Among the most successful and sought after screenwriters in Hollywood, David Koepp was born in Pewaukee, Wisconsin. He fell in love with the world of narrative entertainment after playing Reverend Hale in a high school production of "The Crucible," and would go on to study theater at the University of Wisconsin Eau Claire and later screenwriting at UCLA. One of his first projects would be the thriller "Apartment Zero" (1988) which he co-wrote with then creative partner Martin Donovan. After assisting on a number of other small productions, Koepp would begin penning higher profile screenplays for films like "Toy Soldiers" (1991) and "Death Becomes Her" (1992), before breaking into the upper echelon with the ultimate boon, co-writing the screenplay for the blockbuster hit "Jurassic Park" (1993). He would shortly thereafter adapt the Edwin Torres novel Carlito's Way for the big screen, his first of several collaborations with director Brian De Palma. Koepp would reteam with De Palma for the blockbuster "Mission: Impossible" (1996), shortly before making his directorial debut with "The Trigger Effect" (1996). Koepp eventually land in the director's chair again for the thriller "Stir of Echoes" (1999) before penning the screenplay for the suspense-packed "Panic Room" (2002), for which he was reportedly paid an impressive four million dollars. He would branch into television in the 00s, writing and executive producing the series "Hack" (CBS, 2002-04), but soon returned to the cinema, penning the latter day sequel "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" (2008). He next adapted the "Da Vinci Code" (2006) sequel "Angels & Demons" (2009), and after writing and directing the thriller "Premium Rush" (2012), returned to adapt the third story in the "Da Vinci Code" franchise, "Inferno" (2016).