Stay Relevant: A Podcast by Mike Sobola

After his IT career got bogged down in management details, Jim Pennington decided to forge a new path on his own terms.  Now, he runs a family production company whose offshoot made a film that went to Cannes.  What's his secret to success?  Does he regret his past?  And what's the next few years have in store for him and the industry? 

Stay Relevant-This Episode: Producer/Director Jim Pennington.

He started his professional life as a diver then talked his way onto one of the world's premier natural  filmmaking teams at the time.  There, Yehuda Goldman honed his documentary skills while learning the underwater filmmaking craft from Jacques Cousteau.  Later, he formed Hydrosphere, to educate and inform about the importance and beauty of sharks and the undersea world.

Today, he's a Creative Professional, lending his years of expertise to help others succeed.  He talks with us about the early years underwater, and how it's kept him afloat all this time.

Linda Maslow started a successful DC Media business that continues to contribute to the local media community in a number of ways.  Now, Linda talks about her humble beginnings in Aspen Grassroots TV, the time she and her co-host nearly got naked on TV, and what led her back to DC and the Maslow Media Group.

Early in his career, Tim Lorenz left DC with a Psych degree and moved 2000 miles to the Rocky Mountains where he worked in a lumber store.  But that didn't last long.  Soon, he was flying by the seat of his pants as he helped start and run one of the nation's first grassroots TV stations.  

Eventually forging a path in the new area of corporate TV, Tim moved back to DC and made his name as the consumate dealmaker, ultimately finding his way into sales.  Today, he works in New Business Development with Interface Media Group.  

In this episode, Tim talks about the early days of community access TV, meeting Jimmy Buffet, and working down the road from The Eagles.

As a busy DC Freelancer, Jason Nicholls sees most of his action Producing and Directing Unscripted  "Reality" TV.  His credits include series and shows for HGTV, Discovery, Travel Channel and others with shows like Big Time RV, Diggers, and the extremely popular A&E Series Hoarders.

On this episode, Jason talks about the importance of industry friends and just what it takes to Produce Reality TV on a national level.

As a Freelancer in the DC Area, Producer/Cameraman Mikael Manoukian has had to be creative to stay relevant in the industry.  At the same time, he's been able to concentrate on live performances, his first love.  This is his story.

Joke Fincioen and Biagio Messina run Joke Productions-from a fitting location in view of LA's Universal Studios.  Between them, the two have produced hundreds of hours of programming for many well-known networks.  This from a duo who once found that simply getting a pitch meeting was next to impossible.  Now, Joke and Biagio want to help you get your big project sold-and they've created a podcast and e-Book dedicated to doing just that.  "Producing Unscripted" gives specific advice on how to create a reality show and pitch it successfully to the networks-all based on their experience as Hollywood insiders.   On this episode, they talk about their shows, the podcast, and why they want everyone else to succeed.

"Stay Relevant" Episode 22: Hollywood Producers Joke and Biago.

(For their podcast and ebook, go to www.ProducingUnscripted.com)

He made his name in special effects and was once commissioned to recreate the corpse of Edgar Allen Poe.  Now, Artist Eric Supensky wants to be an Actor.  In this episode, Eric talks about his reasons why, his 5-year plan, and how he's taken a methodical approach to his midlife career change.

This episode: Artist/Actor Eric Supensky

From ABC News Producer to Author. It's been a long road for Author and Multimedia Producer Jenifer Joy (JJ) Madden.  She penned an Internet "Manifesto" on "Living and Parenting in the Digital World" and recently followed it up with "The Durable Human" book.

JJ talks about the book, her life and how she's managed to stay relevant in her rapidly-changing digital profession.

"Stay Relevant" episode 20: Jenifer Joy "JJ" Madden.