The Story Series Podcast with Brandon Violette (For Writers Who Break The Rules)

This bonus episode of The Story Series is brought to you in collaboration with The Pitch Docs, an online platform founded by "Shimmer and Shine" Creator Farnaz Esnaashari that pairs first time show creators with seasoned veterans: https://thepitchdocs.com

Freddy Tutiven is the Creative Director and co-owner of Fun Ideas LLC a content creator, product design and development studio. Before starting his studio, Freddy was the Vice President/Creative Director of Toys and 3D at Paramount Consumer Product overseeing toys creatively across ViacomCBS Media Networks, working on brands like SpongeBob SquarePants, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Blue's Clues and You, Star Trek and many more. He also worked and consulted for many major entertainment studios and toy companies, including Sesame Street, Disney, Mattel, Tyco, and Spinmaster.

🎙️In this episode, we explore:

✅ The industry shift from original toys to licensed IP

✅ Why play patterns are the key to both toys and storytelling

✅ Where Freddy finds inspiration (from '80s nostalgia to Asia's newest trends)

✅ And how to refresh a brand + show with locations, vehicles, and costumes

📌 The story doesn't have to end here. If you want to get more time with Freddy or other industry professionals, please visit: https://thepitchdocs.com/product/freddy-tutiven/

📬 Have you signed up for the newsletter yet? Each week I share reflections, favorite moments, and what stuck with me from the latest episode: https://www.storyseriespodcast.com

🎥 Prefer to watch this episode? Catch it on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@bviolette?feature=shared

🔔 Like what you hear? Subscribe to The Story Series Podcast, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who needs to hear it.

Brett Sorem is the author of Land On Both Feet: Grind Through Life with a Skateboarder's Mindset. His journey has taken him from carving the streets of San Diego to skitching cabs in New York City, making nearly every major metropolitan area his home at one point or another. Through it all, one thing remained constant: his skateboard was always by his side. By the age of 20, he was sponsored by big names like Billabong, Oakley, and Savier Shoes, but he faced a life-defining choice - continue his education or pursue his skateboarding dream full-time.

🎙️In this episode, we explore:

✅ Growing up between baseball and skateboarding

✅ Making sponsor tapes and learning rejection early

✅ Why failure and resilience are baked into skateboarding

✅ Writing Land On Both Feet and turning skate lessons into life lessons

✅ And why you should never push mongo (and what that means).

📌 Learn more about Brett: https://www.landonbothfeet.com/

📬 Have you signed up for the newsletter yet? Each week I share reflections, favorite moments, and what stuck with me from the latest episode: https://www.storyseriespodcast.com

🎥 Prefer to watch this episode? Catch it on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@bviolette?feature=shared

🔔 Like what you hear? Subscribe to The Story Series Podcast, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who needs to hear it.

This bonus episode of The Story Series is brought to you in collaboration with The Pitch Docs, an online platform founded by "Shimmer and Shine" Creator Farnaz Esnaashari that pairs first time show creators with seasoned veterans: https://thepitchdocs.com

Mary is a creative, quirky, master of story spells. She is Emmy nominated for Best "Pre-school Show" for "Justin Time", developed and executive produced Netflix's "True and the Rainbow Kingdom", co-creator of Disney Jr's "Pikiwik Pack", developed girl led action series "Jade Amor", and Youtube Original "Behind the Beats". One of the EPs on the Oscar nominated feature "The Breadwinner" - an honour. She mentors diverse and upcoming voices through programs at WIFT and WIA. WGC member. Mary is most proud of her son who is in his second year at McMaster.

🎙️In this episode, we explore:

✅ How creating the feeling of a pitch is just as important as the pitch itself

✅ Following up without being annoying

✅ The secret to short, powerful emails

✅ Best and worst career advice she's ever received

✅ And why showing green lawns on animated TV shows needs to stop

📌 The story doesn't have to end here. If you want to get more time with Mary or other industry professionals, please visit: https://thepitchdocs.com/product/mary-berdin/

📬 Have you signed up for the newsletter yet? Each week I share reflections, favorite moments, and what stuck with me from the latest episode: https://www.storyseriespodcast.com

🎥 Prefer to watch this episode? Catch it on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@bviolette?feature=shared

🔔 Like what you hear? Subscribe to The Story Series Podcast, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who needs to hear it.

Guy Toubes is an Emmy-nominated writer, executive producer, and showrunner who burst onto the children's television scene with Mowgli: The New Adventures of the Jungle Book, a series he co-created and produced for Fox Kids Network. Guy is also the Executive Producer and showrunner of the Emmy and Annie nominated series The Stinky & Dirty Show on Amazon Prime, the smash hit series CoComelon Lane on Netflix, and the upcoming epic action-adventure Messi & The Giants on Disney+.

🎙️In this episode, we explore:

✅ Pitching Mowgli: The New Adventures of the Jungle Book with a live bear

✅ The professor who told him "arrogance" is essential for writers

✅ Panic vs. calm in the writers' room (and why both are contagious)

✅ The accidental origin of The Stinky & Dirty Show

✅ And why you've got to love what you do

📌 Learn more about Guy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/guy-toubes-71915/

📬 Have you signed up for the newsletter yet? Each week I share reflections, favorite moments, and what stuck with me from the latest episode: https://www.storyseriespodcast.com

🎥 Prefer to watch this episode? Catch it on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@bviolette?feature=shared

🔔 Like what you hear? Subscribe to The Story Series Podcast, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who needs to hear it.

Emily Brundige is the creator of GOLDIE on Apple TV+, based on her award-winning short film of the same name, and the mind behind the cult-favorite YouTube series Pubertina. She served as Head Writer on the Emmy- and Annie-winning Hilda (Netflix) and Big Nate (Nickelodeon/Paramount+), and has over a decade of experience crafting original, heartfelt, and slightly oddball stories for kids and families. She recently self-published A Guide to Developing Animated Shows, a practical and personal resource for aspiring creators.

🎙️In this episode, we explore:

✅ How a scrappy YouTube series launched her career

✅ Creating shows that center outsider voices

✅ Writing the book she wished she had when starting out

✅ The reason proof of concept matters when pitching major studios.

✅ And why you can't just wait in this industry - you have to create

📌 Learn more about Emily: https://www.emilybrundige.com

📬 Have you signed up for the newsletter yet? Each week I share reflections, favorite moments, and what stuck with me from the latest episode: https://www.storyseriespodcast.com

🎥 Prefer to watch this episode? Catch it on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@bviolette?feature=shared

🔔 Like what you hear? Subscribe to The Story Series Podcast, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who needs to hear it.

This bonus episode of The Story Series is brought to you in collaboration with The Pitch Docs, an online platform founded by "Shimmer and Shine" Creator Farnaz Esnaashari that pairs first time show creators with seasoned veterans: https://thepitchdocs.com

Dimitris Dodoras, born in Cologne, Germany, is an award-winning composer whose musical journey began with piano lessons and early exposure to opera, theater, and film. He earned his Bachelor in Music Composition from the Prince Claus Conservatory and University of the Arts, performing internationally with the Creative Ensemble. His work spans films, commercials, and orchestration for viral projects, with accolades including the Skoda Soundtrack Award and a Hollywood Music in Media Award for Fellini Forward. Passionate about storytelling through music, Dimitris aims to transport audiences into immersive worlds that connect and inspire.

🎙️In this episode, we explore:

✅ Common mistakes new artists make and how to avoid them

✅ Why he sees himself as a storyteller through music

✅ How silence can be more powerful than sound

✅ And what he looks for in potential collaborators on The Pitch Docs

📌 The story doesn't have to end here. If you want to get more time with Dimitris or other industry professionals, please visit: https://thepitchdocs.com/product/dimitris-dodoras/

📬 Have you signed up for the newsletter yet? Each week I share reflections, favorite moments, and what stuck with me from the latest episode: https://www.storyseriespodcast.com

🎥 Prefer to watch this episode? Catch it on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@bviolette?feature=shared

🔔 Like what you hear? Subscribe to The Story Series Podcast, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who needs to hear it.

Andy Guerdat is a TV writer/producer whose credits range from "Mork & Mindy" to "Sister, Sister" to "Herman's Head," which he created. In addition to half-hour comedies, he has written hour-long dramas and TV movies, as well as animated series, including "George of The Jungle," "Higglytown Heroes," "Sheriff Callie's Wild West," "Fancy Nancy," "Paw Patrol" and "Robogobo." He has been Emmy-nominated three times for Outstanding Writing for animation. His play "Red Remembers" was produced at the Berkshire Theater Festival.

🎙️In this episode, we explore:

✅ Robin Williams in the studio: what was scripted vs. improvised

✅ What really happens inside a sitcom writer's room

✅ Fighting ageism and his second act in animation

✅ Pitching a take on what became Disney's The Lion King

✅ Why Hollywood is built for dreamers (and how to stay one)

📌 Learn more about Andy: https://youtube.com/@thegodraft?feature=shared

📬 Have you signed up for the newsletter yet? Each week I share reflections, favorite moments, and what stuck with me from the latest episode: https://www.storyseriespodcast.com

🎥 Prefer to watch this episode? Catch it on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@bviolette?feature=shared

🔔 Like what you hear? Subscribe to The Story Series Podcast, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who needs to hear it.

This bonus episode of The Story Series is brought to you in collaboration with The Pitch Docs, an online platform founded by "Shimmer and Shine" Creator Farnaz Esnaashari that pairs first time show creators with seasoned veterans: https://thepitchdocs.com

Scott Gray is an Emmy and Writers Guild Award-winning writer with over two decades of experience in animation. He's written for Rugrats, Pupstruction, LazyTown, Rusty Rivets, Mecha Builders, and more, with credits across Nickelodeon, Disney, Netflix, and Sesame Workshop. He's served as a head writer, staff writer, and story editor, and has also contributed to comic books, video games, and national comic strips. Known for his sharp dialogue, character-driven storytelling, and versatility, Scott has helped shape some of the most beloved children's shows on TV.

🎙️In this episode, we explore:

✅ Breaking in with zero credits

✅ The dos and don'ts of pitching your first show

✅ When to push back on network notes

✅ What Scott looks for in a great sample

✅ And why preschool writing might be harder than sitcoms

📌 The story doesn't have to end here. If you want to get more time with Scott or other industry professionals, please visit: https://thepitchdocs.com/product/scott-gray/

📬 Have you signed up for the newsletter yet? Each week I share reflections, favorite moments, and what stuck with me from the latest episode: https://www.storyseriespodcast.com

🎥 Prefer to watch this episode? Catch it on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@bviolette?feature=shared

🔔 Like what you hear? Subscribe to The Story Series Podcast, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who needs to hear it.

John S. Couch is a visionary writer, designer, and technologist dedicated to unlocking creative potential. He leads Galvanize Studios, which has partnered with Amazon Prime Video and Verses.ai on future-focused design and strategy. Formerly Chief Experience Officer at Blockchain Creative Labs (Fox) and VP of Product Design at Hulu, John has shaped groundbreaking user experiences - from Hulu's major redesigns to web3 innovation in content creation. His book, The Art of Creative Rebellion, reflects his belief that curiosity and courage are essential to progress.

🎙️In this episode, we explore:

✅ The tension between rules and rebellion in creative work

✅ How AI is changing (and challenging) the soul of storytelling

✅ Why design is empathy in action

✅ What it takes to creatively thrive inside corporate walls

✅ And how to lead with love, not fear

📌 Learn more about John: https://www.john-couch.com

📬 Have you signed up for the newsletter yet? Each week I share reflections, favorite moments, and what stuck with me from the latest episode: https://www.storyseriespodcast.com

🎥 Prefer to watch this episode? Catch it on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@bviolette?feature=shared

🔔 Like what you hear? Subscribe to The Story Series Podcast, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who needs to hear it.

10 guests. 10 answers. 1 powerful question: "What's a rule in your industry you don't follow or believe in?"

In this bonus episode, we revisit the answers from the last 10 guests - a mix of showrunners, startup founders, fitness experts, and creative disruptors - each offering their own raw, unfiltered take on the rules they've chosen to break.

From ignoring screenwriting "don'ts" to saying no to gigs that don't align with your life to tossing out the 10,000-hour myth - this is a masterclass in risk-taking, reinvention, and rewriting the rules.

⚠️ Warning: This episode may increase your risk tolerance.

00:00 – Intro

01:17 – Marlyn Benitez – Episode #11

02:18 – Rick Suvalle – Episode #12

03:28 – Mengting Hou – Episode #13

05:31 – Mike Reagan – Episode #14

08:14 – Noël Stark – Episode #15

09:07 – Farnaz Esnaashari – Episode #16

09:58 – Daniel Calvisi – Episode #17

13:26 – Tanya Memme – Episode #18

15:02 – Jeff Aghassi – Episode #19

17:14 – David Levy – Episode #20

20:27 – Outro

📝 Have you signed up for the newsletter yet? Each week I share reflections, favorite moments, and what stuck with me from the latest episode: the-story-series-podcast.kit.com

🎥 Prefer to watch this episode? Catch it on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@bviolette?feature=shared

🔔 Like what you hear? Subscribe to The Story Series Podcast, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who needs to hear it.