WEBVTT - Wheelhouse Entertainment's Courtney White on How Streaming Has Changed Unscripted TV 0:00:07.320 --> 0:00:11.880 Welcome to Strictly Business, Variety's weekly podcast featuring conversations with 0:00:12.000 --> 0:00:16.239 industry leaders about the business of media and entertainment. I'm 0:00:16.280 --> 0:00:20.560 Cynthia Lyttleton, co editor in chief of Variety Today. My 0:00:20.680 --> 0:00:25.320 guest is Courtney White, President of Wheelhouse Entertainment. She runs 0:00:25.360 --> 0:00:29.840 the production arm of Brent Montgomery's Wheelhouse Venture, which includes TV, 0:00:30.120 --> 0:00:34.199 film and digital production, brand management, and an investment arm. 0:00:35.080 --> 0:00:38.519 White spent seventeen years as a top programming executive for 0:00:38.640 --> 0:00:42.760 Food Network and HGTV. She joined the Wheelhouse Group in 0:00:42.840 --> 0:00:46.440 twenty twenty two, when she exited her job just in 0:00:46.479 --> 0:00:50.240 advance of the merger that created Warner Brothers Discovery. White 0:00:50.280 --> 0:00:54.960 explains how Wheelhouse is navigating a topsy Turvey marketplace for content. 0:00:55.800 --> 0:00:58.400 It's all about the quality of the idea and the 0:00:58.480 --> 0:01:01.400 quality of the elements that are producer brings to the table. 0:01:02.560 --> 0:01:07.160 She also explains why Wheelhouse has invested significant resources to 0:01:07.240 --> 0:01:10.920 host networking events for creatives in New York, LA and 0:01:10.959 --> 0:01:14.640 other cities. In a world where most pitches now take 0:01:14.680 --> 0:01:19.280 place on Zoom, Wheelhouse wants to create that environment of 0:01:19.360 --> 0:01:22.720 spontaneous chit chat that sometimes. 0:01:22.160 --> 0:01:23.919 Leads to huge breakthroughs. 0:01:24.640 --> 0:01:28.039 White gives a great example in the conversation that is 0:01:28.080 --> 0:01:41.440 coming up right after this break, and we're back with 0:01:41.520 --> 0:01:46.440 the conversation with Wheelhouse Entertainment President Courtney White. Courtney White, 0:01:46.560 --> 0:01:49.559 President of Wheelhouse Entertainment, thank you so much for having 0:01:49.600 --> 0:01:52.760 me here at the Wheelhouse House in West Hollywood. 0:01:52.800 --> 0:01:54.800 Thank you for coming. It's a pleasure to talk with 0:01:54.840 --> 0:01:57.960 you this afternoon. We are talking a few hours before 0:01:58.080 --> 0:02:02.920 you host a Ladies launch event, a networking mixer for 0:02:03.240 --> 0:02:08.120 all kinds of creative types producers, writers, directors, talent in 0:02:08.160 --> 0:02:12.040 the Los Angeles area. Tell me why Wheelhouse invests in 0:02:12.080 --> 0:02:14.919 this and what you get out of it. Well, it 0:02:15.000 --> 0:02:20.440 goes back to I think the essential DNA of Wheelhouse 0:02:20.800 --> 0:02:26.120 and the initial vision that Brent Montgomery, are founder and CEO, 0:02:27.440 --> 0:02:31.200 launched with, and it's we're in a business that is 0:02:31.240 --> 0:02:39.040 about collaboration, relationships, taking a plus B and making a 0:02:39.080 --> 0:02:44.960 C that has never existed before. And Wheelhouse has invested 0:02:45.120 --> 0:02:49.560 in these properties. We have the Wheelhouse here in West Hollywood, 0:02:50.200 --> 0:02:54.680 one in Tribeca and New York. And while those are 0:02:54.960 --> 0:02:59.560 workspaces and meeting spaces, they're also event spaces for people 0:03:00.680 --> 0:03:05.600 in all different walks of our business. So creatives, people 0:03:05.639 --> 0:03:12.520 in the finance world, talent all come together, and you know, 0:03:12.639 --> 0:03:15.240 it reminds me of something that a lot of people 0:03:15.280 --> 0:03:19.480 are saying post COVID. When you now pitch an idea 0:03:19.639 --> 0:03:24.000 on Zoom, it's a very controlled half hour pitch. You 0:03:24.080 --> 0:03:27.560 pitch the idea, then you click off, and what executives 0:03:27.800 --> 0:03:30.960 and producers say a lot is but the real business 0:03:30.960 --> 0:03:33.120 didn't get done in that pitch. It used to be 0:03:33.240 --> 0:03:35.280 when you walked into the office and you walk to 0:03:35.320 --> 0:03:39.840 the elevator. That's when something happened unplanned, the famous walk 0:03:39.920 --> 0:03:44.000 to the elevator and so many shows we're birth that way. 0:03:44.160 --> 0:03:46.200 And so this is about. 0:03:45.880 --> 0:03:52.240 Bringing people together who might not otherwise intermingle, and it's 0:03:52.280 --> 0:03:55.600 about the magic of collaboration. We all have a lot 0:03:55.600 --> 0:03:57.720 of planned meetings, we all have a lot of very 0:03:57.760 --> 0:04:01.040 strategic let's meet this person. This is a great group 0:04:01.120 --> 0:04:07.520 of people who come together in these events and magic 0:04:07.560 --> 0:04:12.040 happens and connection happens. And then with ladies who launched now, 0:04:12.080 --> 0:04:16.200 I was the beneficiary of growing up in a corporate 0:04:16.279 --> 0:04:19.360 environment where there was a lot of resources spent on 0:04:19.440 --> 0:04:25.200 my growth, and I went to events at Wicked Women 0:04:25.279 --> 0:04:28.360 in Cable Television and those kinds of events, and it 0:04:28.440 --> 0:04:33.719 really helped groom me as an executive. And I did 0:04:33.760 --> 0:04:38.120 see coming out of COVID there was either a cutback 0:04:38.160 --> 0:04:44.360 on companies supplying those resources or cutback on especially young 0:04:44.400 --> 0:04:47.279 women coming into the office. I learned how to do 0:04:47.360 --> 0:04:51.240 my job by watching my mentor, Kathleen do her job, 0:04:51.800 --> 0:04:55.120 and so I really think that that exposure and that 0:04:55.200 --> 0:05:00.560 networking was critical to my career. And we have the 0:05:00.600 --> 0:05:04.720 event spaces, we have events teams, and so to do 0:05:04.800 --> 0:05:10.480 one that was a female focused series seemed to really 0:05:10.520 --> 0:05:14.320 be something that I was passionate about and something that 0:05:14.600 --> 0:05:17.159 Wheelhouse was just turnkey made to do. 0:05:17.720 --> 0:05:20.800 Yeah, well, you certainly have quite the setting here. It 0:05:20.880 --> 0:05:23.800 is a it is a warm, you know, cozy ish 0:05:23.839 --> 0:05:27.400 but absolutely gorgeous house, and you fill it with lots 0:05:27.440 --> 0:05:30.880 of you know, it just it's an inviting setting for absolutely, 0:05:30.960 --> 0:05:35.160 for sure. Isn't you raise something interesting? Certainly? I can 0:05:35.279 --> 0:05:40.320 definitely remember, you know, organizations, event and events and organizations 0:05:40.360 --> 0:05:44.360 built around, particularly around the development and nurturing of women 0:05:44.839 --> 0:05:46.880 in cable. And I think I would chalk a lot 0:05:46.880 --> 0:05:48.840 of that up to the fact that cable as a 0:05:48.960 --> 0:05:51.600 nascent industry, you know, going back to the late seventies 0:05:51.640 --> 0:05:54.920 and early eighties. There were there were the k Koppleowitz's, 0:05:54.960 --> 0:05:57.400 there were the Geraldine Leiborns. Was a place for a 0:05:57.400 --> 0:05:59.599 lot of women who might have been banging their heads 0:05:59.640 --> 0:06:01.839 on the or to get to get hired by ABC, 0:06:01.960 --> 0:06:05.000 NBC and CBS, basically the only game in town at 0:06:05.000 --> 0:06:07.800 that time. But here was this new business. Abby Raven 0:06:08.080 --> 0:06:11.680 famously at A and E Networks, started as a secretary 0:06:11.720 --> 0:06:14.920 and left thirty five ish years later as chairman and CEO. 0:06:15.800 --> 0:06:18.600 Doesn't get better than that. From that experience, what did 0:06:18.640 --> 0:06:22.520 you find were really beneficial? Like, what were the networking 0:06:22.560 --> 0:06:25.560 events that really helped you go to the next level, 0:06:25.680 --> 0:06:30.560 or the or the role modeling experiences that really impacted you. 0:06:31.360 --> 0:06:40.200 I remember distinctly this one Wicked leadership session. It was 0:06:40.279 --> 0:06:42.599 probably a two or three day off site, so it 0:06:42.640 --> 0:06:47.920 was an intensive and it was about finding your management style. 0:06:48.000 --> 0:06:54.600 And these were those of us who were participants. You know, 0:06:54.760 --> 0:06:58.960 we were kind of mid level, We had probably just 0:06:59.000 --> 0:07:02.120 started managing one or two people. We were at that 0:07:02.360 --> 0:07:03.479 point of our career. 0:07:03.600 --> 0:07:07.359 The sweet spot for a nurturing I felt, so yeah, 0:07:07.400 --> 0:07:12.440 and so you you kind of understand stood the importance 0:07:12.480 --> 0:07:15.040 of managing people well because you had started to do 0:07:15.120 --> 0:07:18.000 it and you realized how difficult it is and what 0:07:18.040 --> 0:07:19.560 a commitment it is to do it well. 0:07:20.000 --> 0:07:23.280 So it was that perfect time for that training. And 0:07:23.320 --> 0:07:26.960 there were all different styles that we talked about, but 0:07:27.000 --> 0:07:31.240 there was this one. It was like the ultimate quadrant 0:07:31.240 --> 0:07:35.960 that you could you could enter into, which is how 0:07:36.000 --> 0:07:40.800 can you be like lean into female attributes to not 0:07:40.880 --> 0:07:44.400 try to just blend in with men, but really bring 0:07:45.480 --> 0:07:50.080 the female attributes to the table and use them in 0:07:50.080 --> 0:07:53.560 an empowered way, so not try to blend in with 0:07:53.640 --> 0:07:57.880 all of the male suits, but stand out, be confident 0:07:57.920 --> 0:08:00.680 in standing that out. And that that was sort of 0:08:00.720 --> 0:08:07.640 the ultimate, like the ultimate style to aspire to. And 0:08:07.680 --> 0:08:11.240 so I remember that and so like here today at Wheelhouse, 0:08:12.160 --> 0:08:15.480 you know, it's the place is covered in pink flowers. 0:08:15.640 --> 0:08:19.960 You know, like we're leaning into that that feminine power. 0:08:20.520 --> 0:08:22.480 How do you curate the invite list? 0:08:24.160 --> 0:08:28.760 So it's a mix. So we at Wheelhouse always have 0:08:29.000 --> 0:08:33.880 dozens and dozens of partnerships going on, and it's producers, 0:08:34.600 --> 0:08:42.360 broadcast partners, talent, other production companies. So the the list 0:08:42.440 --> 0:08:48.360 always starts with our current partners and then we invite 0:08:48.400 --> 0:08:52.640 them to then to bring people on their teams, and 0:08:52.679 --> 0:08:58.719 it's very purposefully not just made for senior level executives. 0:08:59.160 --> 0:09:05.080 So again, this mission is really to fill in what 0:09:05.320 --> 0:09:08.160 the voids are with people not necessarily being in the 0:09:08.160 --> 0:09:12.040 office all the time, not necessarily having big events that 0:09:12.080 --> 0:09:16.160 are sponsored by their organizations. So we have people who 0:09:16.480 --> 0:09:18.600 are in the first year of their career, we have 0:09:18.679 --> 0:09:23.120 people who are really senior and so at every event, 0:09:23.160 --> 0:09:26.600 and we've done series in both New York and LA 0:09:27.480 --> 0:09:32.200 we do a newsletter and get everybody connected after the fact, 0:09:32.280 --> 0:09:37.120 and then we always get a swell of people who say, 0:09:37.720 --> 0:09:39.640 can this person on my team come? Or I just 0:09:39.760 --> 0:09:44.640 met this person, So it grows really fast. 0:09:45.080 --> 0:09:47.840 I'm joking, but does Wheelhouse have like a first look 0:09:47.840 --> 0:09:49.880 on any ideas that come out of it? Actually, I'm 0:09:49.880 --> 0:09:50.680 only half joking. 0:09:51.559 --> 0:09:58.080 It doesn't. So we feel proud for the connections that 0:09:58.840 --> 0:10:02.199 come here. We you get looped into a lot of 0:10:02.280 --> 0:10:06.280 those kind of connections and partnerships. We at Wheelhouse are 0:10:06.280 --> 0:10:08.880 well represented here, so we've got a lot of our 0:10:09.880 --> 0:10:13.600 labels and teams here. So if something happens that we're 0:10:13.640 --> 0:10:18.160 not a part of and a story is founded here, 0:10:18.640 --> 0:10:21.559 we still consider that a win, and frankly, at this 0:10:21.640 --> 0:10:25.480 point in the industry, you know, any wind for the 0:10:25.520 --> 0:10:26.840 business is a win for us. 0:10:26.880 --> 0:10:29.080 All. It's been more than a few years since Brent 0:10:29.120 --> 0:10:31.839 Montgomery founded Wheelhouse and he you know, I remember he 0:10:32.000 --> 0:10:34.240 very purposely founded it with it to be a different 0:10:34.320 --> 0:10:36.800 kind of company, to have a lot of different aspects 0:10:36.800 --> 0:10:40.559 and different different revenue streams coming in as the head 0:10:40.559 --> 0:10:43.160 of Wheelhouse Entertainment, can you kind of sketch us through 0:10:43.679 --> 0:10:46.520 what that company is and where you're finding the biggest 0:10:46.520 --> 0:10:48.120 opportunities at this time. 0:10:48.440 --> 0:10:52.560 So, Wheelhouse Entertainment is comprised of seven different labels and 0:10:52.679 --> 0:10:57.120 those include Butternoud, the lifestyle label, Spoke, which is character driven, 0:10:58.080 --> 0:11:02.040 wheel House Studios run by Glenn Hugle, who's also our 0:11:02.120 --> 0:11:06.680 chief creative officer, who is our big global format genius. 0:11:07.960 --> 0:11:13.320 Twist is our newest label that is led by Jane 0:11:13.400 --> 0:11:16.880 Latman who is a Discovery ID, and then HGTV and 0:11:16.920 --> 0:11:24.000 Food Network. We have a new venture, wheel House Sports. 0:11:24.440 --> 0:11:29.440 So we really cover all of the unscripted genres and 0:11:29.480 --> 0:11:31.840 we think of ourselves as the Avengers, so we've got 0:11:31.880 --> 0:11:37.439 specialists in all of those subgenres and then they share resources. 0:11:38.000 --> 0:11:43.960 Our digital teams support all of those labels. So for example, 0:11:44.360 --> 0:11:49.679 Jane Latman just launched a show on Discovery I D 0:11:50.360 --> 0:11:54.000 and then that became a podcast that we're now announcing, 0:11:54.360 --> 0:11:59.120 And so those digital teams are really charged with building 0:11:59.120 --> 0:12:02.600 out the content from a vertical standpoint. But then also 0:12:02.679 --> 0:12:07.280 things like our legal and our production management team is centralized. 0:12:07.720 --> 0:12:14.360 So the idea is that the labels all are quite specific, 0:12:15.080 --> 0:12:20.920 and they're scrappy and really development focused, and when they 0:12:20.960 --> 0:12:24.880 get series up and running, they plug into our centralized machine. 0:12:24.880 --> 0:12:27.480 And our centralized machine is also quite scrappy because we 0:12:27.600 --> 0:12:31.679 find every project is bespoke and needs a specialty team. 0:12:32.840 --> 0:12:35.440 We've got one project, for example, that has a live 0:12:35.520 --> 0:12:40.000 finale and so bring in that the live specialists is 0:12:40.040 --> 0:12:46.440 something that we do to fortify the teams. So it 0:12:44.559 --> 0:12:50.480 is it's very broad and I would say our current 0:12:50.559 --> 0:12:55.480 mission is to really broaden out what kinds of screens 0:12:55.520 --> 0:13:00.200 and where our audiences are consuming our content. So we 0:13:00.240 --> 0:13:06.680 work with Netflix and Hulu and cable and streamers, but 0:13:07.400 --> 0:13:10.800 also going straight to YouTube. So we have a partnership 0:13:10.840 --> 0:13:14.840 with and Edward from the NBA and we're creating his 0:13:15.040 --> 0:13:19.720 series Year five, which is straight to YouTube. We have 0:13:19.960 --> 0:13:23.320 another show in the works which has not been announced yet, 0:13:23.360 --> 0:13:26.960 but it is has a cable play, a streaming play, 0:13:27.400 --> 0:13:32.240 and experiential, so lots of different tentacles. I do think 0:13:32.280 --> 0:13:36.800 in general there's a bigger flexibility now than there was 0:13:37.080 --> 0:13:41.000 a year ago. I see a bigger flexibility in Warner, 0:13:41.040 --> 0:13:43.760 for example, now than when I was there three years ago. 0:13:43.840 --> 0:13:45.520 So I think that door is opening. 0:13:45.960 --> 0:13:49.040 Don't go anywhere. We'll be right back with more from 0:13:49.080 --> 0:13:59.480 Wheelhouse Entertainment President Courtney White. And we're back with more 0:13:59.760 --> 0:14:03.880 from our conversation with Wheelhouse Entertainment President Courtney Way. 0:14:04.320 --> 0:14:08.560 Going straight to YouTube? Is that a programmatic strategy? And 0:14:08.600 --> 0:14:11.520 can you make it work? Is it viable to put 0:14:11.520 --> 0:14:15.640 something on YouTube? And you know, the can the programmatic 0:14:15.679 --> 0:14:18.640 alan sustain you? Is a success? 0:14:19.160 --> 0:14:21.400 I would say that economics need to start with a 0:14:21.520 --> 0:14:27.680 concept that's really efficient. So and when we're asking ourselves, okay, 0:14:27.760 --> 0:14:30.040 is this a TV show? Is this so the economics 0:14:30.040 --> 0:14:33.520 of scale, it has to start there. So it has 0:14:33.560 --> 0:14:36.560 to be something that we can make for less and 0:14:36.600 --> 0:14:40.480 not that it's lesser quality, but just the nature of 0:14:40.520 --> 0:14:44.160 that show. So in year five, for example, we've got 0:14:44.480 --> 0:14:48.040 it's very verite and its cameras embedded with an Edwards 0:14:48.760 --> 0:14:52.840 in behind the scenes of his NBA career. I just 0:14:52.880 --> 0:14:57.000 had a meeting this morning with a chef who is 0:14:57.040 --> 0:15:01.400 a well known name who wants to create something at 0:15:01.440 --> 0:15:07.960 their house, very simple cooking content, and we think that 0:15:08.080 --> 0:15:11.920 YouTube is the place for that, and then we're finding 0:15:12.080 --> 0:15:16.760 success with bringing brands on board. To launch on YouTube 0:15:17.680 --> 0:15:22.520 with an unknown talent from the ground up is really tricky, 0:15:22.600 --> 0:15:24.760 so we look for a head start in terms of 0:15:25.800 --> 0:15:29.440 the talent that we're partnering with, having a robust following 0:15:29.440 --> 0:15:33.680 on their own brand relationships, and an efficient model. So 0:15:34.040 --> 0:15:36.440 when those things line up, it can make sense for us. 0:15:36.920 --> 0:15:41.560 The largest streamers got into unscripted after really going big 0:15:41.680 --> 0:15:45.000 unscripted shows. How do you think that's impacted the overall 0:15:45.360 --> 0:15:48.000 unscripted market in terms of the demand. 0:15:48.480 --> 0:15:50.760 We as makers don't think of it necessarily as a 0:15:50.760 --> 0:15:54.720 cable show or streaming show because frankly, most of our 0:15:54.720 --> 0:15:59.680 shows are airing on multiple platforms, and so you're selling 0:15:59.720 --> 0:16:06.440 into to this family of broadcasters more than just one home. 0:16:07.000 --> 0:16:09.920 So in some cases it's been able to help us 0:16:09.960 --> 0:16:15.440 budgetarily because different facets of the same company, the streaming 0:16:15.640 --> 0:16:20.920 aspect and the cable aspect are sharing costs. I think 0:16:22.520 --> 0:16:27.760 what has happened is everybody is caring about, Okay, how 0:16:27.760 --> 0:16:30.960 do we get people to the next episode. The bingeability 0:16:31.240 --> 0:16:35.640 patterns that you see on streaming, I think are everywhere. 0:16:35.800 --> 0:16:39.640 So even in a standalone show, it's like, Okay, is 0:16:39.680 --> 0:16:43.120 there a foreshadow moment to the next episode or what's 0:16:43.160 --> 0:16:49.320 sticky about it? So the other reality, which is I 0:16:49.320 --> 0:16:52.120 think a harsh one for the business, is there are 0:16:52.280 --> 0:16:56.240 very few really high volume shows anymore, and so it 0:16:56.320 --> 0:17:02.880 really is about the six eight episode order that that 0:17:03.040 --> 0:17:03.560 is the norm. 0:17:03.840 --> 0:17:06.399 Whereas when you were running Food Network and we're involved 0:17:06.440 --> 0:17:10.240 with HGTV, you would order as many as forty fifty 0:17:10.280 --> 0:17:11.040 episodes at a. 0:17:11.000 --> 0:17:14.480 Time when I started in the development department at HGTV 0:17:14.880 --> 0:17:19.040 in two thousand and five, because our cost per hour 0:17:19.359 --> 0:17:22.000 were solo, we didn't do pilots. We went straight to 0:17:22.080 --> 0:17:22.720 sixty five. 0:17:23.320 --> 0:17:26.040 The long term forecast of the cable business is one of, 0:17:26.200 --> 0:17:30.320 you know, of a shrinking subscriber base. That world has 0:17:30.359 --> 0:17:32.960 been very important to Wheelhouse and to the sort of 0:17:33.000 --> 0:17:36.800 forerunners of Wheelhouse. How are you how do you see 0:17:36.840 --> 0:17:38.920 that going in the next five to ten years? Is 0:17:38.960 --> 0:17:42.080 that do you think do you think destination cable channels 0:17:42.119 --> 0:17:45.119 like you're alumni, you know, Food Network and HDTV, do 0:17:45.160 --> 0:17:48.480 you think those are going to buck the down trend 0:17:48.560 --> 0:17:51.200 maintaining a healthy audience, a healthy linear audience. 0:17:52.359 --> 0:17:59.439 I don't see the linear audience trend reversing. And I 0:17:59.480 --> 0:18:03.680 think of hg TV and Food Network just as examples 0:18:03.400 --> 0:18:07.840 as brands more than networks now, you know, and my 0:18:08.000 --> 0:18:14.400 hope is that they they their growth is really on 0:18:14.800 --> 0:18:20.600 streaming and max and being part of that offering. You know, 0:18:20.640 --> 0:18:25.840 where we see cable, there's definitely a bifurcation of the marketplace. 0:18:26.000 --> 0:18:33.240 There's the more high end event shows and more expensive shows. 0:18:33.760 --> 0:18:39.159 And if you can really create a show for cable 0:18:39.200 --> 0:18:44.600 first and foremost that is excellent and sticky and garners 0:18:44.600 --> 0:18:49.480 an audience and has made economically really efficiently, I think 0:18:49.520 --> 0:18:53.480 that's gonna still be the market. So I think the 0:18:53.640 --> 0:18:58.040 cable business, what we're finding there is, you know, the 0:18:58.520 --> 0:19:04.639 budgets are tight, but if we're able to tell the 0:19:04.680 --> 0:19:10.800 story that that we tell within a price point, there's 0:19:10.840 --> 0:19:14.840 still there's there's still business to be had there, you know. 0:19:14.880 --> 0:19:17.120 In my hope for these cable networks that I love 0:19:17.240 --> 0:19:21.119 is that they're not they don't just live on linear, 0:19:21.240 --> 0:19:25.240 but that they can really take their audience to to 0:19:25.320 --> 0:19:25.879 streaming too. 0:19:26.359 --> 0:19:29.639 Let's go to the other end, podcasts and other forms 0:19:29.640 --> 0:19:32.760 of content. Where are you finding the most opportunity there? 0:19:34.080 --> 0:19:39.560 So we're really focused there in the crime space. So 0:19:39.600 --> 0:19:44.520 we are finding that's crime. Yeah, I mean that it's 0:19:44.560 --> 0:19:48.720 it's such. It's such an important part of the podcast 0:19:48.760 --> 0:19:52.920 business in terms of genre. And when Jane Latman came 0:19:52.960 --> 0:19:57.160 on board to launch Twist, she was really passionate about 0:19:57.160 --> 0:20:01.760 being able to tell stories uh in in multiple places. 0:20:01.960 --> 0:20:08.639 So as we grow our podcast business, a lot of 0:20:08.680 --> 0:20:11.080 it falls in the crime space, and. 0:20:11.000 --> 0:20:15.800 That's largely advertising supported. It is, yes, and it sounds 0:20:15.800 --> 0:20:17.800 like there's enough there to make it worth your while. 0:20:19.640 --> 0:20:21.520 I'm talking about podcasting specifically. 0:20:22.000 --> 0:20:26.840 It is especially when you approach it vertically like we are. 0:20:26.880 --> 0:20:30.520 So it connects to a show we're making. It's you know, 0:20:30.600 --> 0:20:34.480 so that vertical business that's where we see a lot 0:20:34.480 --> 0:20:37.440 of growth is where can we take something that may 0:20:37.480 --> 0:20:41.399 start as a show but becomes an experience, becomes a podcast. 0:20:41.480 --> 0:20:45.520 So growing from that core business ip that we're creating, 0:20:46.720 --> 0:20:49.240 that's how we really focus where we're going to spend 0:20:49.240 --> 0:20:50.840 our energies and resources. 0:20:51.160 --> 0:20:54.359 Are there any other like new cutting edge formats, anything 0:20:54.400 --> 0:20:56.240 that you're seeing real potentially? 0:20:58.000 --> 0:21:03.639 Yes, we have one coming at the Door which is 0:21:03.680 --> 0:21:08.520 not yet announced, but it touches a little bit on 0:21:09.080 --> 0:21:12.760 the DNA of Alone, which from Montgomery and Will not 0:21:12.920 --> 0:21:15.719 the girl on our teams created, but takes in a 0:21:15.800 --> 0:21:21.240 completely different direction. So and it at the Helm has 0:21:21.400 --> 0:21:28.120 two really famous content creators who most of the people 0:21:28.160 --> 0:21:31.720 in the world know by name and are really surprise 0:21:32.160 --> 0:21:35.480 ending that's live and I would say, you know, for 0:21:35.560 --> 0:21:39.200 all of the talk with there's nothing new being sold 0:21:39.240 --> 0:21:44.000 and everything's a reboot. Million Dollar Secret, this show that 0:21:44.119 --> 0:21:47.320 I'm kind of teasing and not really mentioning and Got 0:21:47.320 --> 0:21:50.480 to Get Out are all internally developed by our Real 0:21:50.480 --> 0:21:53.639 House Studios team under the leadership of Glenn Hugle. So 0:21:54.400 --> 0:21:59.919 when we're finding we can bring something truly ambitious, unique 0:22:00.440 --> 0:22:04.879 and never been done before to the market, there's been 0:22:05.480 --> 0:22:09.679 a frenzy for it from the buyers and A Million 0:22:09.680 --> 0:22:12.560 Dollar Secret is doing great so far, so hopefully on 0:22:12.600 --> 0:22:14.840 the audience, and hopefully we'll have a really strong launch 0:22:14.880 --> 0:22:15.960 for Got to Get Out as well. 0:22:16.200 --> 0:22:19.400 Let me close by asking you what's the best part 0:22:19.400 --> 0:22:21.560 of your job or some of the best parts of 0:22:21.560 --> 0:22:23.200 your job that you love the most. 0:22:25.320 --> 0:22:30.600 I love being able to work with creatives who have 0:22:30.680 --> 0:22:33.399 completely different brains, and I do think our secret sauce 0:22:33.520 --> 0:22:37.479 at Wheelhouse is our collaboration. So we have people who 0:22:37.520 --> 0:22:42.240 have come up through the business, through every different angle 0:22:42.600 --> 0:22:45.719 and coming together and collaborating with people who have minds 0:22:45.760 --> 0:22:50.000 that are nothing like yours, who are completely creative. And 0:22:50.800 --> 0:22:53.359 the big part of our company's job is to come 0:22:53.440 --> 0:22:57.399 up with ideas every day. So we're doing that internally 0:22:57.760 --> 0:23:00.840 and feeding off of the creativity of each other. We're 0:23:00.840 --> 0:23:04.720 hosting events, feeding off the creative of the outside world. 0:23:05.000 --> 0:23:09.120 So that creative collaboration in that spark that happens when 0:23:09.160 --> 0:23:12.480 two people get in a room and create a new 0:23:12.520 --> 0:23:16.159 idea in the moment, which is what Wheelhouse is all about. 0:23:16.280 --> 0:23:19.840 And to me, which was so attractive about coming on board. 0:23:21.359 --> 0:23:24.160 I mean, that's just magic. It's lightning in a bottle, 0:23:24.160 --> 0:23:25.960 as they say, So that's the best part. 0:23:26.040 --> 0:23:29.080 Well, here's hoping that there's a million dollar idea just 0:23:29.240 --> 0:23:31.399 waiting to jump out at you in a few hours 0:23:31.400 --> 0:23:33.639 at your event, Courtney, thank you so much. This has 0:23:33.680 --> 0:23:34.080 been fun. 0:23:34.280 --> 0:23:36.000 Thank you, it's a pleasure talking to you. 0:23:38.840 --> 0:23:41.840 Thanks for listening. Be sure to leave us a review 0:23:41.920 --> 0:23:44.960 at the podcast platform of your choice. We love to 0:23:45.000 --> 0:23:48.600 hear from listeners. Please go to Variety dot com and 0:23:48.680 --> 0:23:53.359 sign up for the free weekly Strictly Business newsletter, and 0:23:53.480 --> 0:23:56.760 don't forget to tune in next week for another episode 0:23:56.800 --> 0:24:03.800 of Strictly Business.