MovieLaLa - Exclusive Q&A UPDATE with CEO Dana Loberg - 18 Months Later ...

MovieLaLa -- a community for movie lovers (and the marketing to, and data aggregation about, them) -- is a company I have tracked for nearly two years. In fact, our Manatt Venture Fund is an investor. And, MovieLaLa's founder/CEO Dana Loberg is one of my favorites. Talented, passionate, tenacious. I previously featured Dana and MovieLaLa in my exclusive continuing "5 Questions With" series 18 months ago. So, I decided to check back in with her for an update on how things have changed and progressed since then.  

Here are my new 5 questions to that end -- and Dana's unedited answers -- exclusively for you. For you startup entrepreneurs, pay particular attention to Dana's refreshingly candid answers to question (4) below -- i.e., how she manages balance in her life and the overall stress and inevitable highs/lows that come with having chosen the entrepreneurial life she/you have chosen.

(1) How has the world changed? (meaning, media and entertainment world)?

When my partner and I first started MovieLaLa in 2013, everyone was still talking about Netflix -- the reigning disruptor to the entertainment world. Fast forward two years, and we now have several new competitors in the space, including Amazon and Hulu, who are coming up with their own original content, just like Netflix. There are also a few up-and-coming studios that are maturing, like Legendary, Skydance and STX who are focused on digital and technology from the ground up, and are finding innovative new ways for distribution and marketing.

Content continues to be the most important aspect to entertainment as it’s the driving force of people’s engagement and time spent on the internet, smartphones, etc. Companies are starting to build content at different lengths to keep up with the mobile era in which we live. Studios are really making an effort to try new opportunities when it comes to marketing. Some are excited to work with a startup like ours, who’s solely focused on movies and movie marketing. The more we work with their teams, the more we build and refine the tools they need and want in the long term.

Overall, it’s been a exciting experience for both parties. My engineers get super psyched to work on Hollywood films and see it all come to life in front of them. Who wouldn’t?!

(2) How have your opportunities changed?

The opportunities in mobile continue to grow. When it comes to building awareness and generating interest, mobile is still the driving force. As far as new technologies and backend development, things continue to change rapidly.

For example, we saw how Meerkat and Periscope broke loose this year and really changed the paradigm in a major way. I look at them as YouTube for mobile. For me, the live video streaming feature, the scheduling of the stream, and global access to video are really compelling. When you think about it, these platforms could have a major impact on Hollywood and help film studios extend their marketing efforts into the “production” phase of their films. Can you imagine gathering fans as early as “in production” -- then and carrying them through to buying tickets and DVD/streaming?

Also, I really love the feeling of voyeurism these two apps create and the accessibility and interaction they facilitate with whomever is filming or being filmed. The pace at which we are living, and the new creative ways technology leaders are building and releasing new tools, are constantly creating opportunities for all markets.

(3) How has your company changed?

MovieLaLa has made a lot of traction with movie fans via our new app, as well as with key players in Hollywood. Since MovieLaLa is a niche company working 100% on movies and movie marketing, we’re able to come up with specific solutions that only the movie franchises and film distributors are grappling with. For instance, we’ve been able to provide the following:

• Better engagement and share rate than existing video tools
• Seamless transitions from pre-theatrical, in theatres, and post theatrical actions
• Content updates and notification reminders for movie fans

I think being able to specialize in a vertical, as a startup, and staying focused has really helped us see success; we’ve gained access, trust and growth in both our user base and with our studio partners.  

We can now implement and really showcase new ways to streamline studios’ marketing, help them build stronger engagement, achieve virality with their content and build a relationship with the movie fans who are interested in their releases. Through our partnerships with the studios, we are always finding new opportunities to improve and simplify their efforts through technology that we’re able to build on the fly. And optimizing everything for mobile consumption is a big part of where we’re playing. Beyond that, we always have the movie fan in mind when it comes to convenience and seamlessness.

And among the highest compliments: I've met a lot of people along the way at Apple, Google and Facebook who are really supportive of what we're doing. We’ve gotten interest from really talented engineers from all over the world who want to join our company. When you start getting inbound requests from people who really want to work with you, you realize that you've created something exciting that people want to be part of.

(4) How have you changed? 

Ha. I think you’d have to ask my investors and parents for the real answer to this one -- but I’d say I’ve probably changed quite a bit. I’ve taken up meditation and yoga to stay balanced. I’ve also been more selective with whom and where I spend my time. Time has become much more valuable to me throughout this process.  

As a female founder and entrepreneur, I feel like I’ve accomplished a lot over the past two years. The majority of the goals I’ve put in place while building MovieLaLa I’ve succeeded in completing and I’ve become more confident in direction and goals of our company. Personally I’ve learned a lot of lessons, the most important one: managing the extreme highs and lows of a startup. Everything passes and comes and goes quickly, so keeping a level head about your business and emotions is critical.

(5) What's next for you and MovieLaLa?

We’re continuing to work with studios, building and extending partnerships with mature mobile companies and building a community around MovieLaLa. We’re working on some really cool new features that are compatible with what movie fans want, which all center around “bringing Hollywood to movie fans.” There are events like ComicCon that can really get our company in front of hyper-fans and spread awareness towards MovieLaLa. We have a couple new features in development that are complimentary to both studios and movie fans. That’s all in the works for now.

Overall, I’m very proud of the MovieLaLa technical team and my cofounder who’ve really dedicated themselves to building a beautifully designed movie app. We’re all so happy with what we’ve accomplished as a team in the past year and I’m happy with where it's at, where things are going for our company and what’s ahead for us.

Happy Birthday Manatt Digital Media -- Our First Year ... And The Long-Awaited Promise of “Convergence” ...

Today we celebrate the first anniversary of our launch of MDM (Manatt Digital Media).  And, what a year it’s been.  Yes, I am proud of our accomplishments in Year 1 (click here or see the full press release below).  But, even more exciting to me is the passion of those on the MDM team.  For MDM’ers, it’s not just a job.  That’s why we blog at 4 am.  That’s why we finalize pitches at 2 am.  That’s why we enthusiastically make business introductions and connections.  That’s why we host Digital Media Meetups in LA, NYC, and SF.  That’s why we invest our own cold hard cash in innovative startups like DanceOn, MovieLaLa, Ninja Metrics, Trailerpop, Adomic, StrikeAd, Vadio and eXacly.me (all of these were made in the past 12 months).

Most significantly, however, is how much the digital media landscape has changed this past year.  Think about it.  Not a week goes by without some massive billion dollar plus deal (or rumored deal) in the world of convergence -- where the promise of content meeting technology to create “magic” is finally coming of age.

Facebook/Oculus Rift.  Disney/Maker Studios.  Apple/Beats.  Google/Twitch.  Yahoo!/RayV.

Who has time to sleep?

But, that’s the point!  All of us in the midst of this maelstrom should feel energized to be in the midst of it all -- not knowing exactly where it is going, but adding our own individual ingredients to push it slightly more this way than that.

We are in the midst of transformative engagement.

That’s our Year 1.

So, it's not so much that we are celebrating ourselves (although, it’s always good to fete landmark occasions).  Rather, think of it more like we are celebrating the fast-transforming eco-system all around us.  The transformative eco-system that, yes, can be daunting at times -- but which, at the same time, is full of massive opportunity with active engagement, experimentation and good old-fashioned creativity, innovation, tenacity and hard work.

(But, for those of you who want a more “traditional” Year 1 anniversary pronouncement, here it is ....)

MANATT DIGITAL MEDIA MARKS FIRST YEAR WITH SIGNIFICANT GROWTH, ENGAGEMENTS WITH LEADING INNOVATORS, EXPANDED BUSINESS CONSULTING TEAM AND RECOGNIZED THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

·       Firm Emerges as Innovative Market and Recognized Thought Leader in Providing Diversified Professional Services and Deep Industry Connections With Growing Client Base of Innovators

·       Manatt Digital Media Demonstrates Industry Expertise and Commitment With Significant Strategic Investments And Leadership in Prominent Digital Media Events

LOS ANGELES, CA — May 21, 2014 — Manatt Digital Media, a fully-integrated professional services division within Manatt, Phelps & Philips, LLP, today announced that within its first year, it has established itself as a leader in digital media and technology through the growth of its client base, strategic expansion of its business consulting team, and by providing overall thought leadership and connections in the worlds of media, entertainment, advertising and technology.

Since May 2013, Manatt Digital Media has engaged with and invested in high-visibility digital media and technology companies, including leading multichannel network DanceOn; innovative content-driven and social media-focused companies MovieLaLa, If You Can and Vadio; market-leading ad-tech companies Ninja Metrics, Trailerpop, StrikeAd and eXacly.me; and data-driven company Adomic.

“Manatt Digital Media is servicing players who are redefining the space through innovative technology and entirely new digital media business models,” said T. Hale Boggs, chairman of Manatt Digital Media. “We are gratified that in the course of a single year, Manatt has built a strong name for itself and emerged as a formidable influential player in Los Angeles — the entertainment and digital media center of the world — as well as other key digital media and investment hubs, such as New York City, San Francisco and Palo Alto.”

“Our aim is to disrupt the traditional professional services approach to bring differentiated real-world entrepreneurial and operational digital media and technology insights to our clients through our wealth of expertise, relationships and venture capital experience,” said Peter Csathy, CEO of Manatt Digital Media. “We embrace disruptive new technologies and seek to empower our clients to be market leaders who further differentiate themselves from competitors by leveraging their innovative ideas as significant new business models and revenue streams.”

Key to its innovative approach, Manatt Digital Media has built a uniquely diversified team to provide its clients the industry’s most comprehensive and meaningful digital media professional services. As one example, the firm recently deepened its business consulting team by hiring leading consulting expert Eunice Shin, who brings more than 18 years of experience and deep relationships and connections in the media and entertainment industries. The firm’s expertise in content and intellectual property at the heart of digital media also separates it from all other consultancies, along with its unique combination of expertise in social media policy, privacy and data security.

“Today’s digital media world is interconnected and incredibly fast-paced, and it demands a bold and creative approach to professional, business consulting and legal services,” said Boggs. “With the growth of our client portfolio and the widely specialized executive team across legal, business and venture capital, we are building on the firm’s recognized legal experience to offer a full spectrum of world-class professional services, and we’ve seen that model benefit our clients of every size and every stage of development. We are not aware of any other organization that coherently ties together these capabilities in the digital media, entertainment or tech worlds.”

In addition to its growing team and clientele, Manatt Digital Media is widely recognized by top-tier media for its thought leadership and industry expertise. The company has hosted a number of high-level industry meet-ups and participated in several key industry events in the past year:

·       Manatt Digital Media Meet-Up — As part of Manatt Digital Media’s focus on supporting innovative entrepreneurs in digital media companies big and small, elevating new ideas, and creating a network of beneficial relationships in the digital media industry, the company hosted a number of exclusive Digital Media Meet-ups in Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco. The events brought together a select mix of entrepreneurs, media company executives, artists, financiers, and key industry press and thought leaders.

·       UCLA Entertainment Symposium — Csathy participated as a moderator at the March 2014 UCLA Entertainment Symposium on its multichannel networks panel in the days preceding the recent acceleration of M&A activity in that space. The panel, titled “Multi-Channel Networks & Other New Premium Video Players — Their Impact on (& Opportunity for) Hollywood,” featured high-level executives of major players in the field, including Machinima, ICM Partners, Fox Networks and YouTube.

·       Siemer Summit— In October 2013, Manatt Digital Media sponsored the Siemer Summit, an invitation-only event that drew more than 500 of the most influential leaders in digital media and emerging technologies from around the world. Manatt Digital Media also provided joint funding to the winning startup of the Siemer WaveMaker Award’s Best in Show, which awarded the startup with the most innovative platform that was most poised for growth. The company will return as a leading sponsor in 2014.

·       Digital Entertainment World Expo — Manatt Digital Media sponsored Digital Entertainment World Expo in February 2014. The company served as the main sponsor of the 2014 DEW Startup Competition. Of the total prize, the winner received a $25,000 investment from Manatt Digital Media in the form of a convertible note, as well $25,000 of professional and business services from Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP.

“Our active involvement in the digital media space keeps us attuned to the leading ideas and technologies that drive the industry forward,” Csathy added. “As we continuously deepen our relationships among key digital media players and develop, sponsor and participate in major events — not just at the heart of content creation in Los Angeles, but around the world — we are ensuring that our clients are the first to know about critical trends and disruptive, innovative technologies and how they can positively impact their business.”

About Manatt Digital Media

Manatt Digital Media is a full-service digital media platform created by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs, whatever the size or stage of the company, from startup to growth-stage to mature public companies. Manatt Digital Media uniquely offers a one-stop shop of professional services that is grounded in the legal and business experience of Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, one of the world’s most respected law firms in the media, entertainment and advertising industries. Manatt Digital Media offers its clients differentiated value and impact in multiple forms and across the life span of their companies — from venture capital to strategic relationship building and artist access to business consulting and creative deal-making, including content licensing, distribution and M&A. For more information, visit www.manattdigitalmedia.com.

About Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP

Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, is one of the nation's leading law and consulting firms, with offices strategically located in California (Los Angeles, Orange County, Palo Alto, San Francisco and Sacramento), New York (New York City and Albany) and Washington, D.C. The firm represents a sophisticated client base — including Fortune 500, middle-market and emerging companies — across a range of practice areas and industry sectors. For more information, visit www.manatt.com.

My Collected EXCLUSIVE “5 Questions With” Q&A Series - Gyft, MovieLaLa, Kiosked, LittleCast, MediaHound, Mixify

I recently began my exclusive “5 Questions With” Q&A series with innovative companies and execs I believe are worth checking out and following in the digital media and technology worlds.

Here, I have consolidated all of those to date for your weekend reading ... and learning.  Consider this my free “book” to you in this holiday season (and expect more each week -- I have a great “coming soon” line-up).

(1) Gyft - COO CJ MacDonald

(2) MovieLaLa -- CEO/Founder Dana Loberg

(3) Mixify - CEO/Founder David Moricca

(4) Kiosked - Founder Antti Pasila

(5) MediaHound - CEO/Founder Addison McCaleb

(6) LittleCast - CEO/Founder Amra Tareen

5 Questions with MovieLaLa’s Founder & CEO, Dana Loberg -- My Exclusive Q&A

Continuing my new series of exclusive Q&As with people and companies that you should know in the wonderful world of digital media, meet Dana Loberg, Founder & CEO of MovieLaLa, a company based in the Bay Area (but very much steeped in the milieu of the studios in LA).  Dana is a powerhouse -- talented, creative (more on that below), driven, tireless, tenacious, and passionate about her company and the overall market opportunity -- all qualities I love in a start-up CEO.  Movie studios of all stripes should listen to what her company can do for them.  And, consumers will value the end results.  That’s why -- despite the fact that she is a Yale-ee -- we here at Manatt Digital Media Ventures (and several media and digital media luminaries) invested in MovieLaLa.  Can’t reveal those other investors yet, but you will be impressed when Dana does.  With that intro, here we go:

(1)   What is the reason your company exists (and what problem(s) are you looking to solve)?

MovieLaLa wants to deliver a new fresh experience for movie fans looking to find movies to see and friends to see them with. Up until now, what’s been missing is that critical social layer around movies and movie-going, allowing people to discover movies through friends and have a more personalized, curated experience online.

More importantly, studios looking to market their movies can have direct access to people who are interested in receiving their content. Not only are there better ways to communicate with their audience, MovieLala’s analytics allows studios to optimize their marketing dollars well before a movie opens theatrically – giving studios access to powerful data that helps them reach the right audience in more effective ways than more traditional methods in place today.

(2) How are you different from your competitors?

There are several players in this space: Flixster, Rotten Tomatoes, IMDB, etc movie sites. From a user experience perspective, they’re all pretty similar. Many of them have spent more time building out their advertising models than innovating their front-end design. These websites rely heavily on the same business model: banner ads and advertising. When we launch in the New Year, we hope that people will see our iPad app and say “Wow. This is something I’ve never seen before.”

MovieLaLa has some new technologies and tools for marketing and changing awareness to definite interest among movie fans. Plus, we have a strong data play that is unique from our competitors.

There’s also a huge opportunity in the iPad and mobile space when it comes to the movie-going experience that we are focused to capitalize on. By launching on iPad and mobile,  we can invent new ways to make the movie going experience easy and fun.

(3) Why will you succeed (and what is your single most important ingredient for success)?

We will succeed because of our team: our backgrounds, experience and passion for this space and global view of business. For MovieLaLa, our single most important ingredient has been the relationships we’ve built with the studios since day 1.

(4) What makes you unique (and what do you enjoy most outside of building your business)?

I’m part tech, part entertainment -- half I Robot, half Jennifer Lawrence. I’m a native to LA- raised in the entertainment capital of the world, Westwood Village. I’m currently living in the heart of Silicon Valley, with a few years experience in startup tech in the Bay Area. Now with MovieLaLa, I’m bridging the divided gap between the two forces: tech and entertainment.

Oh, and I paint on the side in my spare time. Medium: charcoal/pastel on newspaper and book. (http://danaloberg.com)

(5) What digital media trend is most interesting to you (and what is the least)?

Real time data and analytics are interesting to me. The “Data Scientist” title is a dream of mine ;) Least interesting to me is YouTube, personally. I’d rather not give specifics as they’re reading my sentences….