SHERMAN OAKS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ricky Ray Butler, CEO of Branded Entertainment Network (BEN), and Derral Eves, VidSummit and Creatus founder, announced a new podcast today, Creative Disruption, that will offer insights and stories from leading creators, writers, producers and marketers on how the worlds of advertising, entertainment and data science are converging. Creative Disruption will give a voice to disrupters in the entertainment industry who wouldn’t otherwise have a platform to educate their peers directly.
“I am thrilled to work alongside Derral and help others within the industry navigate this fast-changing landscape,” said Ricky Ray Butler, CEO of BEN. “Brands and creators are struggling to keep up with consumers’ rapidly evolving viewing habits. We started Creative Disruption to share ideas and experiences from the rock stars of entertainment, technology and marketing. There’s nothing else out there that explores what makes these disruptors tick, their pathways to success, and where they believe entertainment and content platforms are headed.”
Creative Disruption highlights the innovative approaches that are getting results and transforming the way both advertising and content is approved, created, distributed and consumed. Butler and Eves will speak to leaders who work both in front of and behind the camera, and will cover a range of topics from the trends and developments that are shaping the way creators and marketers reach audiences, to the balance between data and emotion in creating content, to innovative approaches and best practices for monetizing that content.
“Working with Ricky Ray to bring Creative Disruption to life has been a fantastic collaboration. The industry has evolved at a rapid pace and we both noticed the need to give those disrupting it a bigger, more prominent voice,” said Derral Eves, founder of VidSummit and Creatus. “When it comes to creating content and establishing genuine relationships with consumers, there are so many moving parts. Sharing the stories and knowledge of those on the frontlines can help us all understand what’s on the horizon and how our own messages can break through.”
Initial guests on the podcast include leading influencers, writers, producers and marketers such as:
- Chris Moore. Chris is one of the most successful producers in Hollywood. His films include the Oscar-award winning Manchester by the Sea – which was one of the first Amazon films to have a theatrical release – the Oscar-award winning Good Will Hunting, and the box-office hit American Pie. Chris has also broken new ground in television and music, having co-founded Live Planet along with Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Sean Bailey, and produced the Emmy-nominated Project Greenlight. Chris is currently developing the second season of The Chair, which puts burgeoning creatives in the director’s chair for the first time.
- Matthew Patrick and Stephanie Patrick. Matthew and Stephanie are one of the most successful couples on YouTube. Matthew Patrick, also known as MatPat, is best known as the creator and narrator of the YouTube channels The Game Theorists, The Film Theorists and YouTube’s largest livestreaming channel, GTLive, which he co-hosts with his wife and fellow YouTube star Stephanie Patrick. Their channels are currently at 20 million subscribers and 60 million monthly views. Matthew and Stephanie, who manages the business side of their partnership, are co-owners of Theorist Media, where they use data-based methods to accelerate the growth of social media audiences, particularly on YouTube.
- Caleeb Pinkett. Caleeb is one of the fastest rising producers in Hollywood. As Head of Overbrook Film and Television, which is the production home of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, Caleeb has helped launch the YouTube Premium hit Cobra Kai, Netflix breakout hit To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, and the feature film I am Legend. Caleeb has also been instrumental in increasing Will and Jada’s presence on social platforms like YouTube and Facebook Watch. Caleeb is currently working on the second season of Cobra Kai as well as Food & Familia, an ABC television show starring Danny Trejo.
- Rafi Fine and Marc Hustvedt. Rafi and Marc lead one of the most successful studios creating entertainment for YouTube. Rafi, along with his brother Benny, are the founders of Fine Brothers Entertainment, which operates three successful channels: “TheFineBros”, “TheFineBros2” and “React”. FBE currently produces fifteen serialized shows every week for over 30 million subscribers. Marc Hustvedt is FBE’s recently appointed CEO and an internet video veteran in his own right. Marc has an impressive track record of establishing and managing other digital-first companies, such as Tubefilter, the Streamy Awards, and Supergravity Pictures.
- Liam Chivers. Liam is a highly successful talent manager and sales specialist whose company, OP Talent, has pioneered YouTube and online influencer management in the U.K. Since founding OP Talent in 2012, Liam has educated hundreds of global brands and entertainment companies on the value and best practices of brand marketing and content promotions, utilizing the modern-day mainstream platforms of YouTube and social media. Liam has been instrumental in developing once unknown individuals into some of today’s most powerful online influencers.
- Jon Youshaei. Jon is a YouTube marketing guru, business writer and creator of Every Vowel, a popular workplace cartoon series called “The Dilbert for Millennials.” As YouTube's Head of Creator Product Marketing, Jon worked with the platform’s stars to grow their communities and create viral content with millions of views. Today, he works at Instagram as Product Marketing Manager for their new video platform, IGTV. Jon has also been named a top marketer by Forbes and Entrepreneur.
- Jim Louderback. Jim is one of the most respected figures in digital media with a 20-year history of leadership at the intersection of publishing and technology. Jim currently runs VidCon as a stand-alone division of Viacom. VidCon is the world’s largest online video conference in Anaheim, Amsterdam, London and Australia. Jim joined VidCon in 2014 as editorial director of the industry track and took over as CEO in 2017. In early 2018 he played the leading role in the sale of VidCon to Viacom. Throughout his career, Jim has earned a reputation as a visionary who excels at leading startups, growth businesses and turnarounds. His most well-known role prior to VidCon was as CEO of Revision3, where he helped drive a 20x increase in viewers and a 12x increase in revenue from 2007 to 2012.
Running on a weekly basis, full-length episodes of Creative Disruption can be found on YouTube, with shorter videos released on Facebook Watch, LinkedIn and Twitter. Audio versions of the podcast will be available on Spotify, iTunes, and wherever podcasts can be streamed.
To listen to Creative Disruption, please visit the podcast’s YouTube page.
About BEN Group, Inc.
BEN is a global entertainment marketing company leveraging deep learning technology to better predict and improve the success of brand integration and influencer marketing campaigns. BEN’s client roster includes Microsoft, General Motors, Dyson, Ubisoft, Unilever, P&G, and General Mills. Our global rights clearance and licensing business offers integrated solutions for music, photos, film, TV, celebrity, and iconic talent. The company’s roster of celebrity legends, including Albert Einstein, Steve McQueen, Thomas Edison and Charlie Chaplin, provides brands with opportunities for instant recognition, positive perception, and global appeal.
