Son of Paula J. Edell of Mountain Lakes, New Jersey and Marc Z. Edell of Long Valley, New Jersey: Son-in-law of Dr. Linda J. Shockley and Dr. William W. Shockley of Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
He graduated from Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut with a Bachelor's Degree. He earned a Master's Degree in film production at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California.