Strictly Business

When Michael Ellenberg left HBO to start his own production company, In Media Res, five years ago, the streaming wars had barely reached full steam. But he's learned plenty since then about what it takes to launch series like "Pachinko" and "The Morning Show" for consumers far beyond the U.S. 

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Carlos Jimenez, managing director of Moelis & Co., explains his view that the entertainment economy is in the midst of a massive transformation into a “metaverse” where entertainment, media, gaming, sports and other activities merge. “All of these worlds are colliding – it’s the future,” Jimenez says. He also weighs in on the content spending boom and where investors see opportunity amid the turmoil in media.

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Ahead of the thrice-rescheduled Coachella music festival, Billie Eilish’s longtime agent Tom Windish talks about his star client’s growth as a live artist, COVID’s disruption of touring and joining Wasserman Music as head of business development and A&R.

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William Sherak and his partners at Project X Entertainment think there's room for success in movie theaters beyond Marvel franchises; they've already proven it this year with the revival of the 'Scream' brand, and they're out to do it again with a Michael Bay action movie. But that's just the beginning for this ambitious company intent on pursuing M&A in hopes of becoming Hollywood's next mini-major. 

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The longtime leader of Dr. Seuss Enterprises discusses the responsibility that comes with managing the valuable vault of books and IP left by the author and illustrator of such indelible children’s books as “The Cat in the Hat,” “Green Eggs and Ham” and “Horton Hears a Who.” She details the company’s approach to expanding with content beyond the original Seuss canon, and she outlines the reasoning behind the recent flurry of new Suess-related movies, TV shows and books.

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Candle Media co-CEO Kevin Mayer and Medialink chief Michael Kassan offer a 30,000-foot view of making deals and building businesses in the emerging "creator economy" during the SXSW 2022 conference keynote session. The industry veterans also discuss the entertainment industry's changing economics and offer a few predictions for the future.

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The Atlas Entertainment chief details the 13-year journey to bring the popular PlayStation video game to life on the big screen as the start of a family-friend adventure franchise. The producer -- who made his name with on big-budget blockbusters such as “The Dark Knight” trilogy, “Suicide Squad” and “Wonder Woman” -- discusses the evolving landscape for the film business as the streaming revolution takes root. “I'd certainly rather have a buoyant market than a market where there’s no money to make movies,” he says. 

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CEO Scott Greenberg and COO/president Melody Hildebrandt discuss how they've built an NFT-focused unit within the Fox conglomerate, exploring the disruptive potential of digital ownership for properties as varied as "The Masked Singer," WWE and SXSW.

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Kara Dioguardi is a songwriter, producer, music publisher, former artist, scholar, advocate for creators, two-season “American Idol” judge, label executive and talent scout. Her latest discovery: newcomer Gayle, whose “ABCDEFU” is a No. 1 radio hit. She looks back at her road to success, and ahead to a future where tech is working for creators as opposed to underpaying them.

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The media veteran who took the reins of Mattel in 2018 outlines the toymaker’s recent turnaround strategy and his focus on mining the IP value locked up in Mattel’s “treasure trove” of toy and game brands. Kreiz is drawing on his deep background as a TV and digital entrepreneur (Fox Kids Network, Endemol, Maker Studios) to guide Mattel through new creative partnerships with Margot Robbie, Tom Hanks, Greta Gerwig, Lena Dunham, Vin Diesel, among other notable stars. Kreiz has grand ambitions of building a Marvel-like universe out of Mattel’s family friend assets. “We’re not making movies to sell more toys,” Kreiz says. “We’re making movies people want to watch.”

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