Step 4: Manager Track - August 2021

Okey Onyiuke was most recently at Los Angeles Media Fund (LAMF) as a Creative Executive where he helped oversee day to day development, packaging and strategy for LAMF's slate of film and television projects across narrative and non-fiction, and is serving as a Co-Executive Producer on the documentary feature, MOVE YA BODY, which premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. Okey joined LAMF in May 2022 from QC Entertainment where he worked for nearly 3 years focusing on development and production of its feature film and television projects. Prior to QC, Okey worked at Fifth Season (f.k.a Endeavor Content) focusing on film finance and sales, and at WME focusing on client representation in the feature literary and below-the-line departments. Okey moved to Los Angeles from Washington DC in 2016, where he worked as a database consultant at KCIC, LLC for several years, and graduated from the University of Virginia with a B.S. in Commerce in 2012.

Toy Monique Hawkins, a television executive and producer, currently develops scripted content for BET Networks and the newly derived BET Studios as Vice President. While both brands are WHERE BLACK CULTURE LIVES, they differ in that BET Networks promotes black culture content, while BET Studios promotes black content creators. Prior to BETN/S, Toy Monique developed, sold and produced projects at Will Packer Productions - a television and feature film production company known for its box office successes: GIRLS TRIP, NIGHT SCHOOL & THINK LIKE A MAN. Some of the projects under Toy Monique’s purview have included THAT GIRL LAY LAY, BIGGER, AMBITIONS, FIRST WIVES CLUB, and THE MS. PAT SHOW. Toy Monique, a Chicago native, made the move to Hollywood after twelve years in business & technology – leaving Willis Towers Watson, a leader in outsourcing and technology solutions, after two years of overlap in both careers. The transition was seamless, thanks to remote work opportunities (pre-pandemic) and the Semester in LA program at Columbia College Chicago where Toy Monique sought her Masters in Creative Producing. Toy Monique, is currently dedicated to her work in development, and looks to make great strides in the entertainment industry for people of color - producing stories across all genres, settings, and periods of time. As a strong believer in lifting while climbing, Toy Monique mentors industry professionals, speaks and attends panels, hosts empowerment gatherings and supports independent filmmaking.

Tori Chancellor presently works at Sethmaker Shoemeyers Productions (Seth Meyers & Mike Shoemaker) as the assistant to the VP of development & production. She is also the executive producer of the 2023 acclaimed sitcom web series THE PARTY, which garnered numerous awards including Best Ensemble Cast at LA Web Fest and Best Streaming Content at GenCon. Previously, she worked as a literary assistant at Brillstein Entertainment Partners on a variety of projects such as the television reboot of THE MIGHTY DUCKS for Disney+ and Kaley Cuoco- led date night thriller ROLE PLAY. An avid enthusiast and participant in sketch and improv comedy, Tori's favorite intersection of media is where comedy meets genre.

Ingrid Nin (she/her) is currently a literary assistant at the Beverly-Hills based management company, 3 Arts Entertainment. A City College of New York (CUNY) alumni, she graduated as the Valedictorian of the Humanities and Arts division with her BFA in Film and Video Production. She is also the host and creator of the Entertainx podcast– focused on showcasing Latinx talent in Hollywood. Ingrid is a proud member of NALIP (National Association of Independent Latino Producers), Women In Animation, and the Women Wednesday’s BIPOC mentorship program. She plans to one day become a narrative film and television producer, as well as the founder of her own studio focusing on diverse Latinx-themed content and distribution.

David Chien is a talent and literary manager with over ten years of experience working with actors, writers, and directors. David fell in love with the business as a kid when he immigrated to America and absorbed the culture through his TV screen, experiencing firsthand how tv and film can connect people.

Starting in the business in 2008, working for talent agent Mark Scroggs, he helped launch the careers of Danny Pudi on COMMUNITY, Fiona Gubbelman on WILFRED, and Kaitlyn Black on HART OF DIXIE, amongst others. Realizing his love of building long-term strategies and 360 brands for clients, he decided to pivot from the agency side to talent management.

Joining Art/Work Entertainment in 2012, he discovered Awkwafina on YouTube and acquired her first television deal with Comedy Central. Through that experience he found his passion for working with multi-hyphenates and literary talents. With his then client, Jonnie “Dumbfoundead” Park, he set up three pilot development deals as well as his first feature deal, K-POPS, starring and directed by Anderson.Paak, which premiered at TIFF. While at Art//Work Entertainment he started their director division. He found an exceptional young director, Bola Ogun, and helped her advance from directing short films to directing the season 3 finale of THE WITCHER. In addition, he worked with writers, such as Tom Westfall, who co-created a limited series with Academy Award nominee, Lee Danials, as well as other writers and showrunners of high pedigree.

In the Fall of 2024, David left Art/Work Entertainment and founded Crossover Entertainment. Today, he identifies and brings to light underrepresented and undervalued voices and talents.

Jon Hersh is an independent literary manager working with writer and writer/director clients in film and TV. Jon created New Drive in 2017 with the intent of finding bold voices with incendiary material. Since then, his clients have gone on to develop film and TV projects with Universal, Netflix, Amazon, Disney, Lionsgate, Paramount Players, AMC, Nickelodeon, Spyglass, and many others. His clients are regularly on the annual Black List, and in 2022 his client was #1 on the list.

Before breaking into management, Jon was a Development Executive at Broad Green Pictures, a fledgling film financier and distributor. During his tenure, he had a hand in developing a slate of quality projects for the 90+ employee company, delivering detailed project notes to writers. Before working in development, Jon began his career at Creative Artists Agency where he worked as a full-time story analyst for four years. While there, he evaluated thousands of screenplays, pilots, and books, and gave detailed story notes to high-level clients of the agency. He is an alumnus of USC's School of Cinematic Arts program and currently resides in West Hollywood with his wife and two sons.

Ari Ben-Avram is a development executive at Chatrone, an international production company with offices in Los Angeles, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Chatrone has created, developed and produced content for the US, International and Latin American markets. With expertise in family entertainment, the company works in both television and film. Chatrone produced the animated feature THE BOOK OF LIFE. Directed by Jorge Gutierrez, this was the first animated feature to celebrate the Mexican tradition of Day of the Dead. Nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Animated Feature, it won an Annie Award, among several other nominations. Since expanding into Brazil with the creation of CHATRONE LATIN AMERICA, Chatrone has produced over 200 episodes of live action content as well as a feature film. CHATRONE ANIMATION STUDIOS was also launched in 2019. They are currently in production on the seires BA DA BEAN for Discovery, NUTTY BOY for Netflix, and an animated feature, AZTEC BATMAN, with WB.