ATLANTA — Tyler Perry says he is “trying to understand this tragedy” after learning about the death of the president of Tyler Perry Studios in a plane crash Friday night.
The studio confirmed on Saturday that Steve Mensch, 62, died in that crash.
It happened in Homosassa, about 60 miles north of Tampa. Photos from the scene show the plane having come to rest upside down on a road.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.
The single-engine Vans RV-12IS was registered to Mensch at his home address in the Atlanta suburb of Fayetteville, according to FAA records.
In a post on Instagram, Perry said, “Steve loved flying, and he loved that plane; he took so much pride in it. Steve Mensch was truly a kind soul and a great leader at the studio. We all adored him and are devastated that he’s gone. I’m praying for his family as we all try to make sense of this heartbreak.”
Mensch’s death has come as a shock from the film community across Atlanta as well as Mayor Andrew Dickens.
“(Mensch) was a trusted friend and supporter of the Mayor’s Office of Film and Entertainment,” Dickens said in a statement Saturday night. “He was always willing to share his expertise and inspire others to pursue their passion.”
Lee Thomas, who is director of the Georgia Film Office, said Mensch was a “staunch advocate for the film tax credit, helping build Georgia into a production powerhouse through his leadership roles at Georgia Screen Entertainment Coalition and Georgia Production Partnership.”
“Steve’s legacy was much more than his impressive resume – he was a great friend. Those who knew him know he had genuine warmth, a great sense of humor, and was always willing to jump in and help whenever needed,” Thomas said.
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Mensch got into the movie business when he started working for Feature Systems, which provides equipment for the movie industry. He was hired by Atlanta-based Turner Broadcasting to run its studio operations, later becoming director of strategic production partnerships. It was there that he began to lobby state government for more aid to movie and television production.
After a year of helping plan and build a giant studio in China and brief stint helping to open Third Rail Studios in suburban Atlanta. Perry hired Mensch to help create and run his namesake studio in 2016. The studio sprawls across 330 acres of a former Army base in southern Atlanta that Perry acquired in 2015.
Mensch died on the same day that Perry released “The Six Triple Eight,” a war drama about a mostly Black and all-female World War II battalion. The film was shot at the Atlanta studio.
Mensch is survived by his wife, Danila, and three children.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
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