La Cañada Flintridge resident and Warner Bros. chairman and CEO Kevin Tsujihara will be one of three recipients of the Alumni Merit Award in the USC Alumni Association’s 85th annual USC Alumni Awards this month.
Tsujihara, who took over Warner Bros. in 2013 to become the first Asian-American head of a major motion picture studio, grew up in Petaluma, where his parents, who are Japanese immigrants, owned an egg distribution business. Under his leadership, Warner Bros. has established leading positions in the film, television and video game industries.
As a fresh USC graduate, Tsujihara worked as a manager in the entertainment division of Ernst & Young, where his work included financial audits, mergers and acquisitions, including for Warner Bros. He formally joined Warner Bros. in 1994 and started off by overseeing the Six Flags amusement park division. He was named president of the company’s Home Entertainment division 11 years later.
At Home Entertainment, Tsujihara established the company’s digital delivery platforms and also managed the assets that ultimately resulted in the company’s Interactive Entertainment video game division, which presently earns more than $1 billion in revenue each year.
A member of the USC School of Cinematic Arts Board of Councilors, Tsujihara also serves on the American Film Institute Board of Trustees; the Motion Picture Association of America Board of Directors; the Motion Picture and Television Fund Board of Governors; and the Stanford Graduate School of Business Advisory Council. He is also a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the Los Angeles Coalition for the Economy and Jobs.
In a previous interview with The Outlook, Tsujihara took a modest approach to his career superlatives.
“I’m proud of the fact that it’s occurred and that I’m the first Asian-American to have a job like this, but I don’t think about it a lot,” Tsujihara said. “I think that there are people who would like me to [be a spokesman for Asian-Americans]. Diversity is important and it’s a good thing, but it all comes down to: you have to pick the right people to do the job.”
Also being recognized at this year’s ceremony are William McMorrow, Carmen Nava, Dr. Carol Gomez Summerhays, Ryan Coogler, Bob Padgett, Valerie Weiss and Bruce and Madeline Ramer.
The ceremony will be Saturday, April 28, at the InterContinental Los Angeles Downtown Hotel. For more information, visit alumni.usc.edu.
