Tribeca X 2023 Breakout Sessions

in partnership with

Tribeca X Breakout Sessions

 

During the program, Tribeca X will host three simultaneous breakout sessions. The breakouts are designed to take a more in-depth look at particular topics important to the industry today with session leaders and open discussion. After purchasing a pass, guests will receive more information on how to register and select a breakout session via email.

Why Distribution Cannot Be an Afterthought

 

With a multitude of traditional, new, and emerging channels, brands have many opportunities to distribute their programming.  But how and where are brands supposed to find the right audience, and at what cost? Asking the question once the content has been produced is too late – there must be a well-designed distribution plan implemented as early as plans for production and budget. Global Chief Content Officer for MediaBrands Brendan Gaul, Senior Brand Partnerships Executive for Grindr, Andy Kraut, and Group VP Future of Advertising and Head of P&G Studios, Kimberly Doebereiner will lead this peer-to-peer interactive discussion, looking at various platforms and audiences to consider when building a distribution strategy for brand content.

Brendan Gaul

Global Chief Content Officer, IPG Mediabrands

Brendan Gaul is one of the world’s foremost leaders in advertising and entertainment.  As Mediabrands’ Global Chief Content Officer, Gaul is responsible for identifying and managing strategic content opportunities across the company’s investment portfolio. He also serves as Global President of Mediabrands’ indie development and production entity, TRAVERSE32. Gaul’s recent producing projects include Dear Santa, The Series which Disney announced it was acquiring for ABC and Hulu at Tribeca 2022, the 2021 Tribeca X Best Feature film winner, Dear Santa, distributed by IFC Films which Gaul produced for USPS and 5B for Johnson & Johnson.  Co-directed by Academy-Award nominee Dan Krauss, 5B was the first branded feature to ever earn, and to date, maintain a 100% Rotten Tomatoes score as well as premiere as an Official Selection at Festival de Cannes.

Andy Kraut

Senior Brand Partnerships Executive, Grindr

Andy has been an active voice in the world of digital media since his career began in 2007. Over the years, he’s had the opportunity to work at companies like BuzzFeed, Yahoo!, Funny Or Die, and OMD. But for the past 3 and a half years, he’s been at Grindr where he gets to combine his passion for marketing and love of the gay community into the perfect career, growing brand partnerships across the globe. He lives with his husband in Brooklyn, NY.

Kimberly Doebereiner

Group VP Future of Advertising, Head of P&G Studios

Kimberly leads Future of Advertising, with a mission to create new experiences consumers look forward to, by defining innovative new ad experiences. As Head of P&G Studios, Kimberly develops and sells meaningful stories, creating relevant connections for P&G brands She is Executive Producer of Oscar short listed CODED and FreeVee docu series, The Tent Mender. Kimberly is a 30 year creative expert, having worked on many billion dollar brands, including currently as the creative guardian on Tide, winning over 25 industry awards, including a Grand Prix and Titanium Cannes Lion, and a Black Pencil. Kimberly is on the American Advertising Federation and Miami University’s Farmer School of Business Marketing boards.


Brand Storytelling: What We Mean, How We Talk About It, and How We Measure It

 

When you hear the phrase “brand storytelling”, what do you think of? Is it a film? A multi-episodic? An anthem? Product videos? Maybe it’s all, or none, of the above. However you define it, the confusion surrounding the term is causing a challenge for brands and storytellers alike.  In this session, the BrandStorytelling industry and academic team, assembled to conduct a global, multi-tiered deep dive into terminology and measurement, will unveil the first of their findings, discuss the strategic approach to their project, and dig deep in to why they think this work will change the industry. The team will propose terms and definitions the industry can rally behind, provide concrete examples for how each can be used to describe the different types of brand storytelling formats, explain how and why each are used most effectively, and discuss how they plan to create a new system of metrics to correctly assess the impact these stories are having. The session will involve a lively Q&A session with the committee leading this work, as well as a review of the full research-based strategy.

Megan Wells

Director, Development Executive & Showrunner

Meg is an award-winning filmmaker, development executive and branded entertainment leader. She has built and led internal and stand alone content studios, has helmed creative and production teams across the globe, and is deeply experienced in authentic and human-centered storytelling. She has worked with major international brands and clients, some of which include: Red Bull, Sony Entertainment, the Olympic Games, Google, Under Armour, Gillette, Lego, Paris St Germain, the NBA, Oakley, Gatorade, Ziploc, Delta Airlines, Acura, J&J and the Home Depot. As a filmmaker and director, she has written and directed more than a dozen multi-episodic and branded content series, and several feature length documentaries. As a Consultant, she is sought after for her ability to deeply understand human motivation and value systems, and strategically engineer powerful, audience centric narratives for brands to engage in more uniquely authentic ways.

Cindy Weisskopf

Managing Director, Brand, Promotions and Customer Experience, Synchrony Financial

Cindy Weisskopf is a senior marketing and branding executive who has worked with some of the most notable direct-to-consumer brands in entertainment, franchising, retail, and finance—including Disney, Universal Studios, Wendy’s, Marriott, Best Buy, and currently, Synchrony Financial. With bold new ideas and a collaborative approach, she conceives and delivers initiatives, campaigns, and partnerships that tell a brand’s story and drive bottom-line results. Data, analytics, and consumer insights are at the core of her strategies to elevate brand impact and hit aggressive targets. Her work has earned numerous awards, including from Tribeca X and Adweek.

Sarah Colamarino, Consultant

SC Blueprint Inc.

Sarah has deep expertise in brand strategy and creative content strategy and execution. She brings over 30 years of accomplishments and experience at Johnson & Johnson leading innovative brand, content and communication strategies. Most recently she was Vice President of Corporate Brand Equity and is now a consultant working with brands, non-profits, start-ups, professional associations and academic institutions on brand, marketing and communication strategies. In addition to high-performing paid advertising and innovative digital strategies, Sarah pioneered innovative films such as 5B and documentary Unseen Enemy. She demonstrated that brand, content and integrated communication can lead to growth and change, ignite organizations and create deep stakeholder engagement and advocacy.

Paul Laver, Co-founder

One Minute to Midnight

With 30+ exhilarating years in research industry, I’ve had the pleasure of collaborating with global giants like HSBC, Guinness, PokerStars, British Airways & TikTok. I’ve explored 50+ countries, immersing myself in the lives of diverse individuals, from Gen Z in California to the affluent in Turkey and homemakers in sub-Saharan Africa. My knack for innovation led me to create digital platforms from scratch, embrace QR codes, and revitalize neglected human values models, elevating insights to profound levels. Alongside my remarkable partners, our venture One Minute to Midnight is revolutionizing insight within influential tech, lifestyle, finance and entertainment enterprises.


Using A.I. to Power Story: A Case Study

 

Join AI artist Chad Nelson, Native Foreign Co-Founder Nik Kleverov, and OpenAI engineer, Joyce Lee, to discuss the creation and production process of Critterz - the first short, animated film created entirely with images generated by OpenAI's DALL-E generative AI program. Critterz is an animated science documentary turned comedy that introduces an unexplored forest inhabited by mysterious little critterz with unforeseen personalities. Discussion will include the future of storytelling with AI: What does the advent of AI storytelling mean for the industry? What are the possibilities and paths forward for storytellers and brands?

Chad Nelson

Creative Director & AI Artist

Chad Nelson is an award-winning creative director and technology strategist with over 25 years of expertise in designing cutting-edge interactive experiences and entertainment. His portfolio includes industry-leading video games, TV shows, mobile apps, and 3D tools for digital artists. As co-founder of technology start-ups Eight Cylinder Studios and WGT Media, Nelson has collaborated with Fortune 100 companies such as Microsoft, Intel, Sony, and Virgin. Chad also serves as a creative collaborator with OpenAI. His most recent creative venture, the animated short film "CRITTERZ," is a groundbreaking achievement as the first film with visuals generated entirely by OpenAI DALL-E, then brought to life by incorporating classic Hollywood animation techniques.

Joyce Lee

Engineer, OpenAI

Joyce Lee is an engineer at OpenAI, working with the DALL·E research team to advance the frontiers of AI and creativity. Previously she was an early member of the Tilt Brush team at Google, where she contributed to the development of the first VR storytelling tool. She is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Computer Science.

Nik Kleverov

Co-Founder, Native Foreign

Nik Kleverov is an Emmy-grade storyteller known for a clean commercial style juxtaposed with dirty design sensibilities. As a creative director, he’s won numerous advertising and creative industry awards. His work has raised millions of dollars and has earned billions of impressions.Notable work of Nik's includes main title sequences for hit shows like Netflix's "Narcos" and "Last Chance U." His company Native Foreign has been delving into IP, where its latest production of "CRITTERZ" explores how AI could be utilized for storytelling.


Jeremy Bailenson AR & VR Thought Leadership + Tour of Tribeca Immersive

 

Jeremy Bailenson and guests will congregate in Tribeca Immersive space. Jeremy will lead a 10-15 minute thought leadership discussion on the impact and changing landscape of AR & VR technology. Guests will then be invited to experience a selection of Tribeca Immersive projects (estimated up to 2-3). Guests are welcome to come back to Tribeca Immersive once Tribeca X program concludes.

Jeremy Bailenson

Founding Director, Virtual Human Interaction Lab

Jeremy Bailenson is one of the foremost leaders in the VR field, co-writer of 2011's Infinite Reality: Avatars, Eternal Life, New Worlds, and the Dawn of the Virtual Revolution and the founding director of Stanford University’s Virtual Human Interaction Lab. Bailenson has re-envisioned and further expanded the virtual ways in which people can represent themselves free of any bodily or behavioral restrictions. He is a committed, fine-grained designer and lifelong student of the virtual reality systems that have enabled individuals from all over the world to meet and interact within virtual space, conceiving of new, engrossing, and undeniably magical methods of verbal and nonverbal communication.

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

 

Co-sponsor

Media Partners