The people
in the room.

will.i.am

Founder, FYI.ai · Seven Time Grammy Winner

Founding member of The Black Eyed Peas, seven time Grammy winner, and long time technologist. Founder of FYI.ai, the AI powered creative operating system built for artists and teams. Sat down with Sherrese Clarke on the Croisette for a fireside on music, AI, and institutional capital, and demoed FYI.ai live in the room.

Sherrese Clarke

Founder & CEO, HarbourView Equity Partners

Founder and CEO of HarbourView Equity Partners, an alternative asset manager focused on entertainment and media. Under her leadership HarbourView has become one of the most active institutional buyers of music IP in the world, backed by more than $1B in commitments and stewarding catalogs from artists across genres and generations.

Omar Benson Miller

Actor & Producer, Sinners, Ballers, Ptolemy Grey

Two time NAACP Image Award nominee currently generating Oscar buzz for Ryan Coogler's Sinners opposite Michael B. Jordan. Star of HBO's Ballers, Apple TV+'s The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey, and creator of Weekend Fix and the O ZONE podcast through his Big Easy Productions.

Jana Babatunde Bey

Owner & CEO, J. Bey Entertainment

Former Chief of Staff to Will Smith and COO of Overbrook Entertainment, stewarding a body of work that generated $11B+ globally. Produced the #1 NYT bestseller WILL and Netflix's AMEND: The Fight for America. Sits on the Obama Foundation's Storytelling Council.

Thai Randolph

Interim CEO, Rock the Bells and Co Founder, HARTBEAT

Merged Kevin Hart's two companies into a $650M media powerhouse and secured a historic $100M raise, one of the largest ever by a Black woman. Variety's Women of Impact, AdAge 40 Under 40, and a founding LP in the BrainTrust Fund.

Marilyn Fu

Screenwriter, Rosemead & The Copenhagen Test

2025 Golden Horse Award nominee for Rosemead, starring Lucy Liu. Writer on Peacock's espionage thriller The Copenhagen Test with Simu Liu and James Wan, and adapter of The Baxters for Amazon/MGM.

Amber Clifford

Founder, Murai International

Led international product strategy for Disney+ across 40+ markets in Europe, Asia, and the Caribbean, and launched Uber Eats across 15+ countries in EMEA. Now advises the 2024 Paris Olympics, the Atlanta Falcons, and Chick fil A on global market entry.

Imani “Manny” Halley

Founder & CEO, Imani Media Group and Faith Media Distribution

A driving force in urban cinema and distribution, moving projects across Netflix, Tubi, BET, Apple TV, and Amazon Prime Video from bases in Los Angeles and Atlanta.

Rob Weiss

Emmy Nominated Showrunner, Entourage, Ballers

EP, director, and writer on Entourage, How to Make It in America, and Ballers. Sundance breakout with Amongst Friends, six Golden Globe noms, three Emmy noms, and three WGA wins for Entourage.

Trell Thomas

Founder, Black Excellence Brunch

Communications strategist and culture curator behind the Black Excellence Brunch, which he brought to the White House South Lawn in 2024. Producer of Discovery+'s Profiled: The Black Man.

Roqui Theus

Emmy Winning Broadcast Journalist, Extra TV

Special correspondent for Extra TV, former host of CBS's Las Vegas Now, and go to moderator for Nike, Adidas, and Shifter(s) Series.

Thorsten D Meier

Founder, Life in Motion Group and KICKit World

Recognized industry innovator running one of the world's leading full service event agencies, EP of Esmeralda, and founder of KICKit World, a sports and music festival for underserved youth.

Tyler Sabino

Founder, The Shift Studios and Co Creator, Shifter(s) Series

Lead producer on Verzuz (456B+ impressions) and architect of Triller's Web3 launch with Epik Games. Founded The Shift Studios and co created the Shifter(s) Series with Winston Baker.

Amy Baker

CEO & Co Founder, Winston Baker

Co founder of the Film Finance Forum, running sold out convenings across the US, Europe, Saudi Arabia, China, Asia Pacific, and Latin America. National Board of Advisors, Moffitt Cancer Center.

Taylor K. Shaw Omachonu

Film Lead, Kickstarter

Forbes 30 Under 30 Hollywood & Entertainment honoree, Shadow & Act Rising Executive Award winner, and founder of award winning animation studio BWA Studios. In 2024 she was appointed to lead the film category at Kickstarter, where she supports artists navigating the evolving film landscape.

Max Reisinger

Co Founder and CEO, Creator Camp

Austin based founder of Creator Camp, the digitally native media company and global creator collective empowering the next generation of filmmakers. Fuses the independence of the internet with the artistry of cinema.

Rashad Frett

Award Winning Caribbean American Filmmaker

NYU Tisch MFA. Spike Lee Production Grant, Ryan Murphy HALF Initiative Fellow, Sundance Feature Film Production Lab Fellow, and one of Filmmaker Magazine's 25 New Faces of Independent Film. His debut feature RICKY won the Directing Award in the 2025 Sundance Dramatic competition. Represented by WME.

Felipe Bustos Sierra

Award Winning Director

Chilean Belgian filmmaker based in Scotland with Debasers Filums. His debut feature documentary Nae Pasaran won Best Feature at the 2018 BAFTA Scotland Awards. Alum of Eurodoc, Berlinale Talent Campus, and the EIFF Talent Lab. Everybody to Kenmure Street is his second feature.

Steven Weintraub

Founder and Editor in Chief, Collider.com

Known online as Frosty, Steven founded Collider.com in 2005 and grew it into a major source for movie and TV scoops, interviews, and industry news. A prominent voice in online entertainment media known for breaking exclusives and fostering direct relationships with filmmakers and studios.

Amber Clifford

Audience Correspondent, Founder of Murai International

Founder of Murai International, a strategy firm at the intersection of global market entry, culture, technology, and entertainment. Led international product strategy for Disney+ across 40+ markets and launched Uber Eats across 15+ countries in EMEA. Advises the 2024 Paris Olympics, the Atlanta Falcons, and Chick fil A.

Vic Mensa

Musician, filmmaker, and entrepreneur

Building creator owned stories that move across music, film, and global audiences.

Chicago born artist with roots in Ghana whose work spans music, film, culture, and social advocacy. His debut album The Autobiography debuted at #27 on the Billboard 200. Recurring roles on Showtime's The Chi and Peacock's Bel Air. His extended music video for Blue Eyes won Best Cinematography at Conero Film + ADV 2025. Founder of 93 Boyz, Illinois' first legally Black owned cannabis brand. Currently preparing the release of his short film Halfrican, an exploration of identity, heritage, and the global Black experience.

Brendan McCafferty

Founder, IPX

Helping creators turn audience loyalty into lasting intellectual property.

Founder of IPX, a platform redefining how creator owned intellectual property is valued, transacted, and scaled. IPX sits at the intersection of entertainment, technology, and finance, building the infrastructure for a world where creators do not just make content, they build lasting, financeable IP. Has executive produced and directed multicamera cinematic broadcasts for Kanye West, Lil Wayne, Drake, Rick Ross, and Comedy Central.

Edgar Esteves

Filmmaker and entrepreneur

Building ambitious original stories rooted in identity, imagination, and global scale.

Los Angeles based director whose visual work has amassed billions of views and shaped the identity of modern music culture. Founder of Blank Square Productions and creator of tech platforms SHADOU and CREWY, built to open doors for the next generation of filmmakers. Currently partnering with Vic Mensa to adapt Halfrican, an original IP exploring identity, citizenship, and systemic contradiction, and the project he and Vic brought to the Main Stage at the Palais.

Tyler Sabino

Moderator. Founder, The Shift Studios. Co Creator, Shifter(s) Series.

Narrative Architect helping founders, creators, and brands turn ideas into clear positioning, scalable distribution, and real revenue. Lead producer on Verzuz, one of the most impactful digital music platforms of the last decade. At Triller, led strategic partnerships and launched the company's Web3 division, including producing one of the first large scale concerts in the metaverse. Co Creator of the Shifter(s) Series with Winston Baker.

Amy Baker

Host · CEO & Co Founder, Winston Baker

Co founded the Film Finance Forum in 2008, now the premier series of events bringing seasoned finance and entertainment executives together globally. Winston Baker curates entertainment industry content across finance, film, television, music, sports, and ent-tech, with sold out convenings across the US, Europe, Saudi Arabia, China, Asia Pacific, and Latin America.

Anthony Ramos

Grammy Winning Artist and Golden Globe and Emmy Nominated Actor

Originated John Laurens and Philip Hamilton in the Tony winning Hamilton, and starred as Usnavi in Jon M. Chu's In the Heights. Recent turns in Ryan Murphy's The Beauty, Kathryn Bigelow's A House of Dynamite, and Universal's Twisters. Voice of King Trollex in Trolls World Tour and Mr. Piranha in Bad Guys, with an upcoming animated Bob the Builder in development with Mattel, ShadowMachine, and Nuyorican Productions. Born and raised in Bushwick, co owner of Milly's in Bed Stuy.

Peter Micelli

CEO and Co Founder, Range Media Partners

Co founder of Range Media Partners, called by Variety the biggest startup to take root in Hollywood in years. Formerly Chief Strategy Officer at Entertainment One, where his pivot from distribution to content helped drive Hasbro's $4.2B acquisition. A 23 year CAA veteran who authored the 2007 independent studio finance plan that shaped Netflix's original content strategy and helped launch House of Cards, Orange Is the New Black, and Narcos.

Eva Kozanecka

Lead, Artists and Machine Intelligence, Google

Leads creative industry partnerships and investments for Google's Technology & Society organization and is a founding EP of Google's AI on Screen Film Fund. Previously launched and led the digital video department at MoMA, building the fastest growing arts channel on YouTube. Her debut documentary series At the Museum was described by The New York Times as oddly more absorbing than expected.

Marc Iserlis

Founder and Head, Republic Film

Leads Republic Film, an SEC regulated investment platform that lets everyday fans invest in film and entertainment projects. Since launch in late 2024, Republic Film has raised more than $32M from over 40,000 fans into projects from Eli Roth, Robert Rodriguez, Skybound, Pressman Film, and Ron Perlman. Producer credits include Hotel Mumbai, Gone in the Night, Dalíland, and The Testament of Ann Lee.

Tyler Donahue

Co Founder and Head, Moonshots Gathering

Co founded the Moonshots Gathering, the event and award ceremony behind the Future Vision XPRIZE (the largest science fiction film competition) and the Gemini XPRIZE (the largest hackathon), putting real money behind storytellers and builders chasing huge ideas.

Amy Baker

CEO and Co Founder, Winston Baker, Co Creator, Shifter(s) Series

CEO of Winston Baker, overseeing global strategy, business development, and vendor relationships. Co founded the Film Finance Forum in 2008, running sold out convenings across the US, Europe, Saudi Arabia, China, Asia Pacific, and Latin America.

Tyler Sabino

Founder, The Shift Studios and Shifter(s) OS, Co Creator, Shifter(s) Series

Narrative Architect helping founders, creators, and brands turn ideas into positioning, distribution, and revenue. Lead producer on Verzuz, one of the most impactful digital music platforms of the last decade, and architect of Triller's Web3 launch including one of the first large scale metaverse concerts.

Kayla Nicole

Founder, Strong Is The New Pretty · Media Personality and Entrepreneur

Los Angeles based media personality, actress, and entrepreneur whose voice has helped shape modern conversations at the intersection of sports, culture, and wellness. Founder of the Strong Is The New Pretty platform and community, host of her own podcast, and a producer building at the frontier of creator owned brand and IP. Joined the Shifter(s) Series at Villa Khayat to sit with the room on where optimistic sci fi, culture, and the creator economy meet.

Charles Ifegwu

Partner Spotlight, Founder and CEO, CONVERGENCE

Los Angeles based entrepreneur and media executive at the forefront of the creator economy, brand partnerships, and cultural storytelling. Creator of Converge @, a global event series activating at Cannes Lions, SXSW, CES, and Art Basel. Nearly two decades across agency leadership, entertainment, and marketing building campaigns for some of the world's most recognizable brands.