By Carol Badaracco Padgett
Visionaries from the creator economy came together this week at Shadowbox Studios’ Stage 2 event in Atlanta, activated by Georgia Entertainment and attended by hundreds of creatives and influencers. A key realization they took away is this: now is the time to flourish in a seismically changing, opportunity-rich creative culture where Georgia is soundly a leading global player in all lanes of entertainment and monetization. The Creator’s Toolbox was presented by Shadowbox Studios. Others supporting the event include LampDock, TPC, ABS Payroll, Showrig, Quixote, Atlanta Crafty, NEP Sweetwater, Discover DeKalb, T3 Event Rentals and others.
Pictures below | Reel here | Commentary and more pictures here.
Now begins the age of open access for content creators, studios, service providers, and vendors across all categories of creative.
Three powerhouse panels of professionals—top entertainment executives, marketers, filmmakers, game creators, and diverse creative visionaries—emphasized that open access to a more convergent creative climate is prime heading into 2026.
Catch some of the night’s key quotes and ideas below.
PANEL 1
Fireside Chat: What’s Next for Gaming and Esports?
Moderator: Andrew Greenberg, Executive Director, Georgia Game Developers Association
Marcus Matthews, Executive Producer, StatusPro (sports VR gaming)
Greenberg:
“We met at IBM doing children’s games.”
“The passion is still here 30 years later.”
Matthews:
We lived through “the hazards encountered in taking plastic things (like Johnnie Quest figures) and bringing that universe interactive. When you’re making a game, you’re trying to interact with people emotionally.”
“If you’re new to gaming, surround yourself with people who know the nuances and have made the mistakes. It’s a totally different way of thinking, and this gives you a better shot.”
Greenberg:
“Interactive emotional moments must be created.”
“How do you do that on an iPhone screen?”
Matthews:
“At the end of the day, you’re making a connection—no matter the size of the screen .. it’s the impact of Michael Jordan making a shot. Those characters are the same, just expressed in a different way depending on the media type.”
Greenberg:
“People want to get non-interactive brands (like the Walking Dead) onto mobile and interactive.”
“What’s your thinking on VR headsets … VR NFL games?”
Matthews:
“No matter what platform, bring the magical experience to life and allow [the gamer]to create your own pathway through the game.”
“For VR, it can inside that crowd in the stadium … and the quarterback can walk up to you.”
“NFL teams use the same VR to train NFL teams. You can create [scenarios]without all the players on the field. Quarterback in Miami, another player in LA, and they all can meet virtually.”
“Now with AI … trying to figure out how to make these experiences.”
Greenberg:
“What’s one tip for everyone?”
Matthews:
“Embrace it. Embrace it. Don’t just stick your head in the ground. Embrace AI to get an extra bit of creativity … these players will win within the next five years.”
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PANEL 2
Branded Impact: Influencers, Creators and the New Commercial Model
Moderator: Charli Traylor, Head of Tax Incentive Strategy, Three Point Capital (TPC)
Paul Carpenter, President, American Marketing Association
Joseph Delhommer, U.S. Executive Creative Director-Brand Innovation Lab, Amazon
Mike Mosallam, COO, Shadowbox Studios
Dawn Musser-Sepanik, SVP, Production Incentive Strategies, Three Point Capital (TPC)
Highlights:
“What have been the biggest changes over the past decade?” – Traylor
“You’re all holding one: mobile device. From a marketing and brand standpoint, the switch flipped in 2014 from a desktop to mobile—we were trying to make things in a five-inch screen. This connected us and fragmented us. Mobile is the biggest thing we’ve had to adapt to.” – Carpenter
“Streaming … algorithms.” – Musser-Sepanik
“The idea of cookie-cutter scripts went out the door; it could now be a 1-minute video, 12-minute video, different parts of that video … being quick and having something that’s relevant is what resonates and makes people care.” – Delhommer
“It’s a call to arms here in Atlanta. The World Cup … it will leave an indelible mark, like it did in 1996 for anybody who was here. It’s a big opportunity for anybody in advertising and marketing to leverage facilities like Shadowbox Studios.” – Carpenter
“For successful global studio operation … must be nimble with the industry. So much is happening that translates to multiple subgenres, and Atlanta already has these tools in place to dive into these different sectors.” – Mosallam
“The ecommerce world is focused on content … we have to think about where we’re putting the content we make … where will people be ingesting the content? On a train? It must connect with the audience, and brands must understand this.” – Delhommer
“The brands here are top-of-line (high density of Fortune 500 companies). We never had that here—we were always doing things for other people. But now we can own the entire ecosystem.” – Carpenter
“Brand-funded films are a thing … brands don’t know why they’re doing it, they just know they need to do it. You are in this room with prolific subject matter experts.” – Delhommer
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PANEL 3
Independent by Design: Evolving Paths for Indie Filmmakers
Moderator: Tom Luse, Executive Producer (The Walking Dead and others)
Jeremiah Cullen, Director of Sales and Client Services, Shadowbox Studios
Christopher Escobar, Executive Director, Atlanta Film Society
Matt Jones, Head of Production, Grand Hustle Films
Denise Santos, Founder and Producer, Latinas in Media Atlanta
Highlights:
“Commercials are a great breeding ground to learn how to make content.” – Luse
“For a long time, people brought movies here, filmed them, and then took them away [to work on them. But we’re becoming the place to do it all … since the strikes, work was slow to come back worldwide, but more so in the U.S. [With the creative pipeline here]we’re beginning to grow again.” – Luse
“Pre-strike, the clientele was the bigger budget features. Post-strike, the landscape has shifted, as well as the clientele, to more independent [films]. [This is] an opportunity, because it’s never been easy for an independent filmmaker to book a stage. We want to be part of changing that narrative. The studio should be a storyteller’s sandbox, where you have control.” – Cullen
“It used to be 25% cheaper to shoot on location in Atlanta. As markets mature, locations charge more. So there’s a big advantage of shooting on stage for independent filmmakers.” – Luse
“Latinas … represent less than 5% of the content and an underserved audience. Tell us about the opportunity.” – Luse
“It starts with intentionality. When you see a community missing from your team on a production, reach out to someone. Have their stories read … We’re top spenders. We go to the movies, and we want to see ourselves represented.” – Santos
“You had a start in music … and [in all your projects]you’re committed to staying here.” – Luse
“Minority communities kind of have to push to be seen … I worked with rappers, and was a music executive for many years. [Today] we own that IP … and there are projects being done all over Georgia [post production, etc.]” – Jones
“[Let’s talk the] indie creator model.” – Luse
“We have everything we need here. We used to be like a manufacturing plant, and all the decisions were made in NY and LA … we’re the culture capital of the world with music, so why don’t we have some more ownership?” – Jones
“We’re starting to switch from a moon to a sun.” – Luse
“It’s not uncommon for the highest performing film each weekend [Plaza and Tara combined] to be an independent film … there’s space now for different kinds of stories and different kinds of storytellers. It’s going to be a marathon to get your film done and get it out there. [In terms of distribution trends] … it doesn’t matter what kind of screen it’s on, it’s how people are going to know about it.” – Escobar
“I’m not kidding when I say we have everything we need here. I’m literally sitting on the stage with the guy who helped me get [here].” – Jones
