Karyn Spencer
| Karyn Spencer | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 2, 1977 United States |
| 🏳️ Nationality | American |
| 💼 Occupation | Film producer, writer, and digital executive |
Karyn Spencer (born June 2, 1977) is an American film producer, writer, and digital executive based in Los Angeles, California. She is best known for co-producing the films Killers and Spread, starring Ashton Kutcher, as well as her work directing Vines with Michelle Obama.[1] Spencer has worked closely with many well-known American celebrities, including Ashton Kutcher, Tyra Banks, Taylor Swift, Jennifer Lopez, and Will Smith.
Career[edit]
Film and television[edit]
Spencer worked with Ashton Kutcher from 2005 to 2010 and was the associate producer for the 2009 film Spread.[2][3] She was also the co-producer of Killers, a 2010 film.[4][5]
In 2014, Spencer served as an executive consultant for Spent, an American Express documentary about financially underserved and "underbanked" communities. The documentary was narrated by Tyler Perry and produced by Davis Guggenheim.[6]
She directed Vines with Michelle Obama in 2015.[1] In 2016, she produced and cast Camp Unplug.[7][8] However, Twitter closed Vine after declining to pay its creators in 2016.[9][10]
Spencer was Executive Producer of Super Saturday Night for DirecTV Now with Jennifer Lopez in 2018.[11][12] That same year, she also gained media attention when she called Adam Pally a bully for his stunt at the Shorty Awards.[13]
Other media activities[edit]
Spencer served as Director of Communications for Tyra Banks in 2012, then went to work as Director of Communications at a tech startup called Fancy Hands.[14]
In 2017, she was VP of Hello Lab at AT&T (formerly known as Creator Lab), and was the co-founder of the Hello Lab Mentorship Program. The program gives filmmaking grants and celebrity mentors to historically underrepresented voices in Hollywood.[15][16]
On January 29, 2018, Karyn discussed her partnerships in a podcast with Taylor Swift and Reese Witherspoon.[17] Later that year, Taylor Swift named the iconic animated snake that she toured with in 2018 "Karyn."[18][19]
In 2019, she became Director of Talent Partnerships and Influence Marketing at Target.[20] At Target, Spencer launched #TargetTalent, a long-term brand partnership with influencers like Bobby Berk, Elaine Welteroth, and Lauren Giraldo.[21] In addition, she produced a video with Will Smith surprising Target shoppers in the self-checkout lane.[22][23]
Spencer also cast and produced a YouTube series called Let's Target with Emma Chamberlain, Tiffany Haddish, Casey Neistat, and others.[24]
Community involvement[edit]
In 2018, while at AT&T, she sponsored free tickets for Beyond The Streets,[25] a graffiti art exhibition organized at Los Angeles schools and community organizations with curator Roger Gastman.[26][27]
Personal life[edit]
Karyn Spencer married Eric Murphy in 2004, and was sometimes credited as Karyn Spencer-Murphy. The couple divorced in 2010.[28]
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Strecker, Erom (October 20, 2015). "Michelle Obama Video Previews Justin Bieber's New Song 'Sorry'". Billboard.
- ↑ Hernandez, Eugene (Jan 24, 2009). "Updated: Ashton Kutcher's "Spread" Sale Stirs Sundance". IndieWire.
- ↑ "Spread: Interview with Ashton Kutcher". Emanuel Levy.
- ↑ "Killers". Variety.
- ↑ "Killers". Fandango. 2010.
- ↑ "A 'Docu-Ad' Looks at Hardship of Those Without Bank Access". New York Times.
- ↑ Weiss, Geoff (June 27, 2016). "Vine Premieres Its First Long-Form Original Series, 'Camp Unplug', Starring Lauren Giraldo, Cody Ko". Tubefilter.
- ↑ "Camp Unplug". Shorty Awards.
- ↑ Lorenz, Taylor (Oct 29, 2016). "Inside the secret meeting that changed the fate of Vine forever". Mic.
- ↑ Newton, Casey (Oct 28, 2016). "Why Vine died". The Verge.
- ↑ Petit, Stephanie (February 4, 2018). "Lena Waithe to Serve as Lead Mentor in AT&T's Hello Lab Filmmaker Mentorship Program". People.
- ↑ Weiss, Geoff (January 24, 2018). "Jennifer Lopez Collabs With David Dobrik And More YouTube Stars Ahead Of AT&T Concert Event". Tuberfilter.
- ↑ Lorenz, Taylor (Apr 17, 2018). "Don't Call Adam Pally a Hero: It's 2018 and Not Cool to Hate on Creators". The Daily Beast.
- ↑ Shontell, Alyson (Oct 2, 2012). "New York Startup Fancy Hands Steals An Employee From Tyra Banks". Business Insider.
- ↑ Spangler, Todd (June 19, 2018). "Common, Lena Waithe Join AT&T Hello Lab's Filmmaker-Mentoring Program in Second Year". Variety.
- ↑ Khal. "Lena Waithe to Serve as Lead Mentor in AT&T's Hello Lab Filmmaker Mentorship Program". Complex.com.
- ↑ "23 - Taylor Swift & The Power of Partnership". Life at AT&T podcast.
- ↑ Bonner, Mehera (October 10, 2018). "The People Have Spoken and Taylor Swift's Snake "Karyn" Stole the Show at the AMAs". Cosmopolitan.
- ↑ Weiner, Zee (October 10, 2018). "Taylor Swift's Snake—Whose Name Is Karyn, BTW—Stole the Show at the 2018 American Music Awards". Glamour.
- ↑ Weiss, Geoff (May 2, 2019). "Target Names Digital Vet Karyn Spencer Director Of Talent Partnerships And Influence Marketing". Tuberfilter.
- ↑ Weiss, Geoff (September 5, 2019). "Target Launches TargetTalent – A Yearlong Influencer Initiative With Lauren Giraldo, Try Guys' Ned Fulmer, And More". Tuberfilter.
- ↑ Tyko, Kelly (Oct 8, 2019). "Target Circle guide: Here's what you need to know about the new shopper loyalty program". USA Today.
- ↑ Reilly, Mark (Oct 7, 2019). "What's Will Smith doing in the Target checkout aisle? Just skyping with shoppers". Biz Journals.
- ↑ "Target Hones YouTube Presence In Massively-Viewed Collabs With Michelle Phan, Emma Chamberlain". Tuberfilter. October 28, 2019.
- ↑ Vankin, Deborah (March 22, 2018). "Arts Preview: Graffiti art exhibition aims to go 'Beyond the Streets'". LA Times.
- ↑ Juon, Steve (May 30, 2018). "'Beyond The Streets' Partners With AT&T". Rap Reviews.
- ↑ Lindsey, Mancini (August 23, 2018). ""Beyond the Streets" Goes Beyond Museums: Curator Roger Gastman on Exhibiting Independently". The Art Around.
- ↑ "Spencer-Murphy". Star News Online. Jan 25, 2004.
