Gian Franco | Co-Founder + Chairman
Gian Franco Wilson was born in Trinidad and Tobago. He has spent the last 20 years in various roles in media, entertainment and technology; with over 14 years spent specifically in digital media and distribution.
Gian Franco worked at the Microsoft Corporation before moving to Amazon.com in 2010 to launch their digital gaming distribution platform. He then assumed responsibility for Global Content Business Development in Amazon's TV and film distribution group, after having completed US Content Acquisition for the same group.
In 2015 Gian Franco left Amazon to launch Pavilion Entertainment with business partner Min Lee. Pavilion Entertainment is a TV and Film production and distribution company based in Los Angeles that seeks to tell universal stories from a Caribbean point of view. In 2018 he teamed up with friend and auteur Ty Hodges to produce the feature film VENUS AS A BOY, an official selection of the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival. VENUS AS A BOY was released exclusively on Hulu in 2022 as part of Hulu’s celebration of Black Stories for Black History Month.
As an independent advisor and consultant Gian Franco has worked with media titans such as Comcast on its digital distribution, operations and training strategies; executing training and deployment for products like Xfinity on Roku, as well as their multicultural networks. For Liberty Global/Liberty Latin America Gian Franco advised them on their media and entertainment strategy as well as drove the operational implementation for the Flow 1 Entertainment network from their Caribbean subsidiary, Cable & Wireless Communications. Additionally, he has provided strategic advisory for disruptive startups such as Pluto.TV and StreaMe, on their media and entertainment strategies.
He earned a Master of Business Administration in Finance, Strategy, Media, Entertainment and Technology from the New York University Stern School of Business and a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and Management from The University of the West Indies (The UWI), St. Augustine campus.
Liz Jung Kim | Co-Founder + Chief Operating Officer
Liz Kim brings her broad experience from fashion, music, advertising and digital industry to The Stereotype Project Foundation. In her last position at DBOX, a high-end luxury residential real estate marketing agency, she oversaw finance, operations, HR and business strategies.
Liz is a distinguished finance, human resources, strategy and operations professional who has led operations and driven profitability at several fortune 500 companies. In her former position at the industry-leading fashion talent agency Art and Commerce, she managed business operations in partnership with the WME/IMG, the parent company of the agency. A fashion-industry expert, she has also acted as the COO for high-end menswear designer Siki Im. And also worked as a consultant for companies like Petsmart and McCann Worldwide in critical projects for these clients.
Five years prior, in 2007, she joined the internet conglomerate IAC company, Pronto.com, as a Finance Manager, where she propelled the company to reach profitability in less than 2 years (400% growth) and also managed the purchasing of Gifts.com and Evite.com as the Director of Finance. She has also worked for Warner Music group as Financial Analyst where she revamped and created a new financial reporting system and structure for over 75 individual labels, and for the United Colors of Benetton, overseeing auditing of over 30 retail locations on the West Coast.
As a second-generation Korean American, she has lived in New York, El Paso, Los Angeles, Chicago and New York and has a very diverse interest and background.