NBCU Launch Newsletter: Edition 05 - EXT

MESSAGE FROM JEANNE: Closing out the third quarter of the year, we wanted to share the amazing progress we have achieved so far with all your support across our partnerships, events, and talent development programs. Among partnerships, we were able to introduce Peace Corps and AmeriCorps to NBCUniversal for a conversation about service and volunteerism in television. We also were able to welcome back the Spike Lee Fellows program for a second year to meet with our executives in both the LA and NY offices.

With our events, we participated in panels at the Martha’s Vineyard Film Festival and New York Latino Film Festival (NYLFF) and hosted Ghetto Film School, Disability Belongs, and others on the Universal lot.

Our development programs have also continued to grow, with 6 out of the 8 2024-25 TV Writers class staffed on upcoming shows.

Please take a few moments to see what we have been up to with involvement from teams and colleagues across NBCUniversal.

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DEI CHAMPIONS As part of our 2024 festival strategy, we wanted to highlight NBCU’s content acquisition department across different brands, including our entertainment networks, Peacock, and MSNBC. We appreciate the following employees who have participated and guided our panels to not only demonstrate the scope of content at NBCUniversal, but also educate filmmakers on how to pitch themselves and their projects to the right brands and networks.

VAL BORELAND

SUSIE KRICENA

MATT MONOS

EVP, HEAD OF CONTENT ACQUISITIONS, NBCU ENTERTAINMENT

SVP, CONTENT ACQUISITIONS, NBCU ENTERTAINMENT

SVP, CONTENT ACQUISITIONS, NBCU ENTERTAINMENT

AMANDA SPAIN

BRITNEY WILLIAMS

LINDSEY SCHLOSS

VP, LONGFORM ACQUISITIONS, MSNBC FILMS

VP, CONTENT ACQUISITIONS, NBCU ENTERTAINMENT

SR. DIRECTOR, CONTENT ACQUISITIONS, NBCU ENTERTAINMENT

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CREATING COMMUNITY NBCU LAUNCH EVENTS

JUNE 28

NALIP Media Summit Shaping Inclusivity in Unscripted Television Robert Baltazar (VP, TV Programming, DEI) moderated a discussion with Jenny Ramirez (SVP, Unscripted, Games and Competition), Brittinee Royes (VP, Unscripted, Lifestyle and Docuseries), and Julio Saucedo (Field Producer, “America’s Got Talent”) as part of NALIP’s summit held over two days at Neuehouse Hollywood. The conversation highlighted success stories from the Unscripted Producers Initiative and the types of unscripted series NBCU was seeking for its Unscripted Pitch Accelerator.

JULY 10

Spike Lee Fellows Inside the Industry with NBCUniversal - LA Continuing last year’s partnership with the talent and literary agency Gersh, NBCU LAUNCH facilitated a conversation about careers at NBCU with Christina Roulette (Director, Production and Operations), Janaé Désiré (Director, Development, UCP) and Grace Tran (Director, Global Scripted Series, UIS) for the Spike Lee Fellows. Following the breakfast and roundtable, fellows attended a taping of Access Hollywood.

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JULY 2

Notes From On Set Allyship and Accessibility In partnership with the Alliance of omen Directors (A D), NBCU LAUNCH presented the “Notes From on Set Allyship and Accessibility” panel and reception on the NBCUniversal lot. The event highlighted accessibility best practices on set and allyship with speakers Jean Lee (Director, “New Amsterdam”), Elliot LaPlante (Production Designer, “St. Denis edical”), and Meg Schave (Producer, “St. Denis edical”) in conversation with (Producer Director A D Board ember).

JULY 0

Disability Belongs Unscripted

Document Intensive Roundtable

As part of the inaugural Unscripted Documentary Intensive lab for Disability Belongs (previously espectAbility), NBCU LAUNCH hosted a roundtable with the cohort and NBCUniversal e ecutive Tena a illiams (Sr. Director, Development, Bravo E ). The conversation focused on career opportunities and unscripted programming at NBCUniversal, including docuseries for our cable networks and streaming platform Peacock.

JULY 1

Ghetto Film School Studio Tour UTDI and NBCU LAUNCH partnered with Ghetto Film School’s Los Angeles Fellows Program for an NBCUniversal studio lot visit. Brandon illiams welcomed the 3 students and sta to the lot over breakfast as they learned about the talent development programs, partnerships, and alumni across UTDI and NBCU LAUNCH. Following the breakfast, the group visited “The Voice” set, the NBCU Props department, and the NBCU Post department.

CREATING COMMUNITY NBCU LAUNCH EVENTS

AUGUST 1

Spike Lee Fellows Inside the Industry with NBCUniversal - NY For the New York roundtable with Gersh, Jamila Roberts (Director, HR, NBCU Entertainment) and Cliff Christophe (Sr. Director, HR, USG) moderated a conversation about careers in the industry and at NBCU with executives Pamela Gimenez (VP, Unscripted, Current Production, NBCU Entertainment) and Alex Morgan-Welch (VP, Strategy & Business Development, USG) for the Spike Lee Fellows. Following the roundtable, fellows attended a private tour of 30 Rock.

AUGUST 6

Peace Corps & AmeriCorps Elevating Stories of Service & Volunteerism NBCU LAUNCH hosted Peace Corps and AmeriCorps leadership teams and volunteers for a panel and reception covering ways for storytellers to incorporate themes of service and volunteerism into shows.

Carol Spahn (Director, Peace Corps) and Michael Smith (CEO, AmeriCorps) opened with an overview of each organization, followed by a conversation moderated by Rene Jones (Partner and Chief of Social Impact, UTA) with Nyassa Kollie (Returned Volunteer, Peace Corps), Clayton Kennedy (Returned Volunteer, Peace Corps), Allison Santos (Member, AmeriCorps), and Sonali Nijhawan (Director, AmeriCorps).

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AUGUST 10

Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival In partnership with Comcast, NBCU LAUNCH participated in the Director’s Brunch conversation at the 22nd annual Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival. Loren Hudson (CDEIO, Comcast) moderated the discussion with Rashida Jones (President, MSNBC), B. Monet (Director, “Black Girls”), Robert Baltazar (VP, TV Programming, DEI), and Gia-Rayne Harris (Director, “Chicago P.D.”) about the talent development programs at NBCU LAUNCH and Comcast.

AUGUST 22

Accessibility in Action: Live Events NBCU LAUNCH, MyAbilities, and 1IN4 sponsored a virtual presentation with NBCU teams across live events, specials, and awards. Lori Samuels (Sr. Director, Accessibility, NBCUniversal) provided opening remarks and introduced 1IN4 co-founders Kaitlyn Yang, Jim LeBrecht, and Stephen Letnes, who highlighted guidelines and resources for ensuring a successful event accessible to all staff and guests.

AUGUST 27

1IN4 Writers Mentorship NBC TV Writers Alumni Roundtable For the 1IN4 Writers Mentorship program, NBCU LAUNCH facilitated a virtual conversation with alumni from our TV Writers Program. Michael Pogarian (Sr. Director, TV Programming, DEI) moderated the conversation with writers Amelia Swedeen (“Based on a True Story”) and Hernán Barangan (“Life by Ella”) as they discussed their experiences in the program and shared advice for emerging writers.

SEPTEMBER 19

New York Latino Film Festival (NYLFF) NBCU LAUNCH Talks: A Filmmakers Guide to NBCUniversal For our first in-person activation at NYLFF, NBCU LAUNCH hosted a panel and reception highlighting pathways for filmmakers into NBCUniversal and the content we acquire across our networks and streaming platform. Robert Baltazar (VP, TV Programming, DEI) moderated the conversation with panelists Lindsey Schloss (Sr. Director, Content Acquistions, NBCUniversal) and Nell Augustin (Director, Original Voices, NBCU News) discussing the Original Voices Fellowship and how to make your project stand out at film festivals.

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LAUNCHING CAREERS NBC TV Writers Program With the start of the 2024-25 broadcast season, we wanted to highlight a few of our current writers and recent alumni writers working on upcoming shows:

2024 -25 Class Helen Fernandez – Staff Writer on “Happy’s Place” David Loong – Staff Writer on “The Hunting Party” Bryce Cracknell – Staff Writer on “FBI: Most Wanted” Maia Henken – Staff Writer on “Suits: LA” Sebastián Rea – Staff Writer on “Devil in Disguise” Neda Jebelli – Staff Writer on “The Miniature Wife”

2022 -23 Class Emman Sadorra – Staff Writer on “St. Denis Medical” Amelia Swedeen – Story Editor on “Based on a True Story” William Yu – Staff Writer on “Brilliant Minds” Aurora Ferlin – Staff Writer on “The Equalizer” Tommar Wilson – Staff Writer on “The Irrational”

2020 -21 Class Shawn Parikh – Executive Story Editor on “Night Court” Hussain Pirani – Co-Producer on “FBI: International”

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Learn More

Below-the-Line Traineeship

LOS ANGELES

Congratulations to our trainees for completing their traineeships on the following productions! Check out a few testimonials from our alumni:

AUSTIN “AJ” GRIFFIN

LOS ANGELES

GRIP

SAMANTHA GILMORE PROPS

“My experience with BTL Traineeship was outstanding. Every day I woke up ready and excited for what new things I would learn that day. Being able to learn from the crew who all had decades of experience and success in this industry is something I could look back on that I had this opportunity to learn from them for 12 weeks. I’m forever grateful for being able to have had this opportunity.”

Participating in the props traineeship at NBCUniversal Studios greatly advanced my career by offering practical experience with the complexities of props in production. I learned from industry experts, honing new techniques and tools while collaborating with peers, which helped me build meaningful relationships that still impact my work.

This immersive setting not only improved my technical abilities but also intensified my passion for storytelling through props.

ATLANTA

“The BTL Traineeship has been one of the most rewarding experiences. In an industry that can at times feel impossible to break in to, I was given an amazing opportunity to work on a set and learn from other industry professionals, building my network and skillset along the way! I’m so thankful to have had this opportunity!”

KYRA JONES PROPS

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CELEBRATING PARTNERSHIPS HIGHLIGHTS

NALIP (National Association of Latino Independent Producers) Through NBCUniversal’s partnership with NALIP host panels and events highlighting our DEI efforts across the networks and studio group. In addition to engagement opportunities, NALIP provides resources for content amplification and talent outreach.

NewFilmmakers LA (NFMLA) NBCU LAUNCH continues to be a proud sponsor of NewFilmmakers LA, including their monthly film festival. Each festival presents screenings of shorts, documentaries, and feature films that have been submitted from all over the world. Our partnership with NFMLA includes talent discovery, talent outreach, and opportunities for content amplification.

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MyAbilities The NBCUniversal Employee Resource Group (ERG) MyAbilities creates representation, expands awareness, generates empathy, and works for the betterment of our colleagues with varying abilities. NBCU LAUNCH partners with MyAbilities to host panels and employee trainings covering accessibility and allyship in the industry.

Barcid Foundation With the corporate sponsorship of the Barcid Foundation, NBCU LAUNCH supports the Native American Media Alliance and LA Skins Fest with activations throughout the year. This includes opportunities to connect with our executives and learn about our talent development programs at NBCUniversal. Later this year we are partnering for the Annual Native American Unscripted Workshop to highlight Unscripted programming at NBCUniversal for the incoming cohort.

Artists At Play NBCU LAUNCH is proud to support LA-based Artists at Play for the stage production of Nicholas Pilapil's “God Will Do The Rest,” which stars Reggie Lee and runs from August 29 to September 29 at the Los Angeles Theatre Center. Artists at Play’s body of work aims to bring new Asian American and Pacific Islander narratives to the canon of American theater. Through its local and national work, Artists at Play supports new, emerging, and established artists in their goals to challenge and engage theatrical communities and audiences.

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LAUNCH PROGRAMS FOR MORE INFORMATION ON OUR PROGRAMS, CLICK ON THE LINKS BELOW.

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