Inside the Mind of a Development Executive Part 1

Event Date: Saturday, November 14, 2015 || Speakers: Korin D. Huggins, Tamara Gregory and Spike Scarberry || Check-in: 12:30 pm ||

A distinguished panel of television development executives will discuss a myriad of topics including how to approach an executive, how to pitch your project, how to package your project, how to get your material read, working with representation teams, among other topics.

IMPORTANT:

Check-in begins at 12:30 pm.
Event starts at 1:00 pm. 

No Refunds. No Credits.

Korin D. Huggins is Head of Television for Will Packer Productions. In this position she is responsible for developing comedy and drama projects through the company’s first look deal with Universal Television. She is the Co-Executive Producer for NBC’s Truth Be Told starring Mark-Paul Gosselaar and ABC’s Uncle Buck starring Mike Epps and Nia Long (airing in 2016). She is also a Co-Executive Producer for Roots, a remake of the 1977 miniseries that is one of the most celebrated TV programs of all time. It will air simultaneously on The History Channel, A+E Networks and Lifetime in early 2016.

Prior to joining the company, Huggins served as Director of Drama Development at Warner Bros. Television Studios, where she developed and sold projects to the five major broadcast networks. This included the pilot development of CW’s The Selection and Fox’s Boomerang.

Her past positions include manager at Universal Cable Productions (UCP) for USA and Syfy, where she oversaw the development of the scripted series Fairly Legal as well as current programming on the hit series Monk, Law & Order: Criminal Intent and Eureka. Huggins also served as an associate at UCP, a coordinator of Drama Development at NBC and Coordinator of Comedy Development at The CW network. She also worked at UPN and Creative Artists Agency (CAA). In these positions, she developed her keen creative sensibility; evaluating new and upcoming writers who she’s successfully staffed on recognizable television shows. Before embarking on a career in entertainment, Huggins worked for Essence magazine as a sales development manager where she created strategic marketing partnerships for notable clients such as Neutrogena and Movado. Her career began in advertising sales, selling national commercial airtime to prime market television stations throughout the country.

Huggins is an active member of the Hollywood Radio and Television Society. In addition, as a member of the Century City Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., she serves as 3rd Vice President and chairperson for the ways and means committee. She also chairs the Dr. Betty Shabazz Delta Academy, where she mentors girls ages 11-14. She is also a board member of The Violet Foundation and has worked closely with A New Way of Life Organization, a re-entry program for formerly incarcerated women with children.

Huggins holds a B.S. in Psychology from Virginia Commonwealth University.

From best selling author to SVP of a film production company to reality Producer to Network Television Executive, Tamara Gregory has thrived in just about every facet of the entertainment industry. She is a rare executive who has corporate, indie, film, television, scripted, unscripted, and on-air experience.

For the past five years, Gregory has played an instrumental role in the incredibly successful launch of BET’s original scripted programming. Whether it is developing the network’s first half sit-com, LET’S STAY TOGETHER; its first BET Premiere Cinema Original, GUN HILL (starring Larenz Tate); or its first mini-series, BOOK OF NEGROES (a ratings and critical success earning both a Critics Choice Television Award nomination and a Cable Fax Award), she takes great pride in her ability to lead the charge in bringing smart, diverse, edgy, and award winning programming to the network’s airwaves.

Gregory currently oversees the hugely popular series, BEING MARY JANE, as well as two future marquee projects both shooting in South Africa in early 2016, MADIBA, a six-part mini-series about the ANC and Nelson Mandela, and IN CONTEMPT a procedural set in the fast paced world of a Public Defender’s Office.

Before joining BET as an executive, Gregory was a Supervising Producer on several of the network’s highest rated reality shows, SUNDAY BEST and THE FAMILY CREWS. Both are Christian based entertainment programming, which is another arena where Gregory’s development and production skill sets have shined.

For one season, Gregory was an on-air correspondent on the weekly Hollywood news program IN THE HOUSE, starring Peter Bart and Peter Guber, where she discussed the latest entertainment trends.

When she is not following her passion of empowering writers and directors to fulfill their creative callings, she tries to fulfill her own. She penned a wonderfully original novel, PASSPORT DIARIES (Harper Collins) that quickly became a LOS ANGELES TIMES Best Seller. Paramount Studios optioned the project, hiring Gregory to write the screenplay and Tim Story (THINK LIKE A MAN) is attached to direct. She recently finished writing, WHEN HARRIET MET SALLY, a one-act play, featuring the comedic and timely musings of two American icons, Harriet Tubman and Sally Hemings. Exercising this talent only further enhances Gregory’s keen development skills making her uniquely suited to work with creative types–because she is one.

Born and raised in Southern California, Gregory graduated from the University of Southern California with dual degrees in Journalism and Political Science. She is a current member of CUP, NAACP, NAMIC, Television Academy of Arts & Sciences, WGA, and the USC Black Alumni Film & Television Mentoring Program.

Spike Scarberry moved to California 5 years ago with only a broken down car and a dream. Since then, his experiences in Hollywood have been anything but what he expected. Starting out as an assistant at APA, one of Hollywood’s largest agencies, he worked for several years in the feature lit department, working with writers and directors. He then moved over to the production side, working closely with the execs at Bad Hat Harry, production company of Bryan Singer (X-Men Franchise) and helped out on the newest mutant movie: X-MEN: APOCALYPSE. Recently, Spike jumped over into television, and currently works at TNT in the drama development department.

Join us on the Second Saturday every month at:

Sidetrack Creative Studios
5723 Auckland Ave.
North Hollywood, CA 91601

Creative Studios Facebook page

As this is a professional event, we ask that you please arrive prior to the event start time.

Meeting Timeframe: 1:00 pm to approximately 3:00 pm

Free Parking!

Please remember to bring a picture ID and your SWN Membership Card!

Any questions, email us at [email protected].