Be Great! Network teamed up with the Amidi Group and Plug and Play to produce an Iron Sharpens Iron Entertainment & Technology Mixer at Hollywood Production Center’s Burbank location on Thursday, July 11th.
This unique, in-person event brought together high-profile professionals, Angel & VC investors, and start-ups from the entertainment and technology industries to mix & mingle, sharpen their skills, share ideas, and establish new collaborations.
Moderated by Iron Sharpens Iron’s Founder, Bryan Gallinger, attendees learned powerful insights from the panel discussion titled Understanding & Embracing Technology in Entertainment featuring industry leaders:
Ethan Evans (Retired VP of Amazon & Top Voice on LinkedIn)
Ethan Evans is a retired VP of Amazon, and a top LinkedIn voice respected for inventing many well-known products like Prime Video, Prime Gaming (formerly Twitch Prime), Twitch Commerce, Merch by Amazon, and the Amazon App Store. He holds 70+ patents, led global teams of 800+, and is now an executive coach and course creator focused on helping leaders grow into true executives.
He promoted 8 reports from Senior Manager (Amazon L7) to Director (Amazon L8), contributed to 25+ Director promotions, hired 10+ Directors internally and externally, and drove the promotion of 3 engineers to Principal. Of his former reports, 2 are current Amazon VPs (L10), and 5 are C-Suite outside of Amazon.
Ethan retired from Amazon as a vice president in September 2020, which allowed him to focus on paying forward my good fortune to others.
Larry Namer (Founder of E! Entertainment)
Larry Namer is a well-known media executive/entrepreneur with over 50 years of experience in entertainment. In the US, he is best known as the founder of E! Entertainment TV Networks; however, he has also built other media companies in Russia and China.
E! is now seen in 142 countries and is recognized as the world’s biggest pop culture influencer. Under the Compsan Communication banner, he had the number-one TV show in the former Soviet Union for ten years. Also with Compsan, he was the number one promoter of Western music artists having done over 300 music shows. As a co-producer of the White Nights Festival, Compsan attracted over 750K attendees over the 6 days of the festival.
He built a media company in China called Metan Global after his work in Russia. Metan Global produces film, TV, internet content, music, and other live events. The comedy show he created, Return To The Village of Good Fortune, ran 72 episodes on China’s national TV station CCTV 8 and was nominated for best sitcom at the Asia TV Awards (the only one from China).
When the pandemic hit, Larry refocused his creative efforts on creating the US programming that he describes as having a positive impact. Financial Wellness for Millennials, Uncanceled, Conscious Parenting, Natasha After Dark, and Stall Talk are included in his social impact programs. In 2025, he will produce the “Oscars of the Metaverse” as a global celebration of creativity in the spheres of NFTYs, Crypto, Blockchain, and AI.
Aalia Lanius (Chief Creative Officer of Convergence Media Law)
Aalia Lanius is a high-level executive in technology and entertainment, serving as Chief Creative Officer at Convergence Media Law and President of UNSUGARCOATED™ Media.
Aalia is an award-winning novelist, filmmaker, and host of the talk show “UNSUGARCOATED with Aalia”. She is recognized as a thought leader in media, advocating for responsible and impactful representation in the industry.
As CCO, she is pivotal in bridging the gap between creativity and business strategy, overseeing the creative direction of CML, and ensuring that all content, services, and media align with the brand’s core values and objectives. Her role requires a deep understanding of both technology and entertainment to innovate and integrate cutting-edge solutions into creative projects.
Brian Weiner (Founder & CEO of Synth Studios)
Brian is a Senior Entertainment Executive, Creative Director, and tech Entrepreneur who specializes in Creative Development, Virtual Reality/Movie/TV Production and Distribution, and Gaming/Gambling/Social Media Production.
Since 1979, The Illusion Factory has been entrusted with promoting and marketing over 7 billion dollars in filmed, live, broadcast, online, gaming, and interactive entertainment. During that time, they have garnered more than 265 of the top creative and technological awards for their clients and have helped generate more than 100 billion dollars in revenue.
Sizzle, The Illusion Factory’s new revolutionary platform, is a global transmedia network that activates and engages consumers in a unified platform that includes the Sizzle Wallet, Watch, and Win systems. Self-funded by The Illusion Factory, Sizzle aims to interconnect all print media, broadcast, satellite, and streaming media, Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, IoT, Robots, Music, and Gaming into a new form of network. Sizzle’s objective is to be entertaining, useful, transactional, informational, and, most of all, engaging.
Tony Materna (Founder of Syntreno)
Tony Materna is a pioneer in the field of neural networks. He is notable for his role as the Co-Founder of HNC Software, the world’s first neural network AI computer company. In addition, he co-founded the International Joint Conference on Neural Networks (IJCNN).
Tony is a serial entrepreneur who has enjoyed a 35-year career in high technology and is the veteran of a dozen start-ups, two of which have gone on to be $100 million successes. As a U.C Berkely-degreed engineer, he has held marketing, sales, senior management, and CEO positions with companies in AI, electronics, computers, test equipment, aerospace, video gaming, crypto, consumer products, packaging, solar power, biotech, and digital outdoor signage.
He is currently the CEO of Syntreno, Inc., which develops and markets AI avatars for various business applications, and serves as the Vice President of the Space Tourism Society.
Bryan Gallinger (Founder of Be Great! Network)
Bryan is a social impact Entrepreneur, Producer, Consultant & Volunteer. Known as “The Dream Promoter” has helped hundreds of people pursue their dreams in entertainment, business and philanthropy.
Bryan created Iron Sharpens Iron in 2003 to build a community of integrity-based professionals who share a genuine passion for helping others. He has expanded the community from Seattle to San Diego, the Philippines, Los Angeles, and Northern California.
As a consultant, Bryan has helped over 100 businesses, brands, organizations, and projects by providing marketing, business development, technology, and multi-media services.
As a producer – he has produced over 200 events, dozens of films, over 100 videos, multiple TV shows, and 15 albums.
Bryan is dedicated to producing positive and inspiring content that empowers people to Be Great!
Attendees of the mixer enjoyed yummy food & drinks, color-changing cocktails by Unicorn Distillery, and fun, personalized videos in the SpinCam 360 booth. 10 people flew in from out of state, and 2 individuals flew from out of the country to attend the mixer. VIPs gathered early to conduct red-carpet interviews and to enjoy an intimate, curated networking session. Some of the VIPs included:
- Todd Cogan (President of GPL Technologies)
- Raamon Newman (Co-Founder of New Mavericks)
- Tom Chesser (Founder of Rise Up Media & Marketing)
- Evan Money (#1 Bestselling Author, Ph.D. and Global Entrepreneur)
- Dame Doria Cordova (CEO of Money & You)
- Rob Danson (Marketing Director of Food On Foot)
- Joseph Lanius (Film Producer & Entertainment Attorney)
- Rahim Amidi (Co-Founder of Amidi Group & Plug and Play)
- Doug Ivanovich (Co-Founder of The Illusion Factory & Founder of The World Peace One)
- Dale Godboldo Jr (Actor, Producer & Founder of Always in the Club Foundation)
As a fun, interactive, and immersive experience – attendees had the option to participate in a live AI Gen Battle produced by Machine Cinema. Participants could work in groups of 2-3 or solo. Each team was challenged to generate a visual poem or haiku using Gen AI tools in 60 minutes. The recommended workflow was to prompt a poem through ChatGPT, then use the text to inspire still imagery through MidJourney, and then use the images as reference visuals using tools like Luma’s Dream Machine of Runway. Participants were invited to work beyond these tools, but the main criterion was generating a new creation within the 60 minutes allotted. Congratulations to Verena Puhm for winning first prize and Kenny Miller as the runner-up.
Iron Sharpens Iron Entertainment & Technology Mixer producing partners included Amidi Group, Plug and Play, Hollywood Production Center, Be Great! Network, and G.O.A.T. Consulting Group. Sponsoring brands included TenTen, Convergence Media Law, WPS Events, AiLA, Machine Cinema, Unicorn Distillery, SpinCam 360, and FBRC.ai. Smooth and Fast Productions, Rebound Sound, Rise Up Media & Marketing, and HiFi Your Brand helped live-stream broadcast the panel through Traverse TV to over 190 countries.
Iron Sharpens Iron is passionate about social impact, so this event was focused on raising awareness on the importance of understanding and embracing technology in entertainment. The panel discussion explored how artificial intelligence can create reform and maintain healthy morals and ethics. Additionally, Traverse TV donated $100,000 in airtime to the Be Great! Network. This donation will be allocated to various non-profit beneficiaries within the Be Great! Network to help spread more awareness on important social impact topics and programs.
Iron Sharpens Iron (ISI) is a respected, integrity-based,members-only community designed to matchmake individuals, organizations, and projects throughout the greater California region. Launched in April 2003, ISI produces a variety of events, programs, and activities that allow our members to collaborate, share resources, and support local communities. Iron Sharpens Iron (ISI) California is an initiative of the Be Great! Network, a 501c3 non-profit organization.
Be Great! Network is a social impact non-profit that spotlights individuals, events and organizations advancing humanity and empowering the planet. By producing a mix of media, events, and awards – Be Great! Network creates the perfect platform to unite & celebrate human kindness, honor achievement, and empower all individuals to Be Great!
Amidi Group business units hold strong global positions in a diverse range of domestic and international industries, including real estate, industrial products/supplies, and technology investing.
Plug and Play is the world’s leading innovation platform, producing solutions for corporations, startups, governments, universities, mentors, and more. With over 60 international locations – Plug and Play’s services include industry connections, accelerator programs, innovation strategies, startup scouting, investments, business development, challenge offerings, and more.
Hollywood Production Center features full-service, flexible office spaces in a professional and prestigious setting designed specifically for the needs of the entertainment industry and individuals with growing businesses. With seven Hollywood Production Center Community locations in Los Angeles, the world’s entertainment capital, you can have everything you need in the ideal place for your business. Hollywood Production Center (HPC 6) is located at 300 N 3rd St, Burbank, CA 91502.
To learn more about Iron Sharpens Iron and how to participate in future events, visit www.isi.community or email info@isi.community.
