This week's guest is Bob Berney. Bob Berney is an Alum of the RTF program here at UT Austin, and has gone on to become a leader in the field of film distribution. Bob began his career working at art house movie theaters in Houston and Dallas, where he learned the nuances of independent film distribution. He went on to found some of the most influential distribution companies in the industry, including IFC Films, Newmarket Films, and FilmDistrict. In 2005, Bob founded PictureHouse as a joint venture between HBO Films and NewLine Cinema and eventually acquired sole ownership. Throughout his career, Bob has guided many renowned films to box office success, including Pan's Labyrinth, Drive, Y Tu Mama Tambien, The Bick Sick, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, and many more. 

Bob Berney spoke to UT students on November 9th, 2023 and the conversation was hosted by RTF Associate Professor of Practice Micah Barber. They discussed his career trajectory, the scope of his work as the CEO of Picturehouse, and his views on the current state of the media industries.

MIC: Bob Berney, CEO of Picturehouse

This week's guest is Jordan Levin, who spoke with UT students on October 10, 2022. At the time of his visit, Jordan was General Manager at Rooster Teeth, an Austin-based media and entertainment company, where he was responsible for leading all aspects of the business including oversight of strategy, creative and operations. Before joining Rooster Teeth in 2019, Levin served as the CEO of Awesomeness, where he oversaw the growth of the company’s leading digital networks. He also managed its world-class film and television studio, which was behind hits like the Netflix feature film, To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, and Hulu’s critically acclaimed PEN15. In addition to his work at companies like the NFL and XBox, Jordan notably worked on the founding team of The WB Television Network, now known as the CW, where he built shows like Dawson’s Creek, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Felicity, Smallville, Gilmore Girls, and Charmed. 

At the time of Jordan's visit, Hollywood was focused on the streaming wars, the rise of IP, and a wave of mergers and acquisitions. The conversation was hosted by Dr. Alisa Perren, and focused on Jordan's career trajectory, the nuances of building a broadcast network, and the nature of digital content in the current media landscape.

MIC: Jordan Levin, Former General Manager of Rooster Teeth

This week's guest is Amanda Harrell, who visited a UT class on Unscripted Media on April 9th, 2024. Amanda is the former Executive Vice President of Business and Legal Affairs for the Alternative and Specials division of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios. This division of MGM focuses on unscripted content, as well as podcasts and live events. In this role, Amanda was responsible for ensuring the legality of all aspects of a project, seeing productions through from the early stages of development until they aired. Amanda began her career at Mark Burnett's production company, working on projects like EcoChallenge and The Apprentice before she stepped away to earn her law degree. After she passed the California Bar Exam, Amanda returned to Mark Burnett Productions in the Business and Legal affairs department, eventually rising to head of the division. 

The conversation was Co- hosted by Dr. Alisa Perren and Brian Edwards, who worked with Amanda at Mark Burnett Productions and served as co-instructor for the course. Amanda, Brian, and Alisa discussed Amanda's career trajectory, the details that legal divisions must keep in mind at all stages of a project lifecycle, and the nuances of international distribution.

MIC: Amanda Harrell, Former EVP, Business and Legal Affairs, Alternative and Specials, MGM Studios

This week's guest is Patrick Schumacker, who visited UT on April 1, 2024. Patrick is an Emmy-nominated Creator, Showrunner and Executive Producer at Delicious Non-Sequitur Productions, which he runs with his writing partner Justin Halpern with an overall deal at Warner Bros Television. Patrick is Executive Producer and Co-showrunner on the Emmy Award-winning hit series Abbott Elementary with Quinta Brunson, and also showruns Max’s five-season animated series Harley Quinn. Patrick has also been a writer-producer on TV series such as iZombie, Cougar Town, and How to be a Gentleman. 

Patrick Schumacker sat down with Dr. Alisa Perren to discuss how he got his start in Hollywood after graduating from UT, the differences between writing for live-action versus animated series, and the nuances of producing for broadcast television.

MIC: Patrick Schumacker, EP and Co-Showrunner of Abbott Elementary

This week's podcast features a panel on the Screenwriter/Agent relationship with screenwriters Davia Carter and Cindy McCreery and literary agent Jim Ehrich, who visited UT on September 11, 2023. Davia Carter is an alumna of UT Austin's MFA Screenwriting program, and now works as a writer/producer for the Sylvester Stallone-led series, Tulsa King. Davia's other credits include Snowfall, Queen of the South, and Katy Keene. Cindy McCreery is Chair of the department of Radio-Television-Film at UT Austin, where she teaches screenwriting. Cindy recently premiered her independently produced film I'll Be There at 2023's Austin Film Festival and also just finished writing a film called Honey Girls for Sony Pictures. Finally, Jim Ehrich is a literary agent at Rothman Brecher Ehrich Livingston and represents both writers and directors in film, television, and IP, including Cindy and Davia. This panel focuses on the relationship between a writer and their representation, and on how to navigate the world of professional screenwriting. 

At the time of recording, the unions for both actors and writers working in the Hollywood system were on strike. Davia, Jim, and Cindy spoke with Dr. Alisa Perren about their experiences breaking into the industry, the structure and day to day operations of a writers' room, and their thoughts on where the industry was heading.

MIC: The Screenwriter/Agent Relationship

We concluded the Fall 2023 semester with a panel featuring five leaders in the media industry right here in Austin. Alfred Gomez is a director of programming and development at Blind Nil Magnolia, an unscripted production company operating here in Texas. Jennifer Hutchins is a freelance producer and founder of All Entertainment Business, and has worked on series such as That Animal Rescue Show. Laura Kincaid is the Director of Operations for ATX, a thriving television festival here in Austin. Attia Rasul is a content hub editor for Atmosphere TV and a recent graduate of UT Austin. Finally, Vince Robinette is a Controller for Amazon Studios and Twentieth Century Fox, and has worked on shows like Friday Night Lights, Alias, and True Lies. 

Alfred, Jennifer, Laura, Attia, and Vince spoke to UT students on December 4th, 2023 and the conversation was hosted by Dr. Alisa Perren. They discussed their career trajectories, the scope of their work, and the Austin media industry landscape.

Austin Entertainment Industry Panel

This week's guest is Scot Cru, who works as an independent international television and media consultant and previously served as Executive Vice President of Global Formats and Unscripted Content at MGM Studios. In this role, Scot was responsible for the distribution of MGM formats worldwide and launched MGM UK. Before that, Scot worked as Executive Vice President of International for Mark Burnett Productions for fifteen years. In that time, Scot oversaw distribution and international production of United Artists Media Group shows and formats, including The Apprentice, The Bible, and Are you Smarter Than a Fifth Grader? In this position, Cru was responsible for the creation of international UAMG affiliate production companies, which have included those in France, Singapore and the United Kingdom.

Scot Cru visited UT on February 20, 2024 and spoke with students taking a class on unscripted media. The conversation was Co- hosted by Dr. Alisa Perren and Brian Edwards, who worked with Scot at United Artists Media Group and served as co-instructor for the course. They discussed Scot's career trajectory, the nuances of global distribution, and the nature of unscripted media production.

Scot Cru, Independent International Television & Media Consultant

This week, we're taking a look back at an MIC session with Elaine Frontain Bryant from Fall 2022. Elaine is Executive Vice President and Head of Programming at A&E Network, where she manages the A&E programming team and is responsible for overseeing the development, creation and execution of all programming for the network. In this role, Elaine won Emmy awards for launching the groundbreaking series Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath, as well as The Day I Picked My Parents. Shortly after this conversation, Elaine added the Lifetime and LMN networks to her purview as well. Elaine previously held positions at the History Channel and Magna Global Entertainment, and she is a graduate of Texas Christian University. 

Elaine Frontain Bryant spoke to UT students on November 7, 2022 over zoom and was hosted by Dr. Alisa Perren. In 2022, industry leaders were focused on streaming returns, mergers and acquisition, and were just beginning to consider the possible impacts of AI. This MIC session focuses on Elaine's career trajectory, the scope of her work at A&E, and the trends and issues within the production of unscripted media.

Elaine Frontain Bryant - EVP and Head of Programming at A&E - Nov. 7, 2022

This week's guest is Brent Weinstein, Chief Development Officer of Candle Media. At Candle, Brent oversees brands like Moonbug, Faraway Road Productions, and Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine. Before joining Candle Media, Brent worked at United Talent Agency, one of Hollywood’s largest and most influential agencies, for nearly 20 years. During his time at UTA, Brent served as Partner and Chief Innovation Officer, where he led the company’s entry into the Digital Talent business, and managed its Live Events, Podcasting, Ventures, Heartland and Web3 divisions. Brent graduated with his BA from USC, and earned his Law degree from the University of San Diego.

Brent Weinstein visited UT on October 24, 2024 and spoke with students taking Dr. Alisa Perren's Business of Hollywood class. The conversation was hosted by Dr. Perren, and they discussed Brent's career trajectory, the impact of his work at UTA and Candle Media, and his views on the current state of the media industries.

Brent Weinstein - Chief Development Officer at Candle Media - Oct. 21, 2024

Today, we’re bringing you the first episode in a special series about the Texas media industries. This podcast was recorded at the Texas Entertainment and Media Industries Symposium, which took place on September 20th, 2024 at the University of Texas at Austin. The symposium and this podcast were co-produced by the Center for Entertainment and Media Industries and the Department of Radio-Television-Film, and were made possible by the generous support of Wofford Denius. 


The Texas Entertainment and Media Industries Symposium showcased the breadth of film, TV, music, gaming, and digital media opportunities available in Texas in an all-day event on the UT Campus. This podcast series is also part of the Center’s larger focus on Texas Media, and will be included in a white paper compiling our research on the Texas media industries that will be published later this summer. Keep an eye out for that paper to learn more about what’s happening here in Texas. 


This episode of the series will feature the first panel of the symposium, which focused on Development. Panelists include Megan Creydt (Executive Producer of TV, Film, and Podcasts at Texas Monthly), Michael Garcia (President of 26 Keys Productions), Evan Narcisse (Senior Writer at Brass Lion Entertainment), and Sara Robertson (Chief Content Officer at Austin PBS).

Texas Entertainment and Media Industries Symposium: Development

Conversations with professionals throughout the entertainment industry. Created as part of a course in the Department of Radio Television and Film in the Moody College of Communication at the University of Texas at Austin. 

New tracks tagged #Media Industry Conversations