Media Industry Conversations Podcast

This week's MIC podcast features a panel on the anatomy of a production company. Guests Michael Garcia and Maddy Bilder join us to explore the production process and everyday workflows of 26 Keys Productions, a production company based right here in Austin. Michael Garcia, who is the President of 26 Keys, has extensive experience as an executive producer and studio executive, having worked with LucasFilm, Televisia USA, and HBO on projects like Andor, The Sopranos, and The Wire. Maddy Bilder, Project Director at 26 Keys, has a background in producing events and festivals, and has also worked in development at Texas Monthly on titles like Love and Death and Hitman. Michael and Maddy visited the UT Campus on March 25th, 2025 and the conversation was hosted by Dr. Alisa Perren.

Today, we’re bringing you the final episode in our special series about the Texas media industries. This podcast was recorded at the Texas Entertainment and Media Industries Symposium, which took place on September 20th, 2024 at the University of Texas at Austin. The symposium and this podcast were co-produced by the Center for Entertainment and Media Industries and the Department of Radio-Television-Film, and were made possible by the generous support of Wofford Denius. The Texas Entertainment and Media Industries Symposium showcased the breadth of film, TV, music, gaming, and digital media opportunities available in Texas in an all-day event on the UT Campus. We’re wrapping up our five-week series featuring discussions from that day, so check out our previously published episodes on Development, Production, Distribution and Exhibition, and Live Events and Experiential Entertainment. This podcast series is also part of the Center’s larger focus on Texas Media, and will be included in a white paper compiling research on the Texas media industries that will be published later this summer. Keep an eye out for that paper to learn more about what’s happening here in Texas. This episode of the series will feature the fifth and final panel of the symposium, which was a conversation between Elizabeth Avellán, who is a longtime leader in the Texas media landscape and RTF Chair Cindy McCreery. Elizabeth Avellán is Co-Owner and Vice President of Troublemaker Studios and is the president of EYA productions. She has produced such groundbreaking films as Machete, Sin City, and Spy Kids, and is a key figure among the cohort of filmmakers that have built Austin into the movie town it is today.

Today, we’re bringing you the fourth episode in our special series about the Texas media industries. This podcast was recorded at the Texas Entertainment and Media Industries Symposium, which took place on September 20th, 2024 at the University of Texas at Austin. The symposium and this podcast were co-produced by the Center for Entertainment and Media Industries and the Department of Radio-Television-Film, and were made possible by the generous support of Wofford Denius. The Texas Entertainment and Media Industries Symposium showcased the breadth of film, TV, music, gaming, and digital media opportunities available in Texas in an all-day event on the UT Campus. We’re in the middle of our five-week series featuring discussions from that day, so check out our previously published episodes on Development, Production, and Distribution and Exhibition, and tune in next week for our concluding conversation with Elizabeth Avellán, a longtime leader in Texas film. This podcast series is also part of the Center’s larger focus on Texas Media, and will be included in a white paper compiling our research on the Texas media industries that will be published later this summer. Keep an eye out for that paper to learn more about what’s happening here in Texas. This episode of the series will feature the fourth panel of the symposium, which focused on Live Events and Experiential Entertainment. Panelists include Jordy Barksdale (Director of Brand Experience at Magnolia), Lisa Hickey (Strategic Advisor in Media & Entertainment), Louis Messina (CEO of MTG), and Barbara Morgan (CEO of Austin Film Festival). This panel was moderated by Korey Pereira, Assistant Professor of Practice at UT Austin.

Today, we’re bringing you the third episode in our special series about the Texas media industries. This podcast was recorded at the Texas Entertainment and Media Industries Symposium, which took place on September 20th, 2024 at the University of Texas at Austin. The symposium and this podcast were co-produced by the Center for Entertainment and Media Industries and the Department of Radio-Television-Film, and were made possible by the generous support of Wofford Denius. The Texas Entertainment and Media Industries Symposium showcased the breadth of film, TV, music, gaming, and digital media opportunities available in Texas in an all-day event on the UT Campus. For the next several weeks, we’ll be bringing you podcasts from four panel discussions with industry leaders, which focused on Development, Production, Exhibition, and Live Events. Finally, we’ll conclude with our one-on-one with Elizabeth Avellán, a longtime leader in Texas film.   This podcast series is also part of the Center’s larger focus on Texas Media, and will be included in a white paper compiling our research on the Texas media industries that will be published later this summer. Keep an eye out for that paper to learn more about what’s happening here in Texas. This episode of the series will feature the third panel of the symposium, which focused on Distribution and Exhibition. Panelists include AJ Feliciano (General Manager of The Roost Podcast Network), Holly Herrick (Head of Film and Creative Media at Austin Film Society), Francis Román (Senior Film and TV Festival Programming Manager at SXSW), and Adam Zehner (SVP of Acquisitions and Global Content Strategy at Crunchyroll). This Panel was moderated by Caroline Frick, who is Associate Professor at UT Austin.

Today, we’re bringing you the second episode in our special series about the Texas media industries. This podcast was recorded at the Texas Entertainment and Media Industries Symposium, which took place on September 20th, 2024 at the University of Texas at Austin, which was made possible by the generous support of Wofford Denius. The Texas Entertainment and Media Industries Symposium showcased the breadth of film, TV, music, gaming, and digital media opportunities available in Texas in an all-day event on the UT Campus. This podcast series is also part of the Center’s larger focus on Texas Media, and will be included in a white paper compiling our research on the Texas media industries that will be published later this summer. Keep an eye out for that paper to learn more about what’s happening here in Texas! This episode of the series will feature the second panel of the symposium, which focused on the Texas production ecosystem. Panelists include Chip Rives (President of Texas Crew Productions), Red Sanders (President of Red Productions), Steph Swope (President at Minnow Mountain), and Stephanie Whallon (Director of the Texas Film Commission). This panel was moderated by Micah Barber, Associate Professor of Practice at UT Austin.