SoulPancake, the Participant Media (Spotlight, The Help)-owned media and entertainment company originally founded by Rainn Wilson (The Office, The Meg) announced the expansion of its executive roster with the hire of Jordan Allen as SVP of Revenue, Strategy, and Operations and Mick DiMaria as VP, Creative Director. Allen will report to SoulPancake’s CEO Shabnam Mogharabi and DiMaria will report to SoulPancake’s SVP and Head of Creative Golriz Lucina.
Allen and DiMaria join the SoulPancake team as it kicks off its tenth year and on the heels of last year’s significant growth, which included the debut of new original series, such as Board of Dating with digital leader Tastemade and I Survived, as well as branded integrations including Funded In America, the La La Anthony hosted series with T-Mobile and Indiegogo, and Food Interrupted with Panera and Ace Content. 2018 also included SoulPancake’s successful foray into live events with the introduction of two sold-out SoulPancake Live shows and the release of Participant Media’s award-winning documentary The Price of Free.
SoulPancake also begins the year in a new space after relocating its headquarters to Participant Media’s Beverly Hills office to accommodate growth and continued synergies with the production company that acquired SoulPancake in 2016. The move brings SoulPancake’s fun, whimsical culture to the space, while Participant provides additional operational structure and content integration as the two companies continue their shared mission to tell stories that matters.
“Jordan and Mick will play an integral role in building off last year’s momentum as we head into 2019. Their expertise will help us continue our role as a leader in the creative content space and help us grow our meaningful brand,” Mogharabi says. “Additionally, moving into the Participant Media offices will open the door for us to offer a broader suite of first-class content and creative products. We are fortunate to have a parent company that is mission-driven, like-minded, and celebrates the same values as we do. Our work to create content that changes minds, uplifts hearts, and inspires social change is strongest together.”
Allen brings a wealth of digital experience joining SoulPancake from PopSugar Studios where he served as SVP and grew over $30M in video advertising business and 400M+ cross-platform organic views per month during his 7-year tenure. In his new role at SoulPancake, Allen will oversee the day-to-day business operations and influence the company’s top-level strategy and initiatives.
DiMaria joins SoulPancake after consulting with leading entertainment and advertising companies such as 20th Century Fox, Battery, and Jam City. Prior to that, DiMaria was Creative Director at 72andSunny where he worked on the award-winning Truth campaign that helped to take the US teen smoking rate from 9% down to 5%.
