Morgenstern was born in 1922 in Eastern Poland,in a town that is now part of the Ukraine.
He made his feature debut, after directing short films, in 1960 with Goodbye, Till Tomorrow. His last film was the 2009 Lesser of Two Evils which featured rising young star Borys Szyc. He was also a prolific producer with credits including Agnieszka Holland's 1990 film Europa, Europa. Morgenstern's directing credits extended to TV, where he was involved with several popular series.