, John Hemingway on The John Larroquette Show, and Carl Sack in Boston Legal.-Personal...

 and Lesley Ann Warren

Lesley Ann Warren

Lesley Ann Warren is an American actress and singer. She has been nominated once for an Academy Award and Emmy Awards and five times for Golden Globe, winning one....

 and Just for Kicks with Tom Arnold

Tom Arnold (actor)

Thomas Dwaine "Tom" Arnold is an American actor and comedian. He has appeared in many films, perhaps most notably True Lies . He was the host of The Best Damn Sports Show Period for four years.-Early life:...

, Cole Sprouse and Dylan Sprouse for MGM.

External links