“Pluribus” star Rhea Seehorn, Sundance Film Festival Director Eugene Hernandez and “Dr. Death” creator and showrunner Patrick Macmanus are among the new members of SeriesFest’s Industry Advisory board, TheWrap has exclusively learned.
The 2026 board, which brings together leaders from across television, film, production, representation, programming, media and entrepreneurship, includes a total of 36 members who bring strategic counsel, industry insight and professional connections to SeriesFest’s annual Denver festival and year-round development and mentorship programs for emerging storytellers.
Other additions include “Hunting Wives” star Katie Lowes, Last Call Productions’ Jeremy Gold, “How to Get Away with Murder” star Tom Verica, “Little House on the Prairie” star Jocko Sims, Shondaland’s Annie Laks, “The Four Seasons” star Marco Calvani and TheWrap’s Emily Vogel.
“We are incredibly proud to have this accomplished group of leaders from across the entertainment industry lending their expertise and perspective to SeriesFest,” co-founder and CEO Randi Kleiner said. “Their collective experience and commitment to championing new voices will be invaluable as we continue expanding SeriesFest’s impact as a year-round home for discovering, developing and empowering the next generation of television storytellers.”
Check out the full roster for SeriesFest’s Industry Advisory Board below:
- Roy Ashton, Partner, The Gersh Agency
- Karen Bailey, Producer and Television Executive
- Marco Calvani, Actor and Filmmaker
- Kyle Castellanet, Vice President, Development and Production, Echo Lake Entertainment
- Milan Chakraborty, Producer, Head of Film & TV, Marginal MediaWorks
- Leslie Cohen, Principal & Founder, Cinema Girl
- Brent Emery, Founder, Pretext Media
- Mike Falbo, Partner, Pacific Electric Picture Co.
- Jeremy Gold, Head of Development and Production, Last Call Productions
- Eugene Hernandez, Director, Sundance Film Festival and Public Programming
- Alexa Junge, Writer, Showrunner
- Heather Karpas, Creative Executive, EDEN Productions
- Amanda Krentzman, President, Fireside Access TV
- Annie Laks, Senior Vice President, Netflix Features and ABC Series, Shondaland
- Katie Lowes, Actor and Theater Director
- Patrick Macmanus, Showrunner
- Melissa Myers, Founder, MM Media (Consultant/Producer/Representative)
- Chiké Okonkwo, Actor and Director
- Angela Peluso, Talent, Casting, Producer and Executive
- Alysia Reiner, Actor, Producer, and Author
- Michael Rucker, Showrunner and Director
- Rhea Seehorn, Actor, Director and Producer
- Adam Shapiro, Actor and Writer
- Jocko Sims, Actor and Director
- Erich C. Smith, Senior Talent Agent, TCA MGMT
- Josh Sommer, Founder, Front Porch Pictures & Innovity Catalyst, and Executive Producer
- Valerie Stadler, Producer and Founding Partner, Big Swing Productions
- Tom Verica, Shondaland’s Head of Creative Production, Executive Producer and Director
- Emily Vogel, Director of Programming, TheWrap, and Host of “UnWrapped”
- Terry Washington, Owner and CEO, Zane Ryder Management
- Geneva Wasserman, EVP, Head of Entertainment, IP Strategy & Financing, dentsu
- Talitha Watkins, President and Co-Founder ColorCreative Management & Productions
- Denzel Whitaker, Actor and Filmmaker
- Aaliyah Williams, Manager and Producer
- Diana Williams, CEO and Co-Founder, Kinetic Energy Entertainment
- Kendall Wright, Development Executive
SeriesFest: Season 13 will take place from April 23 to 27 in Denver. The window for submissions is open through Jan. 5, 2027. Projects selected will be notified by March 4, 2027.
