Hollywood Film Producer and Philanthropist Peter Samuelson on ‘Finding Happy’

Peter Samuelson is a Hollywood veteran. He produced and executive produced 25 films over 25 years including “Revenge of the Nerds,” “Arlington Road,” and “The Libertine.”  During this time, he also founded five charities. Now, he’s  released an inspirational book for young adults – as well as their parents and teachers – about his life and work and the importance of following your passion while making a difference in this world. 

“Finding Happy: A User’s Guide to Your Life with Lessons from Mine” (Regalo Press) is filled with stories about Samuelson’s adventures, like climbing down a hundred-foot pipe shaft at 3 a.m. to rescue a kitten, with no plan for how to climb back up, and doing daredevil filmmaking in Asia and Africa. He writes about how to seize the day, when to take risks, and how to find your own “secret sauce” in life. The book also offers practical help in three dozen situations that challenge Gen Zers and Millennials. 

The Journal sat down with Samuelson, who also serves as a mentor for young adults, to discuss his new work and what readers can learn from it. The interview has been edited for clarity and space.

Jewish Journal (JJ): Why did you decide to write this book?

Peter Samuelson (PS): Some things are beshert. In 1999, I founded First Star as my third nonprofit charity. I realized only 6% of American foster kids go to college, a fraction of the over half of all 12th graders who do so. I met with the Chancellor of UCLA, Gene Block, a wonderful man. I proposed that he allow me to house, educate and encourage high school-aged foster kids in the middle of his campus for a four-year period, with a curriculum [that was] one-third academic, one-third life skills and the other third a sense of belonging: new brothers and sisters for those deprived of their own and reliable grown-ups for the first time in their lives. First Star is now enormously successful, with 12 academies across the country. I’ve [also] done a lot of mentoring. Hundreds of young adults, mostly teenagers, some in their early 20s. About two years ago, I realized that I had pattern recognition helping young adults. 

My career as a film producer has taught me that even though every film is different, the producer’s toolkit is the same and you get better recognizing similar challenges. So it is with mentoring. I decided that I could make a list and that these could be chapter headings in a self-help book for all young people, especially those who are underprivileged. What is a good risk? What is a bad risk? How can you tell the difference? How do you find love? How ambitious should you be? How can you deal with a bully? How do you get organized? 

JJ: How does it tie into your Jewish values?

PS: I am immensely proud of being Jewish and what that means. Maimonides tells us that the top level of the soul, the N’shuma, is not something you own, but almost like a membership society of those who seek to make the world a better place. If you grasp tikkun olam, tzedakah, and exert yourself, Maimonides points out that you will meet extraordinary people who feel the same way. He says two meeting for the first time will feel as though they’ve known each other 1000 years, and say, “Hineini, here I am. What shall we do?” Through founding and running my seven philanthropies in between producing two dozen motion pictures, I am blessed by these N’shuma people, who help me push big boulders up hills. I certainly couldn’t have done it without them.

JJ: What do you think makes people really happy? Is it giving back? Is it finding meaning?

PS: When you help other people, you do find your own happiness. It does not have to be religious. I teach a class to cohorts of 10th grade foster kids called Random Acts of Kindness and Pay it Forward. In the first 90 minutes, I ask them to imagine they are walking down the sidewalk and see an old lady lying face down in rags, fast asleep. Do they A) stop and carefully put $1 under her arm? Or B) wake her up and give her the dollar? Or C) look the other way, and walk on by? This leads to a conversation about the Golden Rule of 170 world religions, whose scriptures tell their adherents that the humane values of social justice require them to right wrongs. Tzedek is a core value in Judaism, and I tell my gentile friends that the chosen people were not chosen to have privileges or space lasers, but rather to serve. It’s an obligation, but not a chore. It is where we find a great proportion of our happiness and many things to make us proud.

JJ: Why is it important to give back, especially in today’s world?

PS: In the class, I ask whether an atheist could still feel compassion and empathy and want to help. “Of course,” say most of the kids. This leads to a conversation about the Second Law of Thermodynamics, which tells us that in any closed system, which could be the motor in your car, a family or a planet, unless we apply energy, if left alone, the whole thing will decay, collapse and end in random chaos. If you don’t oil the engine, it will seize up. If you don’t nurture your family, you won’t have one. And if we don’t take care of our planet, we will have huge amounts of migration that will be unstoppable and change everything around us as people seek to live somewhere sustainable. It is important for each of us to fix things to the greatest extent possible, not just because that makes us happy, but also because entropy, the random chaos that will otherwise ensue, is all around us. Life is a team sport, and I’m proud to help lead so many teams of great importance.