Karl Gibson – Global Product Creative, Netflix

Karl Gibson is a media and content analyst in the Los Angeles entertainment industry, with specialties in film and television streaming, VOD, OTT, digital and editorial content. Karl started his career as a theater actor for 15 years in Chicago and Los Angeles. A former broadcast journalism major, his Los Angeles career includes working at legacy companies including The Hollywood Reporter (for over 1,600 daily issues), the New York Times Media Group, Warner Bros., Baseline Research, and the UK-based start-up Vubiquity. Karl is currently a contractor for Netflix in Los Angeles and is excited about the global content wave.

linkedin
www.linkedin.com/in/karlgibson/

Dea Lawrence – CMO, Variety

Dea Lawrence is the CMO of Variety responsible for driving Variety’s global branding and communications strategy. She oversees strategy, creative, communications, ad sales program development, social media development and the marketing and production of their numerous annual events, summits and media partnerships. Additionally Dea created the Variety Content Studio which creates storytelling for brands.

A highly experienced, solution based, sales and marketing leader who knows how to monetize companies, from start-ups to traditional corporations, her advertising expertise is vast. Her background includes creating and leading publisher direct and programmatic strategies, positioning media and creative ad tech platforms to Fortune 500 brands and their agencies, ad serving, rich media, video, dynamic creative optimization and data targeting across video, mobile, tablet and desktop. She has lead media and tech sales and marketing teams over the past 20 years at companies such as PointRoll, AT&T, TubeMogul and other start-ups.

After graduating with a BFA in acting from Catholic University in Washington, DC, Dea began her career as a professional actress. She worked off-Broadway, in Broadway national tours, regional theatre, TV, film, commercials and print. She also made a documentary with creative partner Saratoga Ballantine, “Troupers” about actors over 80 in Hollywood. Dea had an unconventional path to her current marketing and sales career that involved a “grow where you are planted” strategy.

linkedin
www.linkedin.com/in/dealawrence/