Welcome to TheGrill 2020: A Virtual Summit as Change in Hollywood Accelerates
Welcome to TheGrill 2020.
For the first time, we are convening our annual summit about the changes that technology brings to the entertainment industry — over a streaming platform. Now that seems almost normal. Eight months ago, I didn’t dream of such a thing.
But of course, eight months ago the world was a different place.
With a global pandemic impacting every aspect of entertainment, media, politics and culture, accelerating all the trends we’ve examined at TheGrill for the last 10 years, it is a remarkable moment in time, one that will be discussed, debated and analyzed for decades to come.
Also Read: What's the Future of Movies? Antoine Fuqua, Brad Bird, Andrew Cripps Join TheGrill 2020
The next three days will be part of the first draft of history. This year, TheGrill provides a forum for urgent issues that will define the immediate future of the entertainment business. We have worked hard to bring together some exciting voices that will speak to the moment we are in, taking on:
The future of theatrical exhibition The pivot of film festivals The challenges facing production The rush into streaming The steep, steep rise of gaming The podcasting craze The threat to society of social media Where innovation is coming from
We will welcome esteemed filmmakers from Antoine Fuqua and Brad Bird to Miranda July and documentarians Dawn Porter and Jeff Orlowski. We will welcome innovators at the intersection of technology and content — from the co-founders of FazeClan and Cameo to the head of Triller, one of TikTok’s chief competitors.
I always leave TheGrill a lot smarter than when it started, and this year I expect that to be especially true. I definitely miss seeing all of you who come every year, and will miss hanging out in the green room with our speakers. (I’ve seen some very cool deals get started in that room.)
Also Read: 'Kajillionaire' Writer-Director Miranda July Joins Spotlight Conversation at TheGrill 2020
But I’m pretty sure that we’re going to have an incredible experience, virtually. Allow me to thank our incredible sponsors who support this important conversation: Lifetime, Gerber Kawasaki, FilmRise, NFP, Audible, Sony, WarnerMedia, IDG Consulting, The Privacy Company, Starz, Skydance, HBO. Thanks to our partners Create the Writers Room, Young Entertainment Activists, dot.LA and the Breakthrough Prize.
Figuring out how to make this event happen virtually at the level of excellence you all expect was not easy. I want to thank our hard-working staff who embraced the challenge.
We have opened several panels to the public, check the schedule below and TheGrill website for that. Our opening panel today at 11 am is one of them.
You’ll be able to ask questions during most of our panels, and if you have a Full Access pass can join our Slack channel, called WrapConnect, to meet the speakers and meet each other. And you get the schedule for all of the panels and how to access them on TheGrill 2020 website.
Please share your thoughts with the hashtag #TheGrill2020 and follow us @thewrap and on our Facebook page. We’ll be streaming some of these panels on our social channels.
Onward to TheGrill!
ENTERTAINMENT
Tuesday, September 22
*all times pacific
11:00am: THE YEAR IT ALL CHANGED – MEDIA DISRUPTED (open to the public)
Ben Smith, Media Columnist, New York Times
Kara Swisher, Op-Ed Columnist, New York Times; Editor-at-Large, New York Media
Cheo Hodari Coker, Executive Producer, “Luke Cage”
moderated by Sharon Waxman, Founder & EIC, TheWrap
JOIN HERE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1kzKTpfgpcI&ab_channel=TheWrap
1:00pm: THE FUTURE OF THEATRICAL
Antoine Fuqua, Director of “Training Day”
Brad Bird, Writer & Director of “Incredibles
Andrew Cripps, President, International Theatrical Distribution, Warner Bros Pictures
Jesse Sisgold, President & COO, Skydance
Shelli Taylor, CEO, Alamo Drafthouse
moderated by Greg Foster, Owner, Principal, Foster+Crew
2:00pm: THE EVOLUTION OF FILM FESTIVALS PRESENTED BY NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL (open to the public)
Michael Barker, Co-President, Sony Pictures Classics
Tabitha Jackson, Director, Sundance Film Festival
Kathleen McInnis, Festival Strategist, Producer, Publicist
Jane Rosenthal, Oscar and Emmy nominated Producer & CEO and Co-Founder, Tribeca Enterprises
moderated by Steve Pond, Awards Editor, TheWrap
JOIN HERE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9EJoWe561Y
3:00pm: PRODUCER ROUNDTABLE: FILMMAKING IN THE NEW ERA PRESENTED BY NFP AND LIFETIME
introduction by Ross Garner, SVP Entertainment, NFP
Linda Berman, Head of Scripted, Lincoln Square Productions at ABC & Producer, “Stolen by My Mother”
Lilly Burns, Co-Founder, Jax Media & Executive Producer, “Russian Doll,” “Broad City”
Dominique Butler, Assistant VP Entertainment, NFP
John Sloss, Principal, Cinetic Media & Producer, “Green Book”
Tim Zajaros, Co-Founder, Producer, Armory Films & Producer, “Mudbound,” “The Peanut Butter Falcon”
Andrew Sugerman, Co-Founder, Invisible Narrative, Producer, “Songbird”
co-moderated by Mark Rieder, Head of Innovation, NFP and
co-moderated by Dawn Porter, Director, “John Lewis: Good Trouble”
TECHNOLOGY
Wednesday, September 23
*all times pacific
11:00am: BREAKTHROUGH PRIZE ANNOUNCEMENT
Clare Burgess, Director of Relations, Breakthrough Prize
Sharon Waxman
11:00am: SPOTLIGHT CONVERSATION WITH
MIRANDA JULY, WRITER & DIRECTOR, “KAJILLIONAIRE”
Miranda July, Writer & Director, “Kajillionaire”
Moderated by Sharon Waxman
1:00pm: STREAMING REVOLUTION: STRATEGIES IN A CROWDED MARKETPLACE PRESENTED BY FILMRISE
Danny Fisher, CEO FilmRise
Colin Petrie-Norris, CEO, Xumo
Keith Le Goy, President, Worldwide Networks & Distribution, Sony Pictures Television
Amy Kuessner, SVP, Content Strategy & Global Partnerships, Pluto TV
Rob Holmes, VP, Programming, Roku
Moderated Tim Baysinger, Senior TV Reporter, TheWrap
3:00pm: BUILDING INCLUSION FROM WITHIN PRESENTED BY LIFETIME AND WARNERMEDIA IN PARTNERSHIP WITH CREATE THE WRITERS ROOM AND YOUNG ENTERTAINMENT ACTIVISTS
Inclusion I: It’s a Movement, Not a Moment
Eirene Donohue, Writer
Page Hurowitz, Producer & Co-Owner, Push It Productions & Executive Producer, “Tiffany Haddish: Black Mitzvah”
Nika King, Actor, “Euphoria”
Olivia Morris, Founder & CEO, Black Monarch Entertainment
Smriti Mundhra, Creator, “Indian Matchmaking”
Mykhanh Shelton, SVP Enterprise Inclusion, WarnerMedia
moderated by Carla Renata, Film Critic & Producer/Host of “The Curvy Critic with Carla Renata”
Inclusion II: Using Your Platform for Change
Kalen Allen, TV Personality
Effie Brown, Award-Winning Producer & CEO, Gamechanger Films
JLove Calderón, Activist, Co-Founder, Inspire Justice; Managing Partner, BWA Studios
William Catlett, Actor “Charm City Kings,” “Lovecraft Country”
Maz Jobrani, Actor/Comedian
moderated by Sonari Glinton, CEO, Executive Producer, DeLite! Media
INNOVATION
Thursday, September 24
*all times pacific
11:00am: GAMING NEXT LEVEL I: DATA & INSIGHT PRESENTED BY IDG CONSULTING
Yoshio Osaki, President and CEO, IDG Consulting
GAMING NEXT LEVEL II: EXPERTS ON AN INDUSTRY SURGE PRESENTED BY GERBER KAWASAKI
Ross Gerber, President & CEO, Gerber Kawasaki
Yoshio Osaki, President & CEO, IDG Consulting
Adrian Montgomery, CEO, Enthusiast Games
moderated by Sharon Waxman
1:00pm: THE POWER OF PODCASTS: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW PRESENTED BY AUDIBLE
Michael Bosstick, CEO, Dear Media
Rachel Ghiazza, EVP, Head of US Content, Audible
Van Lathan, Host, “Higher Learning”
Jes Wolfe, CEO, Rebel Girls
moderated by Sean Burch, Tech Reporter, TheWrap
2:00pm: CLIPS & CONVERSATIONS: ‘THE SOCIAL DILEMMA’ PRESENTED BY THE PRIVACY CO. & PRIIV
Jeff Orlowski, Writer & Director of “The Social Dilemma”
moderated by Sharon Waxman
FOLLOWED BY A PRESENTATION OF PRIIV
by Craig Danuloff, founder, The Privacy Company
5:30pm: THE NEXT WAVE OF INNOVATORS: PRESENTATION OF THE 2020 INNOVATORS LIST AND ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION PRESENTED BY SONY IN PARTNERSHIP WITH DOTLA
introduction by Bill Baggelaar, EVP & CTO, Sony Pictures Entertainment | EVP & GM, Sony Innovation Studios
TheWrap’s 2020 Innovators List Coming Soon
To purchase tickets go to: http://thegrill.thewrap.com
Read original story Welcome to TheGrill 2020: A Virtual Summit as Change in Hollywood Accelerates At TheWrap
