Convention Highlights
Jim Louderback (Former GM and Current Advisor at VidCon), Pam Kaufman (President, Consumer Products and Experiences at Paramount Global), and Hank Green (CEO at Complexly LLC and co-founder of VidCon) kicked off the morning by welcoming everyone back to Anaheim for its flagship Show. As the first VidCon under Pam Kaufman’s leadership, Pam shared her experience creating deeper consumer connection to Paramount IP through products and immersive experiences as well as the expansion for VidCon from a global perspective, IP and merch. She also sparked a debate around NFTs with Hank Green, as well as their shared love of extending creator brands with podcasts, books and socks – Hank’s Awesome for Socks organization helped raise more than $700,000 for charity.
Charli D’Amelio took the stage with Lightricks where she shared some advice with creators, “Don’t tie yourself down to anything specific. Make whatever you feel like making at that point in time in your life. It’s not worth it to only make one type of thing. If you’re only making one type of content you can feel trapped. Enjoy the ride no matter which way it goes. Don’t think too much about it – just make what you enjoy making.”
Brent Weinstein, CDO at Candle Media chatted with Liz Jenkins, COO of Hello Sunshine and Andy Teatman, Managing Director at Moonbug Entertainment discussed how Candle Media’s portfolio companies are capitalizing on shifts in the media industry and consumer behavior, to build a next-generation media company.
Emma Jennings – Content Architect, Creative Works at Google – presented a six minute case study on the Only Murders in the Building campaign and how Hulu successfully broke through the content clutter, built a new fan base, shifted user behavior from binge-watching to weekly tune-ins, and connected with younger audiences to launch the new IP.
Jeremy Lewis, Senior Director, NFT Acquisition at crypto.com and Phil Ranta, CEO at Wormhole Labs, discussed how and why the Crypto.com Arena deal came to be, as well as how brands and creators today can leverage blockchain technology like NFTs to bring new and unique real-world value to their audiences.
Ruba Wilson & Elle Mills hosted VidCon’s Night of Pride featuring Bryce Xavier, Kent Boyd (PrideHouseLA), Mollee Gray (PrideHouseLA), Jeka Jane (PrideHouseLA), Chrissy Chlapecka, and Rebecca Black for a night of drag queen lip sync battle, music performances, astrological readings, and more in celebration of celebrating the LGBTQ+ community.
On the Outside, The Trills, Jaci Butler hosted a live karaoke session on the VidCon Festival Stage, presented by Invisalign.
Catherine Kim (Global Head of Digital News at MSNBC), Chris Berend (EVP of Digital at NBCU News Group), Janelle Rodriguez (SVP, NBC Nightly News, NBC News NOW and Breaking News Specials) joined Kerry Flynn (Media Deals Reporter, Axios Pro at Axios) for an insightful discussion on how NBCUniversal News Group – the #1 digital news organization – is reaching new audiences and innovating in the video space unlike any other.
Ahead of the expo hall floor opening, TheOdds1sOut announced their new Netflix show. The YouTuber, cartoonist, animator, author, and showrunner will make an appearance in tomorrow’s Night of Awesome event, presenting fans with an exclusive sneak preview ahead of his Q&A session on Saturday.
Phil Libin, CEO and Co-Founder of mmhmm and All Turtles sat down with Jim Louderback (Former GM and Current Advisor at VidCon) to discuss the metaverse, or what Phil Libin describes as “so stupid it makes me sad.”Lucy Rohden and Mariah Rose detailed how they’re breaking down barriers in the sports media world, in front of the lens and behind it in a panel with Andraiah (Dre) and Lugo (Director, Brand Partnerships at Wave Sports + Entertainment).Jaclyn Carter (Vice President at Shore Fire Media), Barbara Jones (Founder & CEO at Outshine Talent), Charly Salvatore (Founder & CEO at underscore works), and Johnny Cloherty (Co-Founder & CEO at Songfluencer) did a deep dive on the business of music on TikTok and discussed the future for labels on the social platform.Rachel Levin (RCLBeauty101) and Alannized discussed how content creation surpasses the beauty industry in a way that helps audiences discover who they are, shaping the future of social media into one where everyone can embrace themselves in spite of it all.Falon Fatemi (CEO & Co-Founder at Fireside), Kendall Schreiberg (Executive, UTA Entertainment & Culture Marketing, A Division of MediaLink at UTA), and Jake Webb (Founder at Slash Management) shared how audiences and creators are collaborating as well as creating in the metaverse using web3 technology.
Shelby Bier (Marketing Analyst, UTA Entertainment & Culture Marketing at United Talent Agency (UTA) and Edwin Wong (Senior Vice President, Insights & Innovation at Vox Media) presented a new joint study from UTA and Vox dissecting the metaverse and its future as well as what role brands, media, and entertainment IP can play in it.
Bryan Thoensen (Head of Content Partnerships at TikTok), Michael Scogin (VP, Straregic Partnerships at NBCU), and Meryl Johnson (VP, Digital Marketing at Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences) spoke about TikTok and the platform’s impact on entertainment and how partners are using the platform to captivate the next generation of fans. Thoensen ended the chat by saying, “TikTok is for everyone. There is content and content lanes and formats and approaches to storytelling for everyone.”
Manuel Bronstein, Chief Product Officer, Roblox and Jim Louderback (Former GM and Current Advisor at VidCon) chatted with top gamer MeganPlays about the future of Roblox. MeganPlays shared how she was “able to pay off her house with money she earned through Roblox.”
Sierra Schultzzie AdamRayOkay, Jony Sios, Sir Carter (@sirthestar), MissDarcei, and Naomiheartsxo joined the Everyone is Beautiful panel and gave advice to aspiring creators, “finding who you are as a person is such a journey. What makes it worthwhile are the people you’re inspiring,” – NaomiheartsxoMatt Bernstein (mattxiv), Cristian Dennis, Chrissy Chlapecka, Lily Renee (lilxxxbug), Makaela Ingemi (makingemi) headlined the Fashion Fluid session and discussed how fashion is a way to connect with their identity and culture in the Queer community.
