Donald G. James

Administration Director

As the Administration Director for Riveting River, Donald relies on his background as an executive communications and education leader specializing in STEM education. During his 35-year NASA career, he served as the Agency’s Associate Administrator for Education, Director of Strategic Communications and Education at NASA’s Ames Research Center, and Education Director at NASA Ames. As Associate Administrator for Education, Donald led efforts to leverage NASA’s unique capabilities to advance high-quality STEM Education. As Director of Strategic Communications and Education at Ames, he managed communications, education, and public outreach, while engaging government and business officials about NASA’s missions. As Ames’ Education Director, Donald served as project manager for the International Space University’s (ISU) 2009 Summer Session Program. ISU attracted 136 students from 33 nations. He redesigned the Ames Exploration Encounter, a free half-day educational experience for middle school students, including significant physical design and instructional content changes. Donald holds a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations from the University of Southern California, a Master of Arts in International Economic Development from American University, and studied economics and history at Cambridge University in England. He also attended the Senior Executive Fellows program at Harvard University.

Craig Ching

In-house Counsel

Attorney Craig Ching earned his Juris Doctorate from Golden Gate University School of Law. He was a member of Law Review and also served as a judicial extern to the Honorable Maria-Elena James of the United States District Court, Northern District of California. Craig later served as a research attorney for the Law and Motion Department of the San Mateo Superior Court. Craig has over 13 years of experience representing clients in personal injury disputes, immigration matters, and commercial law. He has also assisted law firms in the areas of administrative law, employment law, business law, products liability, and appeals. Craig currently provides outside general counsel services to both for-profit and non-profit businesses. Craig’s commitment to the business community is extensive. He has worked as a panel attorney for the AIDS Legal Referral Panel and has provided pro bono legal services to the Justice and Diversity Center (Community Organization Representation Project). As a consulting attorney with the San Francisco Small Business Development Center, Craig counsels entrepreneurs in growing and protecting their business interests.

Robert Zipser

Entertainment Attorney

Robert has practiced entertainment law for over 25 years. He has worked as an attorney for MGM Pictures, Carolco Pictures Inc.—then the most prominent independent production company in Hollywood, and the leading U.S. law firm Skadden and Stroock. He currently has a private practice in which he represents producers and production companies, writers, authors, actors, publishers, and other entertainment industry professionals. Robert has particular expertise in the field of option agreements for motion picture and television rights to books. He has also served as a legal consultant for prominent media companies such as Playboy Entertainment Group. His articles on entertainment law issues have appeared in Filmmaker Magazine, Los Angeles Lawyer (cover story), and West’s Entertainment, Publishing & The Arts Handbook (an annual anthology of the best media law articles published in that year) among other publications. Robert has taught entertainment law and guest lectured on the negotiation of entertainment law contracts. He has also served on boards of directors of film companies, including Cinergi Pictures Entertainment Inc., founded by the late Hungarian film producer Andrew G. Vajna.

To Be Hired

HR Manager

To Be Hired

Accounting Manager

Michael S. Malone

Creative Director

Michael is an author, journalist, and television host—often called “The First Historian of Silicon Valley.” After earning two degrees from Santa Clara University (where he currently teaches), he joined the San Jose Mercury News as the world’s first daily high-tech reporter. There, he was nominated twice for Pulitzer Prizes in investigative reporting. Michael has been a columnist for the New York Times, ABC News, and Forbes. At Forbes, he was editor-in-chief of the nation’s largest circulation technical business magazine, Forbes ASAP. Michael is the author or co-author of nearly twenty-five books of business, history, and biography, notably the best-selling The Virtual Corporation, Bill and Dave, and The Future Arrived Yesterday. The host of four PBS interview series, he was co-producer and writer of the Emmy-nominated PBS primetime miniseries The New Heroes. A founding shareholder of several successful Silicon Valley startups, including eBay, in 2010, Michael was among the first to receive SCU’s Leader’s Legacy Award. For creating the Silicon Valley Comes to Oxford program, now the most significant event for entrepreneurs in Europe, he was named a Distinguished Friend of Oxford and Associate Fellow at Saïd business school. A regular op-ed contributor to the Wall Street Journal, Michael has three books slated for publication this year. You can hear Michael on his weekly podcast, The Silicon Insider, where he and co-host Scott Budman (an Emmy, national Iris Award, and two Golden Mike Awards winner) talk about the latest news and controversies in Silicon Valley.

David Jay Lasky

Outreach Manager

David Jay Lasky was born and raised in the New York City Housing Projects in Brooklyn, New York by his single mother Judith Lederman-Lasky. Since the age of 6, he has had a love for entertainment. David dreamed of writing, producing, and directing films that would engage audiences intellectually, emotionally, and visually. The journey began when he was awarded a scholarship from The New York Times to attend the University of Southern California in 1999. It changed his life forever. In May 2003, David graduated from USC with a Bachelor’s degree in Cinema/Television and English Literature. He worked as a reporter for The New York Times under Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Martin Gottlieb and with Bernard Weintraub. David also worked for New York Times editor Dana Canedy, whose film A Journal for Jordan was directed by Denzel Washington and starred Michael B. Jordan, and was released theatrically from Columbia Pictures where David Lasky then interned for Weintraub’s wife Amy Pascal. Lasky produced the film Bread and Butter, which starred Bobby Moynihan (Saturday Night Live) and Lauren Lapkus (Jurassic World). David also is a producer for Emmy-winning director Arthur Allan Seidelman’s film Delfino’s Journey that will star Oscar winner Helen Hunt and Dermot Mulroney. David also produced the film Final, which is now available on Amazon. He is currently producing several projects with Golden Globe nominee Joely Fisher and Oscar winner Walter Matthau’s son Charles Matthau.

Julie Jervis

Script Director

Julie’s love of writing, along with the skills she has honed from a diverse career in the field, makes her a valued and trusted team member. She is a former NASA science writer and the author of The World Beneath Their Wings A New Millennium of Female Aviators, with extensive experience in marketing communications and content strategy. Her vast portfolio includes major Fortune 500 companies, as well as non-profit organizations and startups. She has extensive experience collaborating with design and web production teams to develop all kinds of collateral, from web copy and blogs to video scripts, and from white papers and guides to banner ads. After beginning her career in an editorial role at the United Nations in Europe, Julie worked as a reporter for an international high-tech news agency, covering events in Silicon Valley for the world’s press. Since then, she has written and developed content for technology companies that include Apple, PayPal, IBM, Dell, Seagate, Arm, and Varian Medical Systems, and has led marketing and PR initiatives for smaller companies. Julie has a degree in French from the Royal Society of Arts in England and speaks several European languages.

Ryan Merriweather

Development Director

Having lived in Germany, France, Turkey, and the United States, Ryan’s parents sparked his passion for international, along with domestic entertainment, by exposing him to media from all over the world. After graduating from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and earning a Master of Science in Psychology from the University of Phoenix, Ryan decided to pursue his true calling as a professional creative by graduating from Full Sail University’s MFA in Creative Writing program where he was named the Salutatorian of his graduating class and received numerous Course Director’s Awards. He then earned his Graduate Certification from their Education Media Design & Technology program while receiving several more Course Director’s Awards. From there, Ryan went on to pursue a full-time career in the entertainment industry, where he has worked with companies around the globe from London to Los Angeles, such as Flix Premiere, StoryFit Inc., Shore Scripts, SonicScoop, and the Cincinnati Film Festival. From his work as a screenwriter and independent producer to serving as a production coordinator, story analyst, and film development screener, Ryan is a dedicated entertainment and creative writing professional who is quickly on the rise.

Kat MacDonald

Development Manager

Riveting River Development Manager, Kat MacDonald, has been at the forefront of creative ventures for many years. She started her own successful promotions company in the mid 1990s. Prior to launch, Kat worked in the advertising industry in Seattle. Her projects included media engagements for The Three Tenors, creating web-based stores for the mortgage industry, and writing speeches for Seattle politicians. As the daughter of a military officer, Kat spent her early years in Europe. German is her first language. Traveling, exploring new cultures is still a passion of Kat’s. She earned a degree in International Communications from the University of Washington. Additional achievements include recognition as an instructional systems designer, master gardener, and multi-media artist. Twenty years ago, Kat moved to New Mexico, primarily to escape the omnipresent rain of the PNW. The middle Rio Grande Valley is now home, providing Kat with an impressive backdrop for her sharp-witted short stories of the wild west.

Mea Siegel

Script Development Manager

Since childhood, Mea has been captivated by stories, especially those on screen. She earned a degree in Film, Television, and Interactive Media from Brandeis University and studied film production at one of Europe’s oldest film schools, FAMU, the Film and Television School of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague. During her studies, Mea interned with several film and television companies and organizations, becoming familiar with different aspects of the industry. She gained experience reviewing and drafting production and distribution contracts for a national broadcasting company, performing script coverage for a production company, and editing screenplays. After university, Mea returned to California, where she works as a teacher. Mea brings to Riveting River her knowledge of screenwriting, which she uses as a Script Development Manager to analyze and improve screenplays, offering feedback for conceptual, structural, and line edits. She also uses her experience as a teacher to provide one-on-one guidance to writers to hone their skills.

Natasha Alston

Script Development Manager

Natasha began her study of film in Sacramento, during which she had directorial work shown at The Sacramento Film and Music Festival, the longest-running non-genre-specific festival in the region. She continued her screenwriting education in Canada at the Vancouver Film School, one of the world’s most well-known and renowned entertainment institutions. The school has won hundreds of awards, and its alumni have worked on many of today’s biggest films. While there, she volunteered on numerous independent film sets and worked as a producer at the festival, touring the short film Small Displays of Chaos. After coming back to Sacramento, she has returned to her passion for screenwriting. She enjoys participating in National Novel Writing Month, and freelance editing and writing for independent publications. Natasha brings to Riveting River the expertise of analyzing and improving any script by understanding and employing the basics of good screenwriting.

Jeanne Schieffer

Script Review Manager

A South Dakota native, Jeanne is a communications consultant, columnist, screenwriter, novelist, playwright, storyteller, and poet. With an extensive career in marketing and business, Jeanne works as a grant writer and communications consultant for several companies and organizations. She serves on several educational and philanthropic boards and is a script review manager for Riveting River Entertainment, Inc. Her work has been featured in numerous poetry and short story anthologies, magazines, commercials, and videos. A graduate of Lew Hunter’s Screenwriting Colony, Jeanne has written several screenplays which are currently in development, and her monthly column, Three Sides to Every Story, is published by Wick Communications. Currently a resident of Columbus, Nebraska, Jeanne holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theater and English from the University of South Dakota and a Master of Arts in Poetry from the University of Nebraska-Kearney.

Jeff Applebaum

Performance Manager

After more than 25 years in California, this New York City native is finally learning to speak English. Jeff made his national T.V. debut on CBS as a comedian on the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. He has also appeared on Comics Unleashed (ABC), America’s Got Talent (NBC), and has a DryBar Comedy special coming soon. Jeff has opened for and performed with comic legends Robert Klein, Mort Sahl, Robin Williams, Dana Carvey, Elayne Boosler, and more. He’s also a frequent guest on KGO Radio, AM810 in San Francisco, CA. Jeff was cast by Sandy Hackett, the late Buddy Hackett’s son, to play the principal role of Joey Bishop in the long-running musical tribute The Rat Pack Is Back, in San Francisco, Chicago, and Las Vegas. He is also credited and appears in the blockbuster film The Pursuit of Happyness, starring Will Smith. Jeff is also active in the business and hi-tech worlds, using his two engineering degrees from MIT. He performs worldwide for major tech companies, on Zoom and other virtual platforms, and in clubs and theaters. Learn more at www.jeffapplebaum.com.

Ben Thum

Documentary Manager

Ben, who conceived and developed the concept for A Gift for Laughter: Comedy & the Jews, is an award-winning radio and television producer and former KFI Los Angeles talk show host. He produced, wrote, and directed the documentary Alley Cracker: The Story of Handball, about the world’s oldest ball game, which premiered on ESPN. He was the creator and Executive Producer of KQED-TV’s pilot series for The Rick Reynolds Show, a late-night television talk show entry. Ben won the coveted Los Angeles Times Golden Mike award for best radio interview program three years in a row and featuring best-selling authors Maya Angelou, Dalton Trumbo, Harry Shearer, Studs Terkel, and many others. He was a top-rated morning radio personality in Los Angeles and San Francisco for many years and judged the San Francisco Int’l Stand-Up Comedy Festival. Ben has interviewed scores of comedians for his radio programs, including George Carlin, Mort Sahl, and Albert Brooks. Ben’s experience as a stage actor, radio/TV talk show host, and music personality helps drive his freelance work as a veteran voice actor/narrator. As a comedy writer, Ben sees himself as a 6-foot-6-inch version of the Greek god Adonis, with thick dark hair flowing to his shoulders, hair that reminds many people of the Bavarian Black Forest after a particularly heavy Spring downpour.

Michael Feldberg, PhD

Historian & Research Manager

In addition to being the Historian and Research Manager for Riveting River, Michael is executive director of the George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom, an organization devoted to promoting respect for differences in religious belief. From 1991 to 2004, he served as executive director of the American Jewish Historical Society, the nation’s oldest ethnic historical organization, and from 2004 to 2008 was its director of research. He has led teacher training institutes for the National Endowment for the Humanities and served on the faculties of John Jay College of Criminal Justice (CUNY), the University of Massachusetts-Boston, and Boston University. Michael is the author or editor of eight books in American history. His work on anti-Catholic violence in nineteenth-century Philadelphia remains unsurpassed, and his 1980 synthesis of the history of violence in Jacksonian America is in use in classrooms. Michael has curated several exhibitions, including From Haven to Home: 350 Years of American Jewish History, which is currently on a national tour, and two exhibitions on American Jewish chaplains in World War II. He also curated the exhibition on Jewish Life at the U.S. Naval Academy for the Uriah P. Levy Chapel, located on the Academy’s campus in Annapolis, MD. Michael holds a PhD. in history from the University of Rochester and an AB from Cornell University. Michael has received several fellowships and awards, including those from the Woodrow Wilson Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities. He lives with his wife, four dogs, and a cat in Middlefield, MA, one of the “hidden hill towns” of the Berkshires.

David Frei

Media Director

David is famous for hosting The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, The National Dog Show, and The Beverly Hills Dog Show. He is an American Kennel Club (AKC)-licensed judge who has officiated dog shows all over the world. David held public relations positions with the Denver Broncos, the San Francisco 49ers, and ABC Sports before moving to Seattle in the early 1980s, where he worked in the PR agency business and owned two restaurants. In 1990, David was hired by Chet Collier, President of the Westminster Kennel Club, as the television co-host for the club’s dog show from Madison Square Garden, a position he held each February through 2016. In 2003, he added the position of director of media relations for the club, and moved to New York from Seattle. In 2002, NBC and the Kennel Club of Philadelphia hired him to co-host (with TV star John O’Hurley) the new National Dog Show Presented by Purina on Thanksgiving Day. O’Hurley and David have performed those duties together every year since, playing to the largest TV audience of any dog show on television—most recently, 25 million total viewers in 2018. After hosting the Westminster telecast in 2016, David left Westminster to work full-time for NBC to continue with the National Dog Show, adding co-hosting duties (again with O’Hurley) for the new Beverly Hills Dog Show in 2017. He is co-author, with Mike Lingenfelter, of The Angel by My Side published in 2002. His book, Angel on a Leash, published in 2011, won a Dog Writers Association of America’s Maxwell Award in 2012. David was inducted into the Dog Writers Association of America’s Hall of Fame in 2017. He was once called “probably the most famous human in the world of canines” by New York Magazine. David and his wife, Chaplain Cherilyn Frei, moved to Cannon Beach, Oregon, in 2016.

Jane Stepak

Website Director

Jane oversees the web development activities for Riveting River Entertainment. She comes to our team with 25 years of experience in website development, technical writing, and software engineering. Jane has developed websites using content management systems, including WordPress, Drupal, Joomla, Weebly, Squarespace, and Wix. She has particular expertise in understanding the client’s requirements and managing the project budget and schedule. In addition to her exemplary web design and development work, Jane has written numerous technical documents for various projects. In addition, she is frequently asked to provide editing feedback on the website content, key project documents, and other team members’ work products. Before joining the Riveting River team, Jane held positions at various notable firms, including Oracle, TiVo, and the Collaborative. Over the years, Jane has worked for several startups and welcomes the excitement and opportunities at hand as a member of the Riveting River team at this early stage. Jane has a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Engineering and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mathematics from Boston University, and a Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University.

Kent Johnson

Outreach Director

Kent relies on his wealth of industry experience to direct outreach communication for Riveting River. Kent’s first credit was on Dan Curtis’ ​Curse of the Black Widow (TV Movie). Forward to 2020, and 58 credits later, Kent has a film industry legacy that includes box office hits such as ​Cliffhanger, ​The Italian Job, ​The Expendables, and ​The Replacement Killers. Kent’s last Property Master credit was in 2013 with ​Escape Plan. In addition to being a liaison between the company and outside entities (studios, investors, producers, talent, etc.), Kent is working on his own projects with writers Don Morgan and Bill Kingman to develop and produce marketable scripts that appeal to a wide range of movie and television/cable audiences. Temecula, California is home now for Kent. Three hundred organic certified lemon trees, a wife of many years, and five dogs makes up his family.

Jonathan Cheung

Video Director

Jonathan oversees a half-dozen team of video experts through the company he owns, Spiral Moon Media, Inc., to provide all of the video production work needed by Riveting River. A 10-year U.S. Army veteran, Jonathan brings over 13 years of project management experience to his video director role. His experience as a former U.S. Army Engineer Captain has prepared him to achieve results even in the harshest of conditions. Jonathan follows his passion for video and movies to produce top-notch corporate, governmental, non-profit, and personal videos. As the leader of Spiral Moon Media, a Santa Clara-based video production company, he and his close team of video experts (director, producer, camera operators, sound technician, lighting technician, and post-production editors) work hand-in-hand with Riveting River. Jonathan uses his diverse education, world travels, and extensive skills when working with prestigious clients such as Steve Wozniak, Google, Samsung, Stanford University, Microsoft, Nvidia, Palo Alto Networks, and many others. Jonathan has an A.A. in Business Administration from Ohlone College, a B.S. in Computer Engineering from UC Irvine, and an M.A. in International Relations from St. Mary’s University.

Robin Anderson

Marketing and PR Manager

For most of her career, Robin has focused on improving the customer experience. By keenly listening to users and analyzing the true source of problems, she has played a unique and essential role in taking products to the next level, growing both initial use and repeat loyalty. Equally important, Robin has taken this consumer knowledge to formulate and execute successful go-to-market strategies for the introduction and launch of new products and reframing of established brands. Her expertise includes program management, campaign design and execution, SEO/SERP, online and offline communications, and competitive analyses. An Apple veteran, Robin has also provided services to CleverTap, Symantec, H.P., Webroot, SEMI, and other technology innovators. Robin was an Asset Building Champion for Project Cornerstone for a Cupertino Elementary School. She also participated as a Team Parent for club and Little League Baseball. Robin has an M.B.A. from San Jose State University and a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of South Dakota.

Lenka Davis

Programs and Social Media Manager

A creative problem solver, Lenka helps people architect their dreams. Leveraging an instinctive ability to understand intricate structures and workflows, she creates and manages strong processes for project and program development. Lenka is PSM 1 certified and applies this framework to successfully execute projects with Agile Marketing. With a focus on high-tech consumer and education markets, her specialties include international business and cultural expertise, marketing data analysis, and budget and vendor management. In addition to an extensive career at Apple, she founded a successful retail business, built diverse customer databases, and created marketing workflow web apps. Lenka has led several fundraising campaigns for educational institutions. She was elected to the School Site Council for the local elementary school, ran several Scholastic Book Fairs, and was awarded the California PTA Honorary Service Award. Lenka led a team of 600 docent volunteers for a capital improvement campaign that raised funds for Saint Francis High School. She has been a substitute teacher for 3rd to 8th grade. Lenka has a B.A. in Business Economics from U.C. Santa Barbara.