Matthew Hastings

The son of Don Hastings, an actor who appeared on the long-running soap opera "As the World Turns" for 40 years, television director and producer Matthew Hastings was exposed to show business at an early age. While Matthew shared his father's interest in television, he chose to work behind the camera. After graduating from the television and film program at Boston University, he delved into TV by mimicking the business strategies of independent filmmakers--that is, he self-financed and self-produced pilots, then shopped them to networks. The first of these pilots to be picked up was 1996's Sea World-set series, "Out of the Blue," which lasted only one season His next shot came in 2000 when his family drama "Higher Ground" was purchased. While Hastings only earned a writing credit on his first series, he secured the roles of writer, producer, and director for "Higher Ground." Sadly, more control made little difference, as this series also proved to be a one-season wonder. Despite their short life spans, Hastings's series proved his prowess and garnered him work on the 1990s' re-launch of the horror/fantasy anthology series "The Outer Limits." Yet he may be best regarded by sci-fi fans for his contribution to the short-lived but cult-adored action series "Painkiller Jane," on which he served as director and producer. Once the female-fronted show was cancelled, Hastings moved on to produce and direct another sci-fi series, the oddball small-town comedy "Eureka."