Creative Media Innovators Panel

How are the leaders of some cutting-edge digital companies putting innovation at the heart of their organizations? And how do these rapid changes affect entertainment, advertising, and brands?

Find out tonight in Los Angeles with leaders of three noteworthy companies based in LA and Vancouver, in a panel moderated by Prof. David Slocum, Faculty Director of the Berlin School’s Executive MBA program in Creative Leadership.

The free event – which starts at 6:30pm on February 7 – is produced in association with our partners at UCLA’s Anderson Business School MEMES Center as well as our friends at Think LA and the 4As.

The Berlin School of Creative Leadership and UCLA’s Anderson School of Business for a panel discussion with three Creative Media Innovators:

Bios:

Catherine Warren, Founder and President, FanTrust Entertainment Strategies

Catherine is a multiplatform strategist, specializing in digital financing, distribution and fans. Her work has influenced major media networks, Fortune 500 clients, game and mobile companies and advertising agencies, providing them with new ways to captivate audiences and capitalize on digital business development. Her client-side successes include strategic initiatives for major broadcast, broadband and mobile companies such as Bell Canada, Microsoft, PBS/KCTS and CBC; world-class producers including the NFB and the CSI franchise; as well as game and animation studios such as Nokia, Radical and Decode Entertainment. An interactive media veteran, Catherine’s executive productions include the Gemini Award-winning CTVNEWS.com.

Formerly the Chief Operating Officer of Blue Zone, an international leader in uniting television with new media, she spearheaded significant convergence broadcasting deals and developed media creation/distribution/monetization IP. Under Catherine’s leadership, this publicly traded Nasdaq company with a US$300 million market capitalization delivered broadcasters and producers new audiences and new revenue streams through its innovative technology. For more than a decade, Catherine has served on the Board of the Bell Broadcast & New Media Fund www.BellFund.ca, which has awarded $100M to convergence productions; she is also a member of the international Academy for Television Arts & Sciences, where she is a frequent judge for the digital Emmy Awards: and on the Executive Board of the United Nations flagship World Summit Awards for digital media. She has worked as a publisher and editor of 25 science and computing titles for children and adults and currently writes about media for The Huffington Post. Catherine has a degree in Physics from Reed College and a Masters from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. FanTrust provides media & entertainment brands with technologies and tactics for building Fan relationships & revenues, with new ways to captivate audiences, secure funding, grow through mergers & acquisitions and capitalize on innovation: www.FanTrust.com

Eric Perez, Group Creative Director  Blitz

Eric Perez, aka “Pep,” is responsible for the operation of the BLITZ Creative Department and ultimately accountable for all the solutions it develops. As GCD, Pep gets to direct a highly skilled group of multidisciplinary creative professionals who range from animators, designers and copywriters to 3D artists, art directors and photographers. Pep leverages 20+ years of creative experience and his vast knowledge of print, animation and interactive design help him to guide the teams to, as he puts it, “Realize, in a highly visceral way, the promise that BLITZ makes in its strategy and vision work.” Eric has held several creative leadership positions in his career in which he has served as associate creative director for an Adweek  Top 50 Interactive Agency and led teams in the launching of a number notable franchises, including HarryPotter.com and PiratesoftheCaribbean.com. Through Eric’s leadership, those respective agencies garnered awards from several prestigious groups, including the One Show, CLIO, Communication Arts Award of Excellence, Webby, Key Art and the Addy Awards. Pep relishes the opportunity to create and empower multidiscipline teams to craft engaging and useful digital ecosystems that surpass both client and consumer expectations.

When not relishing, Pep enjoys finding the best chili verde with his wife in any town they happen to find themselves. He also engages in epic Lego® battles with his two sons, and discussing the merits of graphic novels vs. classic American literature with his daughter. Pep’s also been known to teach old dogs new tricks, particularly pit bull terriers.

Sam Bergen VP, Creative Director, Deutsch

Bergen is a true child of the digital age. Starting with an Atari 2600 and Commodore 64, he has had a lifelong enchantment with interactive media. In his adult life, he transformed that passion into defining new media channels and merging digital and traditional to create truly integrated ideas for clients such as Toyota, EMI, Cisco, Mattel, Warner Brothers, Intel, Kraft, Universal Studios, Guinness, AMPM, Nature Made, The Beatles, and Participant Media.

Specializing in leading integrated creative teams, Bergen joined Deutsch in January 2011 to work on Sony PlayStation to bring all creative disciplines into one group. Previously, he spent three years at Ogilvy West where he was hired to help transition the shop from a traditional offering to a fully integrated one.

Before Ogilvy, he worked at Saatchi & Saatchi where he introduced Toyota to the gaming space, launched the integrated creative model, and worked on digital innovation for a variety of global clients. Prior to that, Bergen was at A.D.D Advertising specializing in guerilla and viral campaigns for film, music, and gaming clients. He began his professional career in post production at Kaleidoscope Creative Group editing film trailers.

Bergen’s work has been recognized across many international industry awards from Cannes, One Show, Effies, London International, Addy, O’Toole, Webby, Creativity, and Communication Arts. In 2007, he was named one of the top 10 young creatives by Adweek Magazine. Articles covering his work have been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, The International Herald Tribune, Creativity, AdWeek and countless international blogs and online publications. He brings experience across all media, from TV to mobile, and strives every day to bring big ideas to life for his client.
Bergen holds a Bachelor of Arts from Occidental College in Cognitive Science with a Neurobiology emphasis and two minors in both Film & New Media Arts and Psychology. He lives on the west coast, loves cars, running, music, and of course advertising.

The program begins at 6:30, with refreshments and networking from 8-9pm.  

Please register here for the event:  https://www.eventbrite.com/event/2909858465

The event is held in the Seqouia Room at UCLA Faculty Center on UCLA Campus at 480 Charles E Young Dr.,  Los Angeles.