At Gen-Z Media we’re committed to creating stories that are as relatable as they are surprising, filled with twists, turns, humor, and heart.
Ben Strouse
CEO / Co-Founder
Peabody Award-winning creator Ben Strouse oversees Gen-Z Media. Before co-founding GZM, Ben practiced Intellectual Property and Entertainment Law in New York City. He is the author of The New York Times Best-of-the-Year children’s book Hey Boy (Simon & Schuster), as well as the librettist and composer of the Off-Broadway musical Whateverman.
David Kreizman
Chief Creative Officer / Co-Founder
David Kreizman is an Emmy, Writers Guild, and Peabody Award-winning showrunner, writer, director, and producer. A lifetime fan of middle-grade and YA entertainment, David oversees the writing and development of all original GZM shows. Before entering the world of podcasting, David was head writer for the daytime drama Guiding Light, co-head writer of All My Children and As the World Turns and head writer for World Wrestling Entertainment. His YA novel, The Year They Fell, was published by Macmillan in 2019.
Chris Tarry
Chief Production Officer / Co-Founder
Chris Tarry is a Peabody Award-winning writer and a five-time Juno Award-winning musician, composer, and sound designer. His book of short stories, How To Carry Bigfoot Home (Red Hen Press), won the IndieFab book of the year for short fiction, and has been widely praised as one of the best short story collections of 2015. Along with his extensive experience leading production and creative teams, Chris is one of New York’s most in-demand bass players. His cinematic compositions and sound design aesthetic are the backbone of the immersive, high-concept adventures produced at Gen-Z Media.
Tom Casiello
Writer
Tom wrote for As the World Turns, One Life to Live, Days of Our Lives, and The Young and the Restless, winningthree Emmys and a WGA Award for his work before spending six years on the creative team of WWE. Currently, he’s world-building Apex Legends, creating characters, crafting storylines and producing animated shorts for the game played by over seventy million people all over the world.
Lucky Gold
Writer
Lucky’s career has ranged from writing feature films for MGM, Universal, and Miramax, where he was script doctor for Shakespeare in Love, to writing and producing for Christiane Amanpour at CNN. Through it all, he has collected multiple Emmys for writing such stalwarts of daytime TV as Another World, One Life to Live, Guiding Light, As the World Turns, Young and the Restless, and General Hospital.
Art Hays
Composer
Art is an Austin-based musician/composer/producer and has been performing and writing music professionally since 1989. His songs have appeared on Criminal Minds (CBS), Kourtney & Khloé Take Miami (E!), Royal Pains (USA), Live To Dance (CBS), The O’Neals (OWN), Love Bites (NBC), NCIS LA (CBS), Jane By Design (ABC Family), and many more.
Marla Kanelos
Writer
Marla is an Emmy Award-winning television writer with extensive credits in daytime and primetime including All My Children, The Young and The Restless, Wild Card, and Port Charles. The winner of two Writers Guild of America awards, she has developed dramas, comedies, and feature films for eOne Entertainment, Gulfstream Pictures, and Vitameatavegamin Productions.
Noah Levinson
Producer
Noah is a freelance audio producer from Glen Ridge, New Jersey. He co-produced The Chemo Files, an award-winning podcast about his mother’s journey through breast cancer.
Nidhi Mehta
Writer
Nidhi has written for television in America and Europe, performed at Caroline’s on Broadway, and helped start-ups start up their branded content. Currently taking on podcasting and mobile tech, Nidhi enjoys finding new adventures to indulge in. Among her greatest loves are pizza, The Princess Bride, writing, and her family (not necessarily in that order).
Jonathan Messinger
Producer
Jonathan is one of the leading voices propelling kids’ scripted podcasts into the mainstream—and beyond. He is the creator of the hit show The Alien Adventures of Finn Caspian, now in its third season.
Darian Newsome
Associate Producer
Darian is an audio engineer who enjoys making music, playing video games, and hanging out with his friends and family. He is also really great at sound design, editing voices, and laying down tracks.
Shawn Pierce
Composer
Shawn is one of the busiest film composers in L.A. He has worked on more than 200 albums, composed music for many television shows (CTV, ABC, FX), and earned a Grammy nomination, 5 Juno awards, 22 Juno nominations, plus 2 WCMAs and 12 WCMA nominations.
Jennifer Rowekamp
Composer
Jennifer is a San Francisco-based composer and music editor. She works as an associate music editor at Pixar Animation Studios and freelance composes for podcasts, short films, and documentaries.
Michelle Tattenbaum
Producing Director
Michelle is a two-time Drama League Directing Fellow, with deep theater roots, having directed plays and musicals at the Old Globe (San Diego Theatre Critics Circle nomination: Best Director) and Second Stage Theater in NY. Tattenbaum worked for Manhattan Theatre Club for three years, producing and developing new plays and musicals.
Sharon Michaels
Production Manager
Sharon is a production manager with a background in musical theater. An AEA member, she is resident production stage manager at Midtown Direct’s national series of Listen to Your Mother and the North Jersey Pride Festival. Past jobs have included TEDX Maplewood (PSM) and producer on Verizon’s “Can you hear me now?” campaign.
Robert Hann
Editor & Sound Design
Robert is a composer, sound designer, songwriter, and audio engineer. When not making podcasts he can be found exploring hidden sites in the city, snowboarding in the mountains, or at home watching old classic movies.
Deborah Goldstein
Producer
Deborah is a writer and producer for the page, the stage, and the screen. She is the executive producer and host of The Big Fib podcast and supervising producer on the Disney+ streaming version, The Big Fib.
Jessica M. Fisher
Marketing Coordinator
Jessica is a digital marketing specialist from New Jersey. Although she recently graduated from NYU with a musical theater degree, she has been a social media expert for five years for multiple groups including NYU Skirball, Broadway Direct, and Phoenix Productions. Contact: jessica@gzmshows.com
Mike Olekshy
Composer
Mike is a guitarist, composer, and producer based in Nashville, Tennessee. A Gemini award-winning sound designer, he has composed and written songs for several television shows, films and, more recently, podcasts.
Kat Vokes
Composer
Kat is a Brooklyn-based composer, vocalist, and pianist, specializing in writing for film, television, and other media. She studied classical piano for 12 years before she formally trained as an opera singer at the prestigious Oberlin Conservatory of Music.
Ed RosenBerg III
Composer & Sound Design
Ed is a composer/performer residing in Brooklyn, N.Y. He studied saxophone at the Eastman School of Music and holds a PhD in Composition from Stony Brook University.
Jorge Aguirre
Writer
Jorge is an author and animation writer. He’s currently working on two new middle-grade graphic novel series, Monster Locker, and Call me Iggy. He also co-created the animated series, Goldie & Bear, for Disney Junior.
Jenn Levine
Director of Development
Jenn Levine is a story and content expert. As the head of the Story Department for WME / Endeavor and with years of experience as a freelance story consultant, her notes and critiques have been used to select and improve material by top studios, networks, agencies and writers in Hollywood and beyond.
Callum Plews
Managing Producer
Callum Plews is a Brooklyn-based producer and post production engineer. His award-winning work spans across audiobooks, podcasts, and film. He specializes in audio dramas and conceptual works that call for an innovative approach.
Ania Grzesik
Sound Designer
Ania is a sound designer and engineer whose podcast credits include shows from WNYC Studios and Team Coco. Previously, she was the Audio Supervisor for Blue Man Group’s NYC production. Recent projects include composition and sound design for exhibits in the Kennedy Space Center’s new attraction Gateway: The Deep Space Launch Complex, which means she’s basically an astronaut now.
Jason Sheesley
Editor
Jason is a musician and audio engineer with an extensive background in music production. He enjoys presenting and writing about audio, working with documentary podcasters, and using sound to help stories come alive.
Adam Tatro
Editor
Adam is an audio engineer with experience in music, sound design, audiobook, and podcast production. He is interested in exploring the vast possibilities of audio storytelling. As a musician, he has toured as a drummer and has written music featured at global professional wrestling events.
Kristian Foster
Editor & GZM Beats
Kristian Foster, aka evergrxnbeats, is a Hip-Hop producer, composer , engineer, and sound designer from Seattle, WA. He has worked with several emerging artists in the Seattle music scene from multiple genres. He studied Audio Production at the University of Washington.”
Gavin Skal
Editor
Gavin Skal is an audio engineer and editor based in Queens, NY. In addition to working with GZM, he has worked on hundreds of audio books, music recordings of all genres, and live recordings and streaming from places ranging from living rooms to the United Nations General Assembly.
Interested in joining our team? Apply at jobs@gzmshows.com
