Born and raised in New York City, Bill D’Elia became involved in his high school theater department after his drama teacher cast him in a staging of You Can’t Take It With You. He went on to pursue a degree in Television-Radio from Ithaca College and honed his production skills while serving in the Army and working at local television stations.
D’Elia’s first job out of college was with Allied Stores Corporation, where he helped develop promotional campaigns. This led him to work at Sawdon & Bess, becoming in charge of the production department in a short period of time. In this capacity, he discovered his interest in directing commercials. In 1979, he formed his own production company, D’Elia, Uricol, & Platt. His success as a commercial director and his lack of creative fulfillment soon bolstered his desire to work in feature films. He created his own opportunity by writing and directing Thomas Berger’s The Feud into a feature film, which was released in 1989. The critical success of the film allowed him to launch a career in episodic television in 1990 with his first credit, Doogie Howser, M.D.
D’Elia’s list of credits covers a wide variety of shows including Northern Exposure, Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, Chicago Hope, Picket Fences, Ally McBeal, The West Wing, The Practice, Boston Legal, Harry’s Law, Monday Mornings, The Crazy Ones, How to Get Away with Murder, The Good Doctor, Grey’s Anatomy and Grand Hotel.
As a director, D’Elia has garnered numerous Awards nominations including a DGA Award nomination for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Comedy Series for Ally McBeal. He has also been nominated three times for Emmy Awards direction for Boston Legal, Chicago Hope and Ally McBeal. D’Elia has been a DGA member for more than 30 years. Bill is the current Co-Chair of the DGA's Producer/Director Workshop Committee.