More than 450 industry professionals posted up inside the Beverly Hilton ballroom in Beverly Hills last Wednesday as ThinkLA took a peek “Behind the Curtain.”
Presented by Nexxen, the four-hour brunch program featured a series of panel discussions designed to detail the complexities, challenges and victories of mounting marketing campaigns from idea to execution amid a shifting entertainment landscape.
ThinkLA — founded to promote Los Angeles as a network of creativity and innovation in media, marketing, entertainment and advertising — welcomed senior leadership from top studios and companies around town including Sony, Warner Bros., Disney, Amazon, UTA and more.
Sony Motion Picture Group president Josh Greenstein participated in a fireside chat, sitting down for a wide-ranging discussion with Jon Purpura, director of sales, entertainment and media for United Airlines. The Hollywood Reporter’s contributing editor Stacey Wilson Hunt moderated a deep dive discussion about key marketing campaign moments that featured Amazon Creative Studios’ Dana Flowers, FX’s Stephanie Gibbons and Cakewalk Entertainment’s George Leon. UTA’s Joe Kessler, a partner and global head of the agency’s IQ division, unveiled marketing and consumer data during a special presentation.
A creator community panel featured TikTok’s Edvin Dapcevic, creator Juju Green, Universal Pictures’ Alex Sanger and MediaNug’s Sam Steadman. Meanwhile, one panel focused specifically on music with the likes of A White Lining Advisory’s Autumn White, Warner Bros. Pictures’ music licensing executive Brian Lambert, UTA’s Cori Gadbury and Disney Music Group’s Paulo DaCosta. The latter panel highlighted the process of signing onto a project, selecting artists for a soundtrack, marketing the music and what it takes to rollout a hit record across the globe.
Credited with steering the ship for ThinkLA were executive director Don Lupo, event managers Mikaela Wilson and Brianna Brady and partnership director Linda Schwab. The entertainment brunch committee consisted of co-chairs Autumn White of A White Lining Advisory and Michelle Kim of Ogury, along with TikTok’s Rory O’Connor, Doing Things’ Danielle Klein, The Hollywood Reporter president Joe Shields, Creativ Strategies’ Sara Yazdani, Goodway Group’s Gregg Rubin, BET’s Kim Lewis, UnicornCG’s Marina Paganucci, RadicalMedia’s Frank Scherma, DiGennaro Communications’ Sam Schoenholtz, Zenith’s Bella Wadhwani, Burns Entertainment’s Maggie Perlich, Fandom’s Allison Mellon and NGLmitú’s Vanessa Vigil.
Joining Nexxen as sponsors were The New York Times, Samsung Ads, Samba TV, Zynga Ads, Ranker, Doing Things, Fandom, Digital Turbine and Avatar Labs. See views from inside the brunch below. More information about the event can be found here.
(L-R) THR contributing editor Stacey Wilson Hunt, Amazon Creative Studios’ Dana Flowers, FX’s Stephanie Gibbons and Cakewalk Entertainment’s George Leon
Chrissy Hampton/Courtesy of ThinkLA
(L-R) Joe Kessler, UTA partner and global head of the agency’s IQ division, is seen during his deep dive data presentation.
Chrissy Hampton/Courtesy of ThinkLA
(L-R) A White Lining Advisory’s Autumn White, Warner Bros. Pictures’ Brian Lambert, UTA’s Cori Gadbury and Disney Music Group’s Paulo DaCosta during the music discussion.
Chrissy Hampton/Courtesy of ThinkLA
(L-R) TikTok’s Edvin Dapcevic, pop culture commentator and creator Juju Green, Universal Pictures’ Alex Sanger and MediaNug’s Sam Steadman participate in a panel about all things creators and marketing.
Chrissy Hampton/Courtesy of ThinkLA