Networking Education Technology: NET Roundtables

• Thursday, March 21, 2024
• 4:30 pm – 7:00 pm

This is a pre-paid event

• HPA Members – $45
• Non-Members – $75 (Non-Member registration opens February 29, 2024)

Schedule

4:30 pm – Check-in opens
4:30 pm – 5:30 pm – Networking and Drinks
5:30 pm – 6:00 pm – Welcome remarks and roundtables begin
6:00 pm – 6:05 pm – Rotate to a new roundtable
6:05 pm – 6:30 pm – Roundtable #2
6:30 pm – 6:35 pm – Rotate to a new roundtable
6:35 pm – 7:00 pm – Roundtable #3

Sheraton Universal

• Starview Room
• 333 Universal Hollywood Dr, Universal City, CA 91608
• Valet parking: $24.00 per car for day use; Self-park: $16.00 per car for day use
  

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Paul Honrud
CEO, Diskover Data Inc

Table Topic: Tackling the challenges of distributed data and workforce, combined with multiple ongoing projects
(Co-moderating w/ Mark Stolnitz, Wasabi Technologies)
Poor data management ultimately leads to workflow and security inefficiencies, negatively impacting timelines and deliveries.

Paul Honrud brings more than 27 years of experience in data management and storage along with a wealth of knowledge in growing technology based businesses. He is the CEO of Diskover Data Inc. and was the Founder of DataFrameworks, technology focused on large scale data management, which was acquired by Dell in August 2018.  Paul is an inventor on U.S. Patent No. 7,672,854 “Data Storage Management Driven By Business Objectives” and authored U.S. Patent No. 7,430,513 “Data Storage Management Driven By Business Objectives”  Mr. Honrud served in business development roles at Baydel, and Systems Industries. Mr. Honrud holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science and a Masters Of Business Administrationfrom San Diego State University.

Mark Stolnitz
Director M&E, Wasabi Technologies

Table Topic: Tackling the challenges of distributed data and workforce, combined with multiple ongoing projects
(Co-moderating w/ Paul Honrud CEO, Diskover Data Inc)
Poor data management ultimately leads to workflow and security inefficiencies, negatively impacting timelines and deliveries.

From production assistant to network executive, Mark Stolnitz has worn many hats in the entertainment industry.  

At every stop along the way, he has endeavored to bring order to the chaos of the creative process.  Above and beyond his promo producer responsibilities at cable nets like TBS and Starz!, he built and supported databases to manage workflows and outputs and reduce inefficiencies.  

In the waning years of the last century came the career opportunity of a lifetime when he was asked to build the in-house post production facility, supporting all creative and content operations, for a fledgling cable network.  Over the next two decades, as VP and SVP of Media Operations, he would lead the effort to keep the Hallmark Channel on the technological cutting edge.

Believing in the philosophy of constant improvement, Stolnitz was a pioneer in file based workflows, IP based file delivery, object based storage, and digital/media asset management.

Today, as Director of M&E Sales for Wasabi Technologies, Stolnitz employs his experience and passion for process improvement to develop cloud based media workflows, including AI, with, and for, his industry colleagues. 

Stolnitz resides in Oxnard, CA with his wife and dog.
He spends his spare time fixing the boat he hopes someday to sell.
This bio was not written by AI but should have been.

Anthony Magliocco
Owner, Entertainment and Media Technology Marketing, Inc.

Table Topic: Restoration of Motion Pictures and Electronic Originated Content
(Co-moderating w/ Sheri Eisenberg, Warner Bros. Discovery)
Will creating a digital version be enough or should we create new film assets. Will AI lower the cost of restoration and enable more content to be preserved.

Anthony’s career includes over forty years leading high technology companies communications and business development with the content creation and distribution segments of the media and entertainment industry. Positions included sales, marketing, product management, and general management. Ten of those years spent bringing high-speed networking and telecommunications technology to the entertainment business. A large party of Anthony’s working life included working with International companies supporting their US operations or their export business.

EMTM my company is now celebrating 13 years in business, clients include Visual Effects Software and a VFX studio.

Pro-bono leadership work includes
SMPTE Los Angeles Board of Managers, Peer Group Governor of the Television Academy, Secretary, and Co-Chair of the Visual Effects Society Los Angeles Section, HPA Awards Committee, Marketing Committee UCLA Film and TV Archives and leadership roles for the Temple University Alumni Association in Los Angeles.

Anthony continues expanding endeavors in cinematography, photography, lighting, and audio production. He has been producing content for musical groups, non-profit organizations and students trying to enter the entertainment business.

Sheri Eisenberg
Senior Colorist, Warner Bros. Discovery

Table Topic: Restoration of Motion Pictures and Electronic Originated Content
(Co-moderating w/ Anthony Magliocco, Entertainment and Media Technology Marketing, Inc.)
Will creating a digital version be enough or should we create new film assets. Will AI lower the cost of restoration and enable more content to be preserved.

Sheri Eisenberg is a Senior Colorist at Motion Picture Imaging at Warner Bros. Discovery on the Warner Bros. lot. With a career that has spanned over 25 years, she is recognized for using color correction to its maximum affect to bring even the most challenging films from our past into our present. Her history includes modern feature films and television, but her passion lies with the classics.

Eisenberg approaches each feature and its filmmakers with a tremendous amount of respect and responsibility as she brings enormous dedication to the important work of restoring and preserving film history.  She finds great joy in not only preserving the filmmaker’s original colorintent, but also relishes in the opportunity to use technology in an effort maximize the impact each restoration will have. Her ability to collaborate with filmmakers adeptly allows her to navigate the intersection between historical authenticity and modern visual standards. Eisenberg’s experience includes working on a wide variety of motion pictures, spanning all decades from the 1920’s to more contemporary films, and with an expansive list of award-winning directors and cinematographers.

Her work has included restoring classic films in collaboration with The Film Foundation, including East of Eden and Beat the Devil. She also worked on the color of the theatrical re-release of the 40th Anniversary of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, approved by Steven Spielberg.

As part of the Warner Bros. MPI team, Eisenberg has worked on Casablanca, The Maltese Falcon, Twister, From Here to Eternity, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, Blood Simple, Anatomy of a Murder, His Girl Friday, Enter the Dragon, and Training Day.

Ryan Kido
CTO, Ateliere Creative Technologies

Table Topic: Harnessing the Power of AI to Simplify the Media Supply Chain – Fact or (and?) Fiction

Ryan Kido is the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at Ateliere Creative Technologies. With a proven track record in innovation and leadership, he has successfully spearheaded numerous initiatives, revolutionizing digital media workflows, digital content delivery, and cloud systems. Prior to joining Ateliere, Ryan has held technology leadership roles at prestigious companies such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft, Walt Disney Studios, and Sony Pictures Entertainment. With his extensive product experience, strong alignment with Ateliere’s vision, and a track record of bringing groundbreaking solutions to market, Ryan Kido is a dynamic and influential figure in the digital media industry.

Brian Compton
Founder and Managing Partner, Compton & Company

Table Topic: Accretive Revenue; Do you know the current value and potential value of your company?

Brian Compton is the founder and managing partner of Compton & Company. An acknowledged expert in management and strategic planning, Brian specializes in guiding companies through pivotal moments. He and his team assist businesses grappling with financial challenges, regulatory issues, leadership transitions and rapid growth. He has successfully partnered with clients
across a range of industries, including consumer products, manufacturing, retail, technology, entertainment and wealth management.

Brian brings more than 30 years of experience as a management consultant, corporate executive and entrepreneur. He founded two successful consultancies providing innovative tax relief and resolution services to individuals and businesses. His companies helped clients, large and small, resolve difficult liability issues quickly and regain financial health.

Previously, Brian served as senior vice president/finance and chief financial officer at Universal Studios Hollywood. His responsibilities spanned strategic and financial planning, accounting and information technology. He has also held senior financial positions with Coach, Villeroy & Boch and Pepsi Cola Bottling Group. He began his career as a CPA.

Brian is affiliated with KPMG, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and the California Society of CPAs. He is a member of the Turnaround Management Association and has served as an instructor at UCLA Extension. He has also been an advisory board member for Entrepreneurship and Small Business at UCLA and the Master of Science in Taxation program at CSUN.

Melody Kellis
Head of Post Production, Amazon

Table Topic: We all asked if we could, now ask if we should: The Ethics of Generative AI in Content Creation

Rory Gordon
Senior Colorist, Keep Me Posted/FotoKem

Table Topic: Color Management Across Departments

Rory Gordon is a senior colorist, with recent credits Rapsh!t for HBO Max, Unstable for Netflix, and the upcoming Parish for AMC. She recently joined the Keep Me Posted/FotoKem team where she continues serving episodic projects, as well as feature films. She is one of the most experienced HDR colorists working in television and streaming, with experience finishing over 130 episodes in HDR10 and Dolbyvision. Her work has appeared on HBO, Starz, Amazon, Netflix, Fox, and others. In 2021 she was nominated for an HPA award for her work on HBO’s Lovecraft Country. She has done independent research in applied color science/color communication and has been published in the SMPTE journal three times, in addition to speaking at many events including international audiences. She is a painter in her life away from digital image processing.

Christopher Nichols
Director of Special Projects, Chaos Labs

Table Topic: The effect of realtime Raytracing in virtual production

Christopher Nichols is the Director of Special Projects at Chaos Labs and is an expert on ray tracing and computer graphics. With over 30 years of experience in both VFX and Design, Chris has worked on such films as Maleficent, Oblivion and Tron: Legacy. He can also be heard regularly as the host of the CG Garage podcast which attracts more than 20,000 listeners.

Alan Lasky
DDO, NSA

Table Topic: Disruption or Evolution?:  AI’s Transformative Impact on Creativity
Will AI displace human creativity?  Or will it help to elevate human creative potential?

Alan Lasky is an accomplished business executive who has an extensive track record of delivering and selling new technologies within the media/entertainment and virtual reality sectors. Some of the technologies Alan has been instrumental in bringing to markets include LIDAR, high resolution digital acquisition, and 3D camera tracking among many others. He has worked for Silicon Graphics, Panavision, DALSA Digital Cinema, AWS, FARO, 8i and many other companies in the M&E sector.

Dan McGraw
COO, Meta Martis

Table Topic: Metadata and AI: Insider Secrets Revealed!
Whether you produce blockbusters, manage distribution, or create localized audio tracks, metadata is the currency of our content. And whenever there’s a bottleneck in a Media Supply Chain, it’s probably a metadata issue.

Every week it seems there’s a new revolutionary AI tool for generating images, editing video clips, or creating whole voice tracks out of thin air using text prompts.

Some say if we get AI right, metadata won’t even be needed.

Join Dan McGraw, for a lively discussion about what AI can do to help manage metadata, what’s the hype, and what the future could be.

Dan McGraw is seasoned media professional with over 30 years of experience in asset management, media production & strategic technology for film, television, commercials, and distribution. He has worked with and researched media AI technologies since 2018. Looking to use AI for more than extracting audio for transcriptions, he believes there are fundamentals to get right, before an intelligence of any kind can help.

He serves as the Chief Operations Officer at Meta Martis, a company that offers the same powerful mass migration of videotape to digital innovation used at the Library of Congress, major broadcasters, and studios, in a portable FlyPack.

With his expertise in digital asset management, video migration, taxonomy, metadata, XR/Dome/Immersive VR and optimizing media supply chains, he now helps clients unlock the value of their content, especially with migrating videotape archives, metadata governance, and AI tools.

He has also served as board member for the Alliance to Stop Slavery and End Trafficking, a non-profit organization that advocates for human rights and corporate responsibility through the California Transparency in Supply Chain Act.