My Journey

I’ve been fascinated by the magic of movies ever since I pressed play on my aunt’s VHS player and saw that T-Rex burst out of its cage in Jurassic Park. Ever since, I submerged myself in all things related to film, music and TV. That passion led me to film school at Universidad Sagrado Corazón, in my hometown San Juan, Puerto Rico. I simultaneously studied two years of music composition at the Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music, with aspirations of pursuing a career as a film music composer. However, I later focused all my attention into video production and filmmaking. 

In 2010, I started working for a TV show called, De Película on WAPA TV. As a segment producer, I supervised the entire post-production process of the show. I also contributed with segment ideas and even made a couple of on-camera appearances as a “blu-ray” expert. In the meantime, I also worked as an EPK Producer/Shooter freelancer in the Puerto Rico film community. In 2011, I launched the Spanish language podcast Cinemánico. Featuring Mario Alegre Femenías and Grabiel Sanchez — household film critics in the Puerto Rico film market — the weekly show focused on entertainment and film analysis. The show was recorded and transmitted live via Livestream, taking an innovative approach that incorporated the audience via live chat.

In search of different opportunities, I took a part-time entry level job with ESPN in Bristol, CT. The move was a significant step down for my career, but I was confident I would be in a better position to find a role that matched my skills/experience once I was inside the company.

For the next six months, my sole focused was meet and connect with as much people as I could at ESPN, collaborate with them and absorb all the knowledge coming my way. My unyielding commitment yielded results beyond my wildest expectations. In November 2013, I was offered a job based in Los Angeles — which had always been my destination — as Preditor for MSI (Multimedia Sponsorship Integration) for a new branded content project called Guinness Suite. That experience thought me one of the biggest professional lessons I’ve learned. If you’re humble, open minded, and have a positive attitude, you’ll accomplish big things if you devote all your energy to the smallest tasks in front of you, instead of fixating on the big picture.

In 2014, I began working at ESPN LA with Studio 4 — a studio dedicated to branded content and designed to be operated by one person from pre-production to post-production, creating content for all platforms. Our first project was the short-lived Guinness Suite, which presented a couple of challenges A) booking high-profile celebrities B) connecting the brand’s message of “made of more” to Sportscenter’s daily sports news cycle.

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In 2015, we began our 2nd and most successful branded content project Heineken ESPN FC Boot Room. With Paul Wilson as the new Director of MSI and my new supervisor, we shouldered the responsibility of evolving a branded content model that had yet proven to be successful in its previous iteration of Guinness Suite. The Boot Room was a complete success. It became the centerpiece of a multi-million partnership between ESPN and Heineken. It expanded into the Mobile Boot Room, which consisted of a Heineken ESPN FC bus that traveled around the country for key MLS games. The program lasted four years, generating a great amount of ad revenue, creating great editorial soccer content and providing great value to its brand partner. 

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It has been an absolute pleasure working directly with Paolo for the last 5-6 years as his manager. He’s dependable, creative, adaptable and most of all, just a good person. The kind of employee that makes any team better.
Paul Wilson - Dir MSI & Creative Works (ESPN)

In 2018, I collaborated with Ryan Garfat (ESPN Esports Editor) to pitch the ESPN Esports Omen by HP project. By using Studio 4, we were able to utilize the resources from the Heineken ESPN FC Boot Room program and keep both costs and resources at a minimum. The concept brought in over $500K in revenue and became the first Esports studio sponsorship for ESPN.

At the time, ESPN Esports didn’t have a video department. Therefore, I had to step in as a producer/editor for the first months of the sponsorship while the company hired full-time video staff to support the department. With limited resources, we were tasked with crafting high-quality branded content that would grow ESPN’s esports offering and provide value to our brand partners. 

The project became a success, with Omen by HP renewing their sponsorship several times which allowed ESPN to allocate more resources to its esports video team.

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All of the work I do with Paolo is collaborative and is invested in seeing the project grow. We had Mike Tyson come play video games which posed a considerable amount of challenges. Paolo worked through the problems with ease, and that video is one of the highest-performing athlete + gaming videos we’ve done all year.
Ryan Garfat - former Sr. Esports Editor at ESPN
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During my time with ESPN, I was able to pursue a couple fo side projects. The first was completing a UCLA Extension program called Professional Program in Producing. The 2nd was my first short film, Reel Love.

Inspired by the classic movie theaters of cinema’s golden age, Reel Love is a romantic comedy short film that explores the difference between how love has been portrayed in movies vs. how it works in real life. Starting John Salandria as Michael, Bridgett Lynn Luevanos as Cindy and Dan Berg as Kevin, Reel Love is written, directed and produced by Paolo Grassini and Carlton Gillespie. The film is currently in post-production, scheduled to premiere in late 2021.

In early 2020, ESPN underwent a massive restructuring which resulted in me joining ESPN Creative Works. Shortly after, the COVID pandemic broke. The combination of both events resulted in a need for a creative outlet for myself, which led me to launch the YouTube channel Jigowatts, dedicated to video essays about soundtracks, and vinyl records. The project has given me a creative outline unlike any other, allowing me to experiment with video production and create the type of content I’ve been longing for.  

Another side effect of the pandemic is that it allowed me the chance to reflect on my career journey, and where I want to steer it. As I eagerly look ahead, I want to surround myself by the art that I love, which has always been storytelling, film and music. I’m excited for a new chapter that provides me the opportunity to create content that requires me to be a constant source of ideas, calling upon all my creative influences and challenging myself to craft experiences that resonate with its audience.