The Art of Working With Production Companies
Best Practices for Pitching and Negotiating Coverage for Your Destination
Hosted by the Travel & Tourism Section.
Category: Techniques & Tactics
Getting featured on television or on the big screen in a theater is one of the sexiest ways to garner exposure for your brand. However, that task is often easier said than done. What does is take to get the most popular shows on television to your city, or to land a major motion picture for your destination? Is having a good story enough, or are producers looking for more than just a unique and beautiful backdrop?
Our panel of experts will share best practices and case studies on how CVBs, hotels/resorts, activities/attractions, restaurants and other businesses can effectively work with production companies to generate invaluable coverage through television and movie exposure.
In this session, you will:
- Learn how to “think like a producer” to properly pitch your destination.
- Gain a better understanding of how the television and movie industries work.
- Receive tips on how to work with production teams to shape your destination’s story.
- Receive useful insights on working with industry partners to make seemingly impossible opportunities a reality.
Presenters
Maria Carrera is not only the line producer of development for Match/Cut Productions MCP), she also works on high-end commercials and advertising projects, and retains the role of coordinating producer of “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives” under MCP’s partnership with Citizen Pictures. A graduate of the University of Minnesota, Carrera moved from the freelance world into a staff gig in 2007, beginning her work in television. She quickly proved herself irreplaceable and became the senior production manager of “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives.” Her credits include the award-winning PSA, “The Man with the Golden Sun,” the nationwide “Local Dives” campaign by HTC Phones, and the GSN television series “Pure Gold.”
Meghann Gibbons is the communications director at the Georgia Aquarium, where she is responsible for the communications strategy to builds its reputation as the largest and most engaging aquarium experience in the world, and drive attendance. She oversees the development and implementation of the strategic publicity, media and communications plans for three facilities; and manages all feature film productions, including projects with Tyler Perry Studios, Disney and Lionsgate. Gibbons also leads the Aquarium’s story development and production team for ABC’s “Ocean Mysteries with Jeff Corwin from Georgia Aquarium,” which airs nationally through more than 200 ABC affiliates. The show is currently Saturday morning’s second highest-rated program on broadcast television, and the third highest rated new syndicated series in total viewers, reaching on average more 1.4 million households in the Aquarium’s target demographic. Gibbons graduated from Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida, where she earned two bachelor’s degrees in marketing and multinational business operations. She is also an active member of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), Society of American Travel Writers (SATW), Georgia and Travel & Tourism Chapters and Junior League of Atlanta.
Darlene Morikawa, director of public relations/communications, Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau (HVCB), is responsible for supervising promotional and public relations activities across North America. This includes annual strategic planning with the execution of leisure travel initiatives, and Meetings, Conventions, and Incentives (MCI) programs that stimulate travel to the Hawaiian Islands. Representing one of the leading tropical travel destinations in the world, the team’s ongoing objectives are to identify opportunities to reach the Hawaii target traveler to promote the Hawaiian Islands across the ever-evolving media landscape, with a keen focus on delivery metrics. Under Morikawa’s guidance, HVCB’s PR program has been successful in integrating its brand messaging into television programming on national and cable television. She is an active member of the Society of American Travel Writers (SATW), and is currently a board member of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Hawaii Chapter.
Participants earn 1.0 APR Maintenance Credits for a webinar. For more information on Accreditation maintenance, visit http://www.prsa.org/Learning/Accreditation.
