Cody Pickens
June 04, 2018
In The Mix

Wish Fulfillment

Looking for fun and fulfillment has led Brittney Segal to an executive suite at Netflix.

Nicole Pajer

Like many seeking a career in entertainment, Brittney Segal first set her sights on acting.

But a college course taught by producer- director Barnet Kellman — the Emmy- winning principal director of CBS's Murphy Brown — inspired her to consider moving behind the camera. Today she is manager of original series at Netflix, where she oversees shows such as GLOW and Norman Lear's reboot of One Day at a Time.

Not bad for 28.

"I've always sought jobs and opportunities that felt like they would be fun and would really fulfill me," says Segal, who started at 3 Arts Entertainment after graduating from USC's film and television production program. "I applied because they represented Greg Daniels, and my favorite shows were The Office and Parks and Recreation," she says. Two months in, Daniels's assistant left. Segal campaigned for the position and won her "dream job."

Soon, she was developing comedy pilots as a creative exec with Daniels's production banner, Deedle-Dee Productions. Segal moved back to New York, where she's from, to serve as vice-president of development at Jax Media for a year and a half before transitioning into her current role at Netflix's L.A. office.

Among her favorite moments to date: working on The Characters, a sketch comedy series that Jax has produced for Netflix since 2016.

"I loved going to these alt-comedy shows in New York and watching people like John Early," she says. "To take eight alt comics and give them an opportunity to have their own special — in a way that had never been done before — is the kind of thing I didn't think I'd get to do in my career until much later when, God willing, I had my own company or something."

Segal is proud to be an executive during a pivotal time in Hollywood. "It's important that there be diversity in this business," she says. "As a woman, you're inherently primed to champion female stories because you can relate to them."

She'd like to spearhead one type of project in particular. "I would love to find today's Sex and the City," she reveals. "Having another anthem show for women like that would be really fun."


This article originally appeared in emmy magazine, Issue No. 5, 2018



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