After studying at the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts, Kirschner began his career designing album cover art for Neil Diamond, most notably Neil Diamond's The Jazz Singer, and illustrating characters for the Muppets and Sesame Street.

In 1983, Kirschner created and released children's book series Rose Petal Place, which spawned two Television specials, toys, clothing, and a wide array of licensed consumer products.

[1] Kirschner was appointed chairman of Hanna-Barbera Productions in 1989, where he wrote / created and executive produced many films, specials and shows, including Wake, Rattle & Roll, Gravedale High and The Pirates of Dark Water.

Other notable productions include 1997's Cats Don't Dance, winner of the 25th annual Annie Award for Best Animated Feature,[2] 2006's Curious George, based upon the book series of the same name, Martian Child, and Golden Globe-nominated Miss Potter.

His 2010s/2020s work includes executive producer on Curious George, Hocus Pocus 2 (Disney+), Cult of Chucky (for Universal 1440 Entertainment), Random (In Pre-Production for The Weinstein Company) and Garden District (In-Development for Dimension Films).