Heyman went to Los Angeles in 1986 to become a Creative Executive at Warner Bros. working on such films as Gorillas in the Mist and Goodfellas. He moved on to become a Vice President at United Artists in the late 1980s, before embarking on a career as an independent producer. The first film he produced was Ernest Dickenson's Juice starring Tupac Shakur and Omar Epps. As an independent film maker Heyman has produced several films including the cult classic The Daytrippers which was directed by Greg Mottola and stars Liev Schreiber, Parker Posey, Hope Davis, Stanley Tucci and Campbell Scott. The film was made on a shoestring budget in New York and became an impressive critical and commercial success.