Hollywood From Home: How User-Generated Content and COVID-19 Are Changing Entertainment

Sam Blake

Sam primarily covers entertainment and media for dot.LA. Previously he was Marjorie Deane Fellow at The Economist, where he wrote for the business and finance sections of the print edition. He has also worked at the XPRIZE Foundation, U.S. Government Accountability Office, KCRW, and MLB Advanced Media (now Disney Streaming Services). He holds an MBA from UCLA Anderson, an MPP from UCLA Luskin and a BA in History from University of Michigan. Email him at samblake@dot.LA and find him on Twitter @hisamblake

Hollywood From Home: How User-Generated Content and COVID-19 Are Changing Entertainment
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The rising popularity of user-generated content (UCG) on platforms like YouTube, Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat is poised to accelerate as we adapt to the new norms ushered in by the coronavirus.

dot.LA on Tuesday held an online discussion with Jukin Media CEO Jon Skogmo and writer-actress Alyssa Limperis about how stay-at-home orders issued by many states and municipalities are galvanizing a new era of creativity in the entertainment industry.


Several trends are now converging that could spur lasting change. Demand for UGC is up as audiences are ordered to stay indoors. Creators are increasingly looking to UGC as filming is shut down and live events are canceled. Audiences and entertainers are hungry to connect online, and to engage with each other in an authentic way.

So, too, are companies looking for ways to delight and attract customers. Ms. Limperis, who creates her own content that commands millions of views, noted how companies have begun asking for content they can use for advertising — never mind that she has to create it from her living room. She also shared how she is pursuing creative projects with friends across the country in ways that she previously wouldn't have considered.

"There's going to be amazing films that are made in people's homes," she forecasted. "There are going to be amazing sitcoms that are made in people's kitchens."

Necessity is the mother of invention. Given that familiarity is the father of adoption (or something like that), what might result from this period of experimentation? As pressures on both supply and demand drive money, eyeballs, and creativity toward UGC, what might the future of entertainment look like?

You can watch the full hour-long discussion below.

(We also couldn't resist prognosticating on Quibi, which launches Monday, and the staying power of mobile-first content.)

Be sure to keep watch for future sessions from dot.LA

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Sam Blake is dot.LA's entertainment and media reporter. Follow him @hisamblake and email him at samblake@dot.la

Strategy Session: Hollywood From Home www.youtube.com

Featuring:

Jonathan Skogmo, Founder & Chief Executive Officer at Jukin Media

Jonanthan Skogmo

Jonathan Skogmo is Founder and CEO of Jukin Media. Under his leadership, the company has grown to more than 170 employees with offices in Los Angeles, New York, London, and New Delhi. Jukin is the world's first media company that's powered entirely by user-generated video content. Skogmo has been named to The Hollywood Reporter's Next-Gen 35 Under 35 list, the Cynopsis "Digital It" list, and the Multichannel News 40 Under 40 list; in April 2016 he was dubbed the "King of Viral Video" by VideoInk.With more than a decade of industry experience, Skogmo has produced more than two hundred hours of linear TV programming for networks such as FOX, MTV, Discovery, TruTV, and Channel 5 (UK).

Skogmo's industry affiliations include The Producer's Guild of America (Co- Chair of the Online Video Committee), The Young Presidents' Organization (Malibu Chapter), and the Association of Media Content Users and Providers. He was a finalist in the 2019 EY Entrepreneur of the Year program for the Greater Los Angeles region. He holds a degree in Film and Television from Columbia College. He resides in Los Angeles.

Alyssa Limperis, Actress, Writer and Comedian

Alyssa Limperis

Alyssa has been featured on Conan, Last Week Tonight, Ellen Digital, Netflix's Aunty Donna's House (premiering in 2020), MTV News Need to Know and Fox Sports. This year she was the lead in the indie feature Too Late alongside Fred Armisen and Mary Lynn Rajskub, the lead in the indie short Brandi Finds God directed by Gonzalo Cordova and a supporting role in Just Chicken alongside Josh Ruben and David Ebert. She also voiced multiple characters on The Last Degree of Kevin Bacon on Spotify. You can find her writing in the New York Times, Into the Gloss, Riposte Magazine and Reductress. She was named Best Online Sketch Performer by the New York Times and was written up by Decider, Forbes, Vice, the Providence Journal, Middlebury Magazine and Vulture. Alyssa performs stand up all over the country and has a UCB podcast with May Wilkerson called Crazy; in Bed.

Sam Blake, Entertainment Reporter @ dot.LA

Sam Blake

Prior to joining dot.LA, he had a writing fellowship with The Economist, where he wrote primarily for the business and finance sections of the print edition. Sam previously interned at KCRW and hosted a podcast at UCLA's college radio station while completing his dual-degree MBA and Master's in Public Policy. A native of Detroit, Sam previously lived in Madison, Wisconsin and New York City. He studied history at the University of Michigan and speaks four languages.

https://twitter.com/hisamblake
samblake@dot.la
How to Navigate LA Tech Week 2026

🔦 Spotlight

Happy Friday, Los Angeles.

Next week, hundreds of tech events will take over the city, bringing founders, investors, engineers and creators together from October 12 through 18.

Calling LA Tech Week a conference does not quite capture the experience.

Presented by Andreessen Horowitz, Tech Week is a decentralized collection of panels, workshops, demonstrations and gatherings hosted independently by startups, venture firms and technology companies. There is no convention center or central stage. The programming stretches from Santa Monica and Venice to Culver City, Downtown, El Segundo and beyond.

In other words, the city is the venue.

AI remains the dominant theme for 2026, appearing across enterprise software, healthcare, finance, media and the creator economy. The schedule also reflects industries where Los Angeles has built a particular advantage, including aerospace, defense, robotics, advanced manufacturing, entertainment and consumer technology.

That range is what makes LA Tech Week distinct. It brings together the software companies shaping what comes next with the industries that already define Southern California.

The challenge is deciding where to show up.

Our advice: apply early and organize your schedule by neighborhood. Crossing from Santa Monica to Downtown may look manageable on a calendar created by someone who has never driven in Los Angeles.

To help you spend more time meeting people and less time crossing the city, we have organized each day’s events by location:

You can also browse the complete official LA Tech Week calendar.

Plan carefully, but do not fill every minute. The best conversation of the week may be the one that was never on your calendar.

More from this week’s LA startup and venture scene below.

🤝 Venture Deals

    LA Companies

    • El Segundo-based Gallatin AI raised a $50M Series A from new and existing investors including 8VC and Silent Ventures, bringing its total funding to $70M. The defense technology startup will expand its engineering team and advance Navigator, an AI platform that helps U.S. military units coordinate vehicle readiness, supplies, medical logistics and other mission-support operations. - learn more
    • Pasadena-based quantum computing startup Oratomic raised a $475M Series B at a $5.4B valuation, just three months after its Series A. ARCH Venture Partners, Spark Capital, Khosla Ventures, Index Ventures, General Catalyst and Bezos Expeditions co-led the round, bringing Oratomic’s total funding to $775M as it works toward a commercially viable, fault-tolerant quantum computer by 2030. - learn more
    • Torrance-based Fortastra raised a $30M Series A led by First In, with participation from Upfront Ventures, Space Capital, Rsquared, Side Door Ventures, ATX Ventures and existing investors. The company will use the capital to develop its next-generation maneuverable spacecraft, expand its engineering and operations teams and scale production of systems designed to protect critical assets in orbit. - learn more
    • Parallel Systems raised a $100M Series C led by AVP, with participation from Hillspire, Agility Global, Cobalt Capital, Anthos Capital, Congruent Ventures, Riot Ventures and Collaborative Fund. Founded by former SpaceX engineers, the company will use the funding to scale production and commercial deployment of its autonomous, battery-electric Panther rail vehicles, which are designed to make short-haul freight more competitive with trucking. - learn more
    • Gaming studio Gardens Interactive secured more than $35M in a Series B led by Lightspeed, with participation from Sequoia Capital, Index Ventures, Accel, Innovation Endeavors, Zenith Capital and other investors. The company will use the funding to launch and operate its debut social role-playing “strandbox” game, an evolving multiplayer world shaped by players’ actions and interactions. - learn more
    • Outer Spaces raised an $8M pre-seed round led by Upfront Ventures, with participation from Unlock Venture Partners, Mucker Capital and Genius Ventures. The startup is developing outdoor furnishings with integrated solar panels and batteries, turning backyards into sources of clean energy and backup power. - learn more
    • Furientis raised a $25M seed round led by Benchmark at a reported $125M valuation, following a $5M pre-seed announced in May. The defense startup will use the capital to scale production of lower-cost missile interceptors designed to be assembled quickly with readily available components, with a long-term goal of producing 1,000 systems annually at each factory. - learn more
    • Hiyo raised a $20.8M Series B led by Constellation Brands, with returning investor Live Nation also participating. The nonalcoholic beverage company will use the funding to expand its adaptogen- and nootropic-infused social tonics across more than 13,000 retail locations while growing its presence at hospitality venues and live events. - learn more
    LA Venture Funds
    • Navitas Capital participated in Vesta’s $30M Series B, which was led by Conversion Capital and included backing from several major mortgage lenders and financial institutions. The company will use the funding to scale its AI agents across mortgage origination, automating tasks such as application reviews, underwriting decisions and closing-document checks. - learn more
    • MTech Capital led Nettle’s oversubscribed $4.8M seed round, with participation from Project A Ventures, Sure Valley Ventures, Portfolio Ventures and Ventures Together. The insurtech startup will use the funding to expand across the U.S. and Europe while growing its AI platform, which helps commercial insurers identify property risks, accelerate inspections and generate reports. - learn more
    • Bonfire Ventures doubled down on Santé by participating in the company’s $15M Series A, which was led by FINTOP and included other returning investors. The New York startup will use the funding to expand its AI-powered operating system for independent wine and liquor stores, which combines point-of-sale, e-commerce, payments, inventory and marketing tools in one platform. - learn more

    LA Exits

    • Winnow Solutions was acquired by Marina del Rey-based Spring Labs, with financial terms undisclosed. Winnow’s attorney-built library of more than 100,000 state and federal regulatory requirements will become a core part of SpringGRC, helping financial institutions connect changing laws directly to their compliance policies, controls and workflows. - learn more

      Download the dot.LA App

      LA Tech Week 2026: Sunday’s Event Lineup

      🔦 Spotlight

      LA Tech Week 2026 closes Sunday with one final day of events across Los Angeles. We have organized the remaining lineup by neighborhood so you can finish the week with a few last conversations before everyone returns to their regularly scheduled inboxes.

      ARTS DISTRICT

      12:00 PM

      CARSON

      12:00 PM

      CULVER CITY

      9:00 AM

      • Women in Cleantech & Sustainability Hike and Network: See Details Here
        Women in Cleantech & Sustainability

      6:00 PM

      • Founders pitch competition: See Details Here
        Biomorphix solutions, Nightingale regenerative

      HOLLYWOOD

      10:00 AM

      4:00 PM

      • AI International: Film, Music Video & Micro-Drama: See Details Here
        AI International Film Festivals

      MID CITY

      1:00 PM

      OTHER

      12:00 PM

      • ORGANIC LIFE LABS™ PRESENTS THE ALIGNMENT LAB: The Science of human performance: See Details Here
        The Blue Room Collective

      SANTA MONICA

      8:00 AM

      1:00 PM

      6:00 PM

      SOUTH LA

      2:00 PM

      • Future Builders : Family STEM Day: See Details Here
        Black L.A. Tech Week (Community Collective)

      VENICE

      10:00 AM

      12:00 PM

      • How to Raise Funds to Fund Any Business Using Digital Products.: See Details Here
        DN Events

      VIRTUAL

      5:00 PM

      WEST HOLLYWOOD

      3:00 PM

      Each session provides unique opportunities to gain insights, network, and explore various fields of tech innovation. For updates or more event information, visit the official Tech Week calendar.

      Download the dot.LA App

      LA Tech Week 2026: Saturday’s Event Lineup

      🔦 Spotlight

      LA Tech Week 2026 heads into the weekend Saturday with more opportunities to learn, meet fellow builders and explore what is being created across the region. Browse the day’s events by neighborhood below and find the gatherings worth leaving the house for.

      ARTS DISTRICT

      5:30 PM

      BEL AIR

      5:00 PM

      CULVER CITY

      10:00 AM

      1:00 PM

      4:00 PM

      DOWNTOWN

      11:00 AM

      2:00 PM

      • South Asians in Space, Physical AI: See Details Here
        american south asian network

      5:00 PM

      7:00 PM

      HOLLYWOOD

      8:00 PM

      INGLEWOOD

      10:00 PM

      LONG BEACH

      10:00 AM

      12:00 PM

      LOS FELIZ

      8:30 AM

      • Griffith Observatory Hike with Longevity Cities & Don't Die LA: See Details Here
        Longevity Cities

      MALIBU

      5:00 PM

      MARINA DEL RAY

      9:30 AM

      • The Brazen Capital Walk: Connecting Women, Capital & Opportunity: See Details Here
        BrazenEra

      6:00 PM

      • Build an AI workflow editor, natively in Angular: See Details Here
        Workflow Builder

      SANTA MONICA

      7:00 AM

      • Founders Running Club Run in Santa Monica: See Details Here
        Founders Running Club, MongoDb

      9:00 AM

      • MOLTEN - Spatial hackathon (ElevenLabs, AssemblyAI, Rokoko, Datafeel...): See Details Here
        Field Lab

      2:00 PM

      3:30 PM

      6:00 PM

      7:00 PM

      SOUTH LA

      7:00 PM

      THE VALLEY

      7:30 PM

      UCLA

      11:00 AM

      USC

      9:00 AM

      10:00 AM

      10:30 AM

      VENICE

      8:00 AM

      • Open Air Health Tech: See Details Here
        Open Air Health Tech, Bowshock, Govitamins App

      10:00 AM

      10:30 AM

      11:00 AM

      12:00 PM

      6:00 PM

      • Bots, Bytes & Bubbles Benefit: See Details Here
        Distinguished Minds Institute dba thinqueBytes®

      VIRTUAL

      9:00 AM

      • Ask a VP of Sales: Live GTM Office Hours for Early-Stage B2B Founders: See Details Here
        Kat Rucker Consulting Group

      11:00 AM

      WEST HOLLYWOOD

      11:00 AM

      • The 10x Engineer Showed Up. The 10x Organization Didn't.: See Details Here
        Workflow Builder, Tentaro

      3:00 PM

      WESTSIDE

      11:00 AM

      2:00 PM

      • Graphic Design & Digital Printing Meetup: See Details Here
        Big Frog Custom T-Shirts & More of West LA

      7:00 PM

      WESTWOOD

      12:00 PM

      Each session provides unique opportunities to gain insights, network, and explore various fields of tech innovation. For updates or more event information, visit the official Tech Week calendar.

      Download the dot.LA App

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