40 Under 40 L.A.: Industry Stars Are Rising In the West

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by Samuel Pordengerg May 30, 2023 News
40 Under 40 L.A.: Industry Stars Are Rising In the West

There is no shortage of rising stars and established veterans in the media and entertainment industry. Future's Multichannel News, Broadcasting+Cable and Next TV have been shining a spotlight on executives below a certain age across a range of content production, distribution and related businesses for more than a decade.

We have celebrated their accomplishments in the best way possible, with a party, and the next one will take place the evening of June 21 at the Sofitel Los Angeles, closing out L.A. TV Week. There is more information about the event on June 21 at la tvweekevents.com.

Nominees and judges were used to pick the honorees.

Representing a variety of companies and responsibilities, these men and women are helping to lead media in new directions.

The "40 Under 40" is in Los Angeles.

Alissa Bachner

Alissa Bachner Executive VP, Development

Tomorrow Studios

Since joining Tomorrow Studios, an ITV Studios partner, she has created and produced compelling television dramas with storylines that tackle class warfare, climate change, female empowerment, body image and more. She is a champion for female, voice and book-driven projects and brings them to a broadly commercial company. She has been producing since 2016 Physical and Let the Right One In are two of the other series. She is known for her hands-on, calm style and is known for producing series with global appeal. She was the VP of TV development at Peter Berg's Film 44, where she oversaw the development slate for deals at Fox and HBO. A graduate of Boston University, she began her career at ICM before moving to TV production where she worked on Scrubs and Detroit 1-8-7.

Fanny Baudry

Fanny Baudry Managing Director

Wheelhouse DNA 

She is the managing director of Wheelhouse's digital-first and influencer arm, Wheelhouse DNA, where she leads intellectual property development and production. The division that serves as a home for emerging talent was launched by Wheelhouse in 2020. Content is created and produced by DNA for all platforms. Baudry has shepherded such series as Facebook Messenger's Cookin' with Brooklyn, starring Brooklyn Beckham, and Dark History with Bailey Sarian, among others. Scooter Braun had a head of content and development named Baudry. She was responsible for building the acquisitions division and acquiring nonscripted formats for the company's subsidiaries including Bunim/ Murray.

Adam Bergman

Adam Bergman Group VP, Advertising & Data Sales

Vizio

The go-to-market strategy for the Platform Plus Ads business is led by Adam Bergman. He helped drive advertisers to consider the relationship between OTT and traditional TV investments. He was the leader of partnerships and strategy at The DailyBeast. He returned to the data, measurement and OTT community through a leadership post. He worked with the company's chief revenue officer, Michael O'Donnell, to help launch Vizio Ads in 2019. He is in charge of the ACR data division of the company. At the National Association of Broadcasters show in April, Vizio received a Technology & Engineering Emmy Award for the use of ACR.

Evan Bregman

Evan Bregman General Manager, Streaming

Tastemade

Evan Bregman is responsible for driving viewership and growth of Tastemade’s streaming business. Since joining the company in 2022, he has overseen a jump of 10% in viewership and 12% in revenue on Tastemade’s streaming channels. Tastemade’s streaming business reaches viewers in four languages in more than 50 countries and is available in more than 140 million television homes worldwide. This year, he oversaw the launch of the company’s fourth 24/7 streaming channel, Tastemade Home, on Samsung TV Plus, YouTube TV, Amazon Freevee, Tubi and Sling TV. He also oversaw the premiere of several original series, including Weekend Refresh starring Tia Mowry and The Curious Chef with Stephanie Izard. Tastemade streaming ended the year on a high note, setting new all-time highs in monthly revenue and watch time. Prior to joining Tastemade, Bregman was
VP, head of business operations at Rooster Teeth, the gaming lifestyle brand, where he oversaw strategic operations for its direct-to-consumer business. 

Michelle Byars

(Image credit: ITV Entertainment)

Michelle Byars Senior VP, Development

ITV Entertainment

Byars is in charge of all stages of development, from paper to casting, presentation and pilots, for all of the company's formats, series and specials for streaming, broadcast, cable and digital platforms. In the past, Byars has been involved in the development and sale of Twin Love for Amazon Studios, as well as other projects on platforms such as Peacock. Love Island is one of the ITV Entertainment series. Byars was most recently senior director of unscripted, series and live events at Turner Entertainment. She was part of the core team at TBS that was responsible for the re-launch of the network's reality show business. Special events and awards properties were managed by her.

Kimberly Caraig

Kimberly Caraig Account Executive

Fox Corp.

One of the first integrated linear and digital account executives to join the Fox Ad Sales division was Kim Caraig. She has strong internal and external relationships that allow her to maximize revenue. Caraig was an account executive at CBS before moving to CBS Interactive. She used to work in sales planning roles. She began her career as an ad sales person. Caraig is a mentor to account managers and associates across the Fox Ad Sales division and also supports various organizations.

Colin Davis

Colin Davis Executive VP of Comedy Development

Sony Pictures Television Studios

Colin Davis is in charge of the development of comedies for all platforms. Prior to joining Sony, he was the head of scripted originals for The Roku Channel, where he oversaw the production and roll out of successful series. He shepherded the feature film Weird: The AlYankovic Story. At Turner, Davis spent four years in comedy development and led scripted programming for the short-form streaming service. Davis worked at Fox Broadcasting. The Sony Pictures Studios lot is where he is located.

Alessandra Donnadelli

Alessandra Donadelli VP, Business Development

Warner Bros. Discovery

The head of Warner Bros. Discovery's growth partnerships is Alessandra Donadelli. She leads a cross-divisional team that is focused on launching growth initiatives that drive subscribers and revenue. She is responsible for building relationships with marketing, finance, legal, product and established processes to integrate Discovery Plus into ad sales partner outreach. Donadelli was the director of partnership strategy at Disney Plus, where she established guidelines and frameworks to evaluate and prioritize partnership initiatives. Donadelli worked at Fox International Channels. She is involved in the mentorship and development of young professionals both inside and outside of Warner Bros. Discovery.

Rebecca Evans

Rebecca Evans
Executive VP, Nonfiction Content

Campfire Studios

Rebecca Evans has produced across all genres of nonfiction television,
from shiny-floor shows to reality TV and premium documentaries. Recent credits include Hulu’s WeWork: Or the Making and Breaking of a $47 Billion Unicorn, named Outstanding Business and Economic Documentary at the 2022 News & Documentary Emmy Awards; HBO Max’s Low Country: The Murdaugh Dynasty, The Way Down: God, Greed and the Cult of Gwen Shamblin and Heaven’s Gate: The Cult of Cults, as well as FX’s Hysterical and CNN’s The Lost Sons. While at Campfire Studios, a premium scripted and nonfiction production company run by film producer and CEO Ross Dinerstein, Evans’s work has led to the sale of more than 20 series and films, all of which she’s overseen creatively. As of late last year, she had projects in production for platforms including HBO Max, Netflix and Hulu. Her expertise spans development and production, and Campfire’s yearly unscripted output has more than tripled during her tenure at the company.

Daniel Farkas

Daniel Farkas
VP, Distribution Strategy and Content Planning

Sony Pictures Television

In order to maximize the domestic financial performance of Sony Pictures Entertainment's features and TV series, Daniel Farkas works cross-functionally. Valuation demand for Sony's content across transactional retail platforms and licensing partners, determining windows and pricing, and advising on key deals are included. The studio has a theatrical windowing strategy. He was part of the team that negotiated SPE's pay-one and pay- two deals in the U.S. An integrated approach to catalog management has been established since the merger of SPE's Home Entertainment and licensing divisions. Farkas advanced within its Home Entertainment division after joining S PE. Farkas started his career as a management consultant.

Falon Fatemi

Falon Fatemi
CEO and Co-Founder

Fireside

Mark Cuban and Falon Fatemi co- founded Fireside. Fireside is the first interactive web free streaming platform that really puts the power of a production studio in the palm of your hand according to Fatemi. She pointed to a cooking show where you can watch, but cook along in real time with the chef, ask for substitute ingredients and then appear on the stage to show off your end product as an example of what Fireside aims to provide. According to a recent report, Fireside hopes to gain access to smart TVs, Fire TV, Apple TV and Roku through its acquisition of Stremium. Fatemi was the founder and CEO of a platform that was sold to SugarCRM. When she joined the company, she was 19 years old.

Mike Fazzino

Mike Fazzino Principal, Content Acquisition, WW Major Studio Licensing Strategy

Amazon

At Amazon Studios, Mike Fazzino is responsible for much of Prime Video's worldwide licensing of third party content, having closed more than $1 billion in licensing deals with Warner Bros. Prime Video Direct, the company's distribution service for independent films, helped thousands of filmmakers find distribution opportunities for their projects. He graduated from Sacred Heart University with a bachelor's degree and was editor of the Cornell Business Journal before joining the television academy. He is based in Los Angeles and has traveled for Amazon frequently.

Laura Foster

Laura Foster
VP, Product Marketing

Innovid

Laura Foster is one to look out for in advertising technology. She is the leader of the Agile team that develops and executes internal and external product positioning. She played a key role in crafting the go-to-market positioning for the acquisition of TVSquared. She launched the company's "identity as infrastructure" approach to identity resolution and named the product. She was the leader of the go-to-market approach for the acquisition of Herolens. The New York Stock Exchange's ticker symbol was "CTV." Foster used to hold senior roles at Sizmek. She was recognized by the Product Marketing Alliance as a top product marketing influence.

Katherine Gallagher

Katherine Gallagher Programming Manager

Sinclair Broadcast Group

With more than 10 years of experience in various areas, she has a passion for digital content planning and is able to develop and implement strategies to promote company or brand growth. She is the programming manager for STIRR. She has been involved in the successful launch of multiple revenue-generating initiatives and has been in charge of the NationalSTIRR City Channel. The National Desk is on 87 Sinclair-owned stations, as well as all of the company's MyNetworkTV and The CW affiliates. She worked in digital media and advertising for a number of companies. NBC show syndication for all brands and breaking major news stories are highlights.

Nick Garvin

Nick Garvin
Chief Operating Officer & Managing Partner

Mobile TV Group

Nick Garvin oversees all of Mobile TV Group’s operations, which includes over half of all NBA, MLB and NHL broadcasts across the country and over 4,000 live events annually. Based in Denver, MTVG has offered high-quality broadcast engineering for nearly 30 years. In 2020, the company introduced Cloud Control, the first managed service for fully remote production, in response to the evolving industry and its needs. Following Cloud Control, MTVG launched MTVG Edge, a new edge-computing
product delivering MTVG’s live production solutions for small and midsized productions anywhere with a minimal on-site equipment footprint and for a much lower cost. Garvin also expanded MTVG’s expertise to the Los Angeles community with the launch of its newest mobile unit. He is on the board of Armstrong Capital Development (ACD) and served as a development committee member at Teach for America. Earlier, he founded and developed Stackup, an education technology company that was acquired by Global Grid for Learning in 2021.

Samuel Harowitz

Samuel Harowitz VP, Content Acquisitions & Partnerships

Tubi

Samuel Harowitz leads all third-party licensed programming acquisitions with indie partners and major studios and brands for Tubi, including international content acquisitions, sports and FAST channels. On the heels of a banner content year for Fox Entertainment’s streaming service, Harowitz is instrumental in helming the expansion of Tubi’s content library of more than 50,000 titles. Harowitz most recently oversaw TV content acquisitions at Freevee, Amazon’s AVOD service
formerly known as IMDb TV, where he led third-party licensed programming and optimized its first-run licensing program. Previously, Harowitz served as VP, digital content licensing at A+E Networks, where he was charged with licensing programming to SVOD and AVOD platforms and led partner management of digital and OTT platforms. Prior to that, he held roles as senior VP, development and production at Lisa Kudrow and Dan Bucatinsky’s Is or Isn’t Entertainment and VP, acquisitions and co-productions at FremantleMedia.

Stephen Hodge

Stephen Hodge CEO

OTTera

Stephen was the leader of companies like Toon Goggles and Digital Media Interactive. OTTera has an overall strategy for content licensing, business development, monetization and ensuring it stays ahead of its competitors. After working in the industry for more than seven years, the team at OTTera launched the company in 2017! OTTera has a full suite of applications and channels. Two 2D-animated linear FAST channels to kids and families around the world are the result of recent partnerships with LAFIG Belgium and IMPS. AfroLandTV is a Black-centered streaming service aimed at bringing pan- African stories to global audiences. Techstars is a player in AfroLandTV. The executive board of AfroLandTV has a new member.

Kate Hoenigsberg

Kate Hoenigsberg
Senior VP, Drama Development

Universal Television

Kate Hoenigsberg oversees a slate of more than 50 drama series in development at Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group. Hoenigsberg also works closely with the studio’s talent roster, which includes Jenna Bans, Jenna Bush Hager, Jessica Goldberg, Jordan Peele, Julie Plec, Amy Poehler and more. Projects under Hoenigsberg’s purview have successfully sold to a variety of broadcast and streaming platforms, including NBCUniversal’s NBC and Peacock, as well as external buyers such as Netflix and Prime Video. Such series include We Were Liars (Prime
Video), Murder by the Book (NBC), Freeman (Peacock) and Confessions (Netflix). Prior to joining Universal Television, Hoenigsberg was the senior content executive and scripted programming lead at Quibi, where she oversaw series including Veena Sud’s The Stranger and When the Streetlights Go On. Before that, she spent more than 10 years at NBCUniversal, most recently as VP of the scripted cable group. 

Fernando Hurtado

Fernando Hurtado
Manager, Digital Video

NBCUniversal Local

Fernando Hurtado has experience producing engaging editorial segments for TV, digital, OTT and emerging platforms. In his role as a manager of digital video for NBCUniversal Local, he produces digital video for the division's NBC and Telemundo-owned stations, regional sports networks and LX News, the TV network for young people. The Beijing and Tokyo Olympics, presidential elections, the Las Vegas massacre and the 2016 Democratic National Convention have all been covered by Hurtado. He is an instructor at USC. He was the supervising producer on My New Favorite Olympian, which earned two Webby Signal Awards in the categories of best limited sports series and best LGBTQ+ episode. The entire series was overseen by Hurtado. Hurtado was previously employed by ATTN: and Sinclair Broadcast Group. His work has been featured on a number of websites.

RJ Larese

RJ Larese VP of Talent and Development and Brand Partnerships

Paramount Global

The way in which great talent is shepherded into Nickelodeon and AwesomenessTV has changed due to the commitment of the man. His strong relationships with up-and-coming digital creators and TikTok talent have helped to build a representative talent pool across both brands. Larese works with both brands to find opportunities for scripted and unscripted content, brand partnerships, consumer marketing, events and more. He was a talent, casting and development executive with more than a decade of experience at networks, production companies, and publishers. He has created and cast shows for a number of networks.

Christian Linke

Christian Linke
Co-Creator, Showrunner and Executive Producer,
Arcane
Riot Games

Christian Linke is the co- creator and executive producer of Riot Games's first animated series, "Anecdote: League of Legend". The Piltover and the underground of Zaun are the setting for the origin story of two League champion. The show hit the top 10 in over 87 countries. The show is in production and he and Alex Yee are working on it. Linke won an award for Outstanding Animated Program. Enemy was the song from the original soundtrack that reached the top of the charts. Linke, a former musician, created Riot's music division from the ground up. When he joined Riot 11 years ago, he used his talents as a composer to produce music for the game.

Betsy Lippitt

Betsy Lippitt VP, U.S. TV Distribution

Sony Pictures Television

Betsy Lippitt leads Sony Pictures Entertainment's library and new content film and television sales. She leads complex multiyear content distribution deals in all media. Nine figures of revenue were generated by Lippitt in just one year. Lippitt drives sales for the studio through her strategy of addressing the rapidly changing demands of the TV and streaming market. She struck the platform's first deals with every major Hollywood studio while she was at SPE. She grew her role to oversee three global divisions: content acquisition, content planning and strategy and content partnerships. Prior to Tubi, Lippitt was the general manager of Miramax. She received a degree in fine arts.

Helen Lum

Helen Lum
Executive VP

App Science

Helen Lum is in charge of all business and growth strategies for App Science. She has more than 10 years of experience in digital media. She was part of the team that spearheaded the first mobile retargeting campaign in the industry. Helen likes to use apps likeLinkedIn andYelp. She was the leader of the first mobile retargeting campaign in the industry prior to joining Sabio. She went from associate director of account management to senior VP of operations after being hired at Sabio. She helped build and manage the global account and campaign management team, where she integrated teams, created efficiencies, and improved how the company delivers proposals, services and insights for its diverse client base.

Andrew Matero

Andrew Matero
VP, Platform

Ampersand

Andrew is in charge of marketing Ampersand's and platform. He uses advanced measurement and insights within the platform to support clients. The platform is a buy-side TV interface that supports both national and local TV investment strategies. He works closely with Ampersand's media sales and research teams. Advertisers who use the platform are increasing their investments with the company by an average of 20% or more year-to-date. The platform's role in working with a leading auto brand drove a 40% increase in investment year over year. Ampersand has a focus on data, analytics and addressable TV buying. Prior to joining Ampersand, he worked at NBCUniversal in a variety of roles.

Kelly Miller

Kelly Miller Senior VP, Global Partnerships

BBC Studios

Kelly Miller is responsible for bringing the best of new U.K. scripted content to U.S. audiences while speeding activities across genres with world class television and digital clients. Miller has strengthened relationships with production companies in the U.K. such as Various ArtistsLimited, Sid Gentle, Clerkenwell, Lookout Point and the in-house production team. In less than two years, Miller has secured partnerships for several of his titles, including Am I Being Unreasonable, Happy Valley, and Rain Dogs. Miller was a senior VP at Endeavor Content. She led international co-productions and originals for Vimeo and was part of the content acquisition team at Hulu. Miller worked in the comedy department at 20th Century Fox.

Paul O'Malley

Paul O’Malley
Independent Executive Producer

Formerly of 3 Ball Media

While working for 3 Ball Media, Paul O'Malley helped develop new series and formats for top streamers and broadcasters, including CBS's family dance competition format Come Dance With Me. He worked as a consulting producer on the show. Sampled, a project by O'Malley and 3 Ball, was aired on Paramount Plus in December of 2022. He is now an independent producer and had a show premiere on HGTV. Prior to his time at 3 Ball, he was VP of development at Authentic Entertainment, where he helped develop hit shows such as Trading Spaces and Toddlers and Tiaras. His credits include Drag Race and American Gladiators.

Trixie Pacis

Trixie Pacis Director of Acquisitions & Original Programming Development

ChimeTV

ChimeTV is a cable network that highlights the diverse stories, issues and culture of the Asian American and Pacific Islanders. A Filipina-Canadian with more than a decade of film industry experience, her perspective on programming stems from heading script development at Drive Films as well as, producing and directing in North America and Asia From acquisitions to scheduling to finding the best original content, Pacis is a go to executive. Marketing and design were also touched upon by her. After working as a writer at Los Angeles magazine, an assistant at Trisko Talent Agency, and a script development supervisor at Drive Films, Pacis went on to work in photography and social media. She has won awards for films she has written, received promotions and has wound up in L.A. with Chime TV, on the verge of launching a network with female and Asian American ownership.

Joy Phillips

Joy Phillips Senior VP, Publicity

AMC Networks

JoyPhillips has more than 15 years of public-relations experience in the entertainment field. AMC's Kevin Can F Himself, AMC Plus's This Is Going to Hurt and Gangs of London, and Killing Eve Season 4 are some of the recent shows. Dark Winds Seaseon 2 is one of her upcoming series. She is in charge of public relations for WE tv and ALLBLK, brands that feature popular and targeted programming such as the Love After Lockup franchise. The L.A.-based PR team is overseen by her. Prior to working at Fifteen Minutes, she worked at Rubenstein. She started her career in public relations.

Michael Rycyzyn

Michael Rycyzyn
Director, Digital Licensing

A+E Networks

Michael Rycyzyn has worked for A+E Networks for eight years in both ad sales and global content sales. He began his career in ad sales before becoming a sales planner and then moving to the global content sales team, where he was promoted twice. He is at the forefront of business development and industry growth. His work ensures A+E programming placement on platforms such as Apple TV, Amazon, Google/YouTube, Vudu-Fandango, Xbox, Comcast, Verizon
Communications and Frontier Communications, resulting in a significant growth in brand awareness and revenue for the company. Rycyzyn has led A+E’s electronic sell-through and TV video-on-demand business to garner some of the largest revenue-generating EST content premieres in the history of the company, as shown through Lifetime’s Surviving R. Kelly, Girl in the Basement and History’s Alone and The Curse of Oak Island, A+E said. He also successfully expanded the A+E EST business in Japan and other countries, expanding global partnerships and presence. 

Shaheen Sayani

Shaheen Sayani Head of Content Partnerships, Samsung TV Plus

Samsung Electronics America

Shaheen Sayani has over 10 years of experience in technology and entertainment. She partners with the industry's leading content companies to cater to the rapidly expanding digital audience. She wants to build the TV experience of the future by working on the leading edge of tech. Sayani has built internal systems that adapt to the ebbs and flows of the streaming world and has developed a complex content strategy. With many years as a film festival programmer under her belt, she is familiar with the different types of content that can be found on the internet. Sayani is a Californian.

Ahmadou Seck

Ahmadou Seck
VP, Scripted TV

Macro

Ahmadou Seck is passionate about working with different types of creatives. He is the VP of scripted programming at Macro. He is an executive producer on two shows, Raising Dion and Government Cheese. He has experience in the agency world, at a television network and with Will Smith. He was a producer on the show. Being an active member of the community is something Seck was taught as a child. Since moving to Los Angeles, he has brought that same spirit to the entertainment industry and has held leadership positions with several organizations. He graduated from St. Martin's University.

Matt Shanfield

Matt Shanfield
Executive VP, Development

The Intellectual Property Corp. (IPC), a part of Sony Pictures Television

Matt is the creative executive behind the development of original concepts. He has shepherded titles such as Secrets of Playboy, The D'Amelio Show, Restaurant Rivals, and The Climb. He was the head of development for asylum entertainment. He was the director of development at Shed Media US and the VP of development at Oxygen. He was a producer on series such as Shark Tank and I'm a Game Show Host. The William Morris Agency was where he started his career.

Kyle Simon

Kyle Simon
Partner

Perkins Coie LLP

Kyle Simon is a partner and member of the M&A team at Coie Perkins. He represents both public and private companies in complex business transactions. He has experience with the purchase and sale of broadcast television and radio stations, including Big Four network affiliates in major markets. He has been involved in a number of TV related transactions.

Evan Statton

Evan Statton
Senior Principal Architect, Media and Entertainment

Amazon Web Services

Evan Statton has spent the last 20 years inventing the future of media technology with some of the largest media companies in the world. He leads a worldwide team of Solutions Architects at Amazon Web Services whose work impacts thousands

of customers in all facets of media and entertainment. His work includes leading technology roadmap sessions within AWS, as well as visioning and education sessions with media and entertainment customers around the globe. He has influenced more than 40 AWS features including the ability to manipulate fully uncompressed 4K video in the cloud. He has earned seven patents in video processing and transmission, and recently earned a Hollywood Professional Association Award for Engineering Excellence. Before joining AWS, he deployed the first national HD IP transmission system for MLB.com at a time when many in the industry were saying internet-protocol transport was not possible. He then spent four years at NBCUniversal leading the design and implementation of over 200 transmission and playout channels. 

Adam Sussman

Adam Sussman
VP of Development

Furry Prawn Productions (NBCUniversal)

Adam has worked in the NBCUniversal family for the past four years. He creates, develops and sells original unscripted formats for broadcast, cable and streaming platforms as the VP of development for Furry Prawn Production. In 2020, he came up with the idea of a special where the star host sat down with several comedians for candid conversations about how they turned tragedy into comedy gold. His proudest talent-driven projects include mental health, inclusion and representation, gender equity, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer stories, and activism. He was the director of development. At Zodiak USA he was the manager of development. He began his career as a comedy writer at The Comedy Festival.

Brian Tannenbaum

Brian Tannenbaum
Head of Originals, The Roku Channel

Roku

Brian Tannenbaum is the head of original programming for The Roku Channel. He is a key member of the team behind the launch of the brand. The Great American Baking Show and Meet Me in Paris are examples of programs that can be found on Roku. On the day Colin Davis left to join Sony, Tannenbaum was promoted to a position on the team. Tannenbaum managed a slate of more than 50 television titles for the short-form streaming serviceQuibi. He was the senior VP of creative and business affairs at the time. Kevin Hart: What the Fit and Selling Sunset were both produced by him during his time at the company.

Brendon Thomas

Brendon Thomas
SVP, Distribution and Business Development

Paramount Streaming

The rapid audience growth of Paramount Plus and Pluto TV can be attributed to partnerships with original equipment makers and other strategic partners. Thomas co- founded and served as CEO of Shindig. Shindig was acquired by Okanjo, where he served as president. The 10-member team is tasked with growing global streaming distribution through dealmaking, renewals and partnerships across the Paramount Streaming portfolio of offerings. Paramount Plus was the fastest-growing subscription video on demand service in the last year, thanks to his efforts.

Kim Wendt

Kim Wendt
Senior Solutions Architect

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Kim Wendt is in charge of helping media and entertainment companies move to the cloud. She leads the engagement between the two companies. In addition to her day-to-day responsibilities, Wendt participates in the Amazon Future Engineer Class chats program to encourage future generations to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. She earned a masters degree in computer science from Georgia Tech. She has had a huge impact on media and entertainment businesses in Los Angeles and beyond. Wendt has participated in high school coaching sessions across the U.S. and run training initiatives at industry events.

Alex Yee

Alex Yee
Co-Creator, Writer and Executive Producer,
Arcane
Riot Games

Alex Yee has been with Riot for 12 years. He has led the team through preproduction, including story development, writing script and concept design, since then. He is the co- creator, writer and executive producer of the first animated series from Riot. The Outstanding Animated Program award was won by Arcane. The show is in production and he and Christian Linke are working on it. He is proud of the lore and world-building he has done for the game, but his favorite contributions are the ones he has contributed to, such as Thresh and Graves.