Career Interests

These are my primary interests (but are by no means exhaustive)

Product & Technology

I've always loved technology and been an early adopter (I joined Twitter in early 2008, and Facebook in late 2007). In college I studied statistics, primarily focused on computational applications, such as PCA, time-series analysis (e.g., GARCH, SARIMA), and ML (e.g., XGBoost, ensemble / bootstrap) and cofounded the Data Science Club. But I've never exactly been "technical" in my career, so I've always tried to stay abreast on technical concepts and emerging developments (for example, what is currently going on in the artificial intelligence value chain, and the importance of Kubernetes in AI deployment, and the shift to mobile-first that started around 2014).

A few years ago I read The Mythical Man Month by Frederick Brooks, which gave me foundational insights into engineering management principles like resource allocation, product scoping, and technical debt tradeoffs. At PwC I became involved in managing several internal products, working with technical product managers and engineering teams to ship internal tools, which I sincerely enjoyed.

Outside of my MBA, I have engaged myself in learning about product management:

  • Product Management Certification (Product School)
  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Product Certification (Product School)
  • Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO) (Scrum Alliance - In Progress)
  • ProductCon NYC 2025

Relevant classes I've really enjoyed at NYU Stern (so far):

  • Corporate Strategy: studied frameworks for identifying scarcity value and assessing long-term durability of competitive advantages—co-wrote an analysis of scarcity value in the artificial intelligence value chain
  • New Products: covered cases on successful / unsuccessful product launches, blue ocean strategy, modeling diffusion / adoption
  • Technology Innovation Strategy: covered development of innovative technologies through JVs, as well as commercialization and go-to-market strategies for technology
  • Pricing Strategy: covered value-based price discovery, price discrimination / versioning, product bundling, demand curve modeling

Things I regularly read / follow:

Cinema / Motion Picture Business

I have a passion for cinema (especially indie) and eventually want to work in the industry in a tech / strategic capacity. I've been an avid indie moviegoer since high school (shoutout to The Palm Theater in my hometown of San Luis Obispo for curating a great selection over many years, and for being the first solar-powered movie theater in North America!).

I read Adventures in the Screen Trade by William Goldman in 2019 after Aaron Sorkin talked about it in an interview with Marc Maron, and shortly thereafter I started following the trades, which has given me a great understanding of the film business and the tectonic shifts currently taking place in the industry. I went to Sundance 2020 without any tickets (yes, just a few short weeks before COVID lockdown) and saw 15 feature-length movies in four days during the first weekend. I had an incredible time: the moviegoing, the manic aura of festival buzz (around deals and acclaim), and the chats both extended and in-passing with so many industry professionals. I also received accreditation to Cannes in 2020, but I wasn't able to go because of COVID, and subsequently became too busy with work to redeem the deferral the festival provided for later years1.

At Stern, I've pursued a specialization in film business, and luckily I'll be going to Cannes 2026 as part of that program. In classes, I've taken advantage of the opportunity to deeply explore the motion picture value chain, from producing and financing to marketing and distribution.

Film Producing & Financing Project

As part of my film business coursework, I led a team project developing a comprehensive production plan for a hypothetical sports drama about Cuban baseball player defections. This project allowed me to apply strategic thinking across the entire film value chain, with special focus on the development and production process:

  • Project Development: Created comprehensive production plan with timeline covering rights acquisition, talent attachment, and pre-production phases. Structured development budget with targeted financing from industry-specific investors.
  • Creative & Legal: Negotiated hypothetical script option and life rights deals. Identified director and casting options across multiple budget tiers. Assembled key crew selections for different scenarios.
  • Production Planning: Built detailed production budget breakdown. Designed multi-location filming strategy to maximize tax incentives. Created financing structure combining soft money, equity, and foreign pre-sales.
  • Distribution & Marketing: Targeted specialty distributor with festival strategy. Developed audience segmentation for sports fans, drama enthusiasts, and Latino community. Created marketing plan with strategic partnerships and targeted media outreach. Planned release timing to align with sports calendar.
  • Financial Model: Structured revenue waterfall and distribution terms. Created sources and uses cash flow timeline to identify cash shortfalls and built mezzanine financing into model. Validated approach through comparable film analysis.

Film Marketing & Distribution Project

In another film business course, I developed a comprehensive marketing and distribution strategy for a hypothetical video game adaptation film, applying strategic thinking across audience development and commercial partnerships:

  • Audience Sizing & Revenue Forecast: Created audience sizing analysis projecting domestic theatrical attendance. Modeled ticket revenue based on theater format mix including IMAX and Dolby premium pricing. Analyzed international market opportunities based on franchise strength. Structured hypothetical IP licensing deal with Activision based on Barbie/Mattel model.
  • "Ultimate" Modeling: Built detailed 10-year financial projections driven by global box office forecasts. Analyzed comparable films across action/comedy, video game IP, and military thriller categories.
  • Positioning & Marketing: Positioned film as "Sicario meets Ocean's franchise with built-in audience." Developed target audience strategy focused on core gamers with secondary demographic expansion. Developed detailed P&A spend budget aligned to selected audience sizing. Created key art, and marketing campaigns leveraging gaming influencers and cross-promotional tie-ins.
  • Distribution Strategy: Planned wide theatrical release with adaptive PVOD timing. Performed scenario analysis for various theatrical multiples aligned to historical box office performance for comparable films in similar release windows (weeks of year). Determined optimal release strategy to avoid major competition. Structured promotional partnerships with major brands. Designed experiential marketing, including Comic-Con presence and exclusive gaming community screenings.