Breaking In: A SeriesFest Podcast Kaily Smith Westbrook & Randi Kleiner

For this episode, Randi and the SeriesFest team traveled to Berkeley, California for a special live taping on the University of California campus. Our special guest, Terry Washington, brought his unique perspective on both the television and music industry to the students, staff, and audience. This special program is presented in partnership with Xfinity.

Having grown up in the industry, Terry Washington inherently has a passion for music and entertainment. That passion has led him to manage and oversee tours around the world with platinum recording artist like Chris Brown, Eric Benét, and The Fugees. He has produced films in remote locations and managed the legacy of music and fashion icons. He is known for his creative visualization, ability to stay connected to trending media platforms and a rolodex for which CEOs would pay millions. His skill set has translated into lasting management in the entertainment industry for over 20 years.

On the season finale of Breaking In, Kaily sits down with Writer, Director & Executive Producer, Jessika Borsiczky. Jessika talks about her industry path, upcoming projects, and the unique challenges she faces as a creator.

Jessika Executive Produced ABC’s "Flash Forward," and has run television programs including Showtime’s "House of Lies," starring Don Cheadle and Kristin Bell—where as Executive Producer, she both wrote and directed on the series. She Executive Produced and directed season four of Hulu’s critically acclaimed "UnReal, and in addition she has directed on Marvel’s "Cloak and Dagger," Netflix’s "Lucifer," and Netflix’s "What/If." Most recently Jessika created and Executive Produced "The Thing About Pam" on NBC starring Renee Zellweger and also wrote, directed, and Executive Produced on Netflix’s "Sex/Life.' She is also a Consulting Producer on the upcoming Netflix series "On The Verge."On the season finale of Breaking In, Kaily sits down with Writer, Director & Executive Producer, Jessika Borsiczky. Jessika talks about her industry path, upcoming projects, and the unique challenges she faces as a creator.

Jessika Executive Produced ABC’s "Flash Forward," and has run television programs including Showtime’s "House of Lies," starring Don Cheadle and Kristin Bell—where as Executive Producer, she both wrote and directed on the series. She Executive Produced and directed season four of Hulu’s critically acclaimed "UnReal, and in addition she has directed on Marvel’s "Cloak and Dagger," Netflix’s "Lucifer," and Netflix’s "What/If." Most recently Jessika created and Executive Produced "The Thing About Pam" on NBC starring Renee Zellweger and also wrote, directed, and Executive Produced on Netflix’s "Sex/Life.' She is also a Consulting Producer on the upcoming Netflix series "On The Verge."

In a special SeriesFest Insiders episode, Kaily chats with Krista Vernoff about how she came to Shondaland, and the challenges of showrunning for both "Grey's Anatomy" and "Station 19." Actor, Jay Hayden also joins the conversation as a special guest.

Krista was Head Writer and Executive Producer of “Grey’s Anatomy” for the first seven seasons and returned as Showrunner in season 14. She currently serves as the Showrunner and Executive Producer of both “Grey’s Anatomy,” and "Station 19."

Prior to that, Krista served as a Writer and Executive Producer of Showtime’s “Shameless” for five seasons, and has written for a broad variety of television shows, including NBC’s “Law & Order,” CW’s “Charmed,” and Fox’s short-lived cult phenomenon “Wonderfalls.” As an executive producer, she has been nominated twice for an Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series for “Grey’s Anatomy,” and In 2005, Vernoff won a Writer’s Guild of America Award as well as a Golden Globe® for Best New Television Series and was nominated for an Emmy® for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series for her episode of “Grey’s Anatomy:” “Into You Like a Train.”

Actor Jay Hayden, star of "Station 19," is well known for his role on the Hulu dramedy series “Battleground," as well as his recurring roles on the CBS series “Seal Team” and “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” for the CW. In addition, he was a series regular on the ABC series, "The Catch.”

Today, Kaily and Randi sit down with Chris Wagner, Founder and CEO of White Label Productions. Chris chats about the void he found in the industry for creating his own production company and some of the popular shows he produces, including "The Masked Singer," and "Savage X Fenty Show, Volume 3."

With 20 years of experience, Chris has overseen more than $2.5B in TV budgets and has helped run companies, as well as starting three of his own, focusing on production services. As the Founder & CEO of White Label Productions, Chris has overseen series such as "The Masked Singer" for FOX, "Celebrity Show-Off" for TBS, "Miss Universe 2019," "Savage X Fenty Show" for Amazon Prime Video, and "Encore!" for Disney+. His work has received Emmy nominations for Season 3 of "The Masked Singer," and the syndicated edition of "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?"

On today's episode, Kaily sits down with renowned musical theatre director, and founding member of Black Theatre United, Schele Williams. Schele breaks down her industry path, as well as her latest projects, including the children's book, Your Legacy: A Bold Reclaiming of Our Enslaved History.

Profiled as "Variety's 2020 Top 10 Broadway to Watch," Schele is a director committed to cultivating new musicals and devised work with authentic representation onstage and off. She has directed at regional theaters and festivals across the country and has a long history of work on Broadway in Rent, Aida, and Motown: The Musical. Schele is currently directing the upcoming Broadway revivals of Aida and The Wiz as well as the premieres of Mandela the musical, Indigo and the recently announced Hidden Figures the musical which is currently in development. Passionate about pairing social justice with the arts, Schele is a founding member of Black Theatre United, has been a member of Broadway Inspirational Voices for over two decades and serves on the board of Broadway Cares Equity Fights AIDS. Schele is the author of the children’s book Your Legacy: A Bold Reclaiming of Our Enslaved History, which was recently published by Abrams Books for young readers and is currently in development to become an animated series, co-executive produced by Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade.

On today's special SeriesFest Insiders episode, Randi discusses "Impeachment: American Crime Story" with Head Writer, Showrunner & Executive Producer, Sarah Burgess.

Sarah is a New York playwright and screenwriter. Her play Dry Powder won the 2016 Laurents Hatcher Prize, was a finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize and was nominated for an Olivier Award in London. It premiered at the Public Theater in a production directed by Thomas Kail, starring Claire Danes, John Krasinski, Hank Azaria and Sanjit De Silva. Burgess’ additional plays include Kings (Public Theater world premiere) and Camdenside (Ground Floor selection, Berkeley Rep), and she has been a writer-in-residence at SPACE on Ryder Farm and the Cape Cod Theatre Project.