Calling all New Jersey children’s media professionals! Celebrate the back-to-school season with CMA NY at a special meetup in Montclair, NJ!

Hosted by CMA Board Advisor and children’s media executive extraordinaire Amy Friedman and kids’ media creator and award-winning producer Maddie Kroll. Join us for a gathering of Montclair and neighboring towns’ community members over light bites, drinks, and conversation. Whether you’re reconnecting with familiar faces or meeting neighbors who share a passion for creating kids’ media, we hope you’ll make it out for a fun evening together. 

If you haven’t been able to make it to our regular NYC events, this is the perfect opportunity to gather closer to home. We can’t wait to see you in NJ!

Amy Friedman is the Founder and President of Redhead Consulting, advising top organizations including The Aspen Institute, Common Sense Media, and LionForge Entertainment. A multiple Peabody Award winner, she previously served as Head of Kids and Family at Warner Bros. Discovery, overseeing HBO Max/Max, Cartoon Network, and Cartoonito, and was a creative architect of Nickelodeon, with senior leadership roles at Noggin, TeenNick, Scratch, Sprout, and Universal Kids. Known for her strategic vision and inclusive storytelling, Amy is a founding Board Advisor to the Children’s Media Association, serves on several nonprofit boards, and was a 2026 Inductee into the Children’s and Family Emmy Silver Circle.

Maddie Kroll is an Emmy Award-winning producer and Head of Creative & Licensing at Boppo, where she leads creative strategy, original content development, and licensing partnerships for a new generation of screen-free interactive storytelling and play.

Before joining Boppo, Maddie led content development and production for several interactive audio experiences at Tonies, helping bring beloved characters and worlds from Disney, Pixar, DreamWorks, Paramount, and other leading children’s brands to life. She began her career as an associate producer and member of the Emmy-winning creative team behind Blue’s Clues & You!, and her work on Gabby’s Dollhouse: Cat-tastic Scavenger Hunt received a Licensing International Excellence Award.

Whether she’s developing original IP, collaborating with licensors, directing voice talent, or shaping interactive gameplay, Maddie loves bringing ideas to life from the very first spark through final production, building experiences that meet kids where they are and invite them to join in the play.

Join us for some great networking and light bites at our September Meetup! RSVP for entry. Members FREE!

American Whiskey

247 W 30th St

New York, NY 10001

Join CMA for an exciting opportunity to connect with fellow members in a more intimate setting centered around tenure and experience. Whether you’re a seasoned pro or just starting out, there is a group for you! These are casual exploration groups, perfect for finding peers in your career stage. 

Early Career (0-5 years) – For those in the first 5 years of their career looking to build foundational skills and experience.

This Early Career gathering will be hosted at Lavender Lake, offering a relaxed space to mingle and connect with other emerging professionals in children’s media. We’ll also have some light arts & crafts to help get the conversation going, including coloring pages from Little Joys: A Cozy and Relaxing Coloring Book for Adults by Anna-Laura Sullivan.

Join legendary editor and industry expert, Memo Salazar, for a one-night-only editing bootcamp. In this class you’ll learn the foundational skills to ingest and edit your own short form content, social media videos, professional cutdowns, and more.

Memo Salazar is a Mexican-born DGA director, writer, and producer. As a Supervising Editor, Memo has worked on shows with almost every network, including HBO, NBC, MTV, Nickelodeon, Discovery, CBS, The History Channel, TV Land, A&E, Comedy Central, The WB, Disney, PBS, and more. He’s worked in every genre you can imagine, including scripted television, documentary, investigative journalism, comedy, children’s media, sports programming, unscripted tv, the daily news, music videos, educational programming and more, earning three Emmys in the process. His most notable credits in the children’s media space are from his work on Sesame Street, Playtime with Noor & Aziz and Watch, Play, Learn, and, of course, his current role as Director of Post-Production for Ms. Rachel.

This editing class requires you to bring your own laptop with Adobe Premiere installed. If you do not have Adobe Premiere, you can download the free trial.

If you have any questions or concerns, please email Katie Stuller (Director of Workshops – New York) at kstuller@childrensmediaassociation.org.

Join CMA for an exciting opportunity to connect with fellow members in a more intimate setting centered around tenure and experience. Whether you’re a seasoned pro or just starting out, there is a group for you! These are casual exploration groups, perfect for finding peers in your career stage.

Mid career: (5+ years) For those with substantial experience who are established in their career and looking to advance or pivot who are not in senior leadership roles.

Celebrate Halloween and the fall season with a cozy Drink & Draw led by children’s media art director, illustrator, and creative producer Stephanie Six! In this beginner-friendly watercolor lesson, we’ll paint playful spot illustrations inspired by the season, from pumpkins and pies to all things fall and Halloween. No experience needed. Just grab a drink, pick up a paintbrush, and get ready to create, connect, and have fun!

And yes, costumes are highly encouraged! Come spooky, silly, elaborate, or completely over-the-top. We can’t wait to see what the CMA community comes up with!

Stephanie Six is an art director, picture book illustrator, and creative producer. She’s developed original content for PBS Kids, reimagined the classic Colorforms toy line into a Netflix series, and partnered with brands like Apple+, Amazon, and Little Bee Books to bring thoughtful, beautifully designed stories to life. Her most recent projects include WonderPets: In the City! (Apple+), an unannounced Yoto project, and art for the upcoming book series Princess Penelope’s Purse of Proposterous Things (Loyola Press). You can see more of her work at stephaniesix.com.

Fordham’s Department of Communication & Media Studies invites CMA NY for a Media Literacy Week discussion about what works comedically for different age groups – and why! 

When’s wordplay worth it? Can that punchline pack more punch? How old are you when you finally realize banana peels are just not that slippery? Join us to learn what lands humor wise among different age demographics – from a developmental perspective! This discussion, hosted by Fordham’s Department of Communication & Media Studies, will be led by Sherri Hope Culver (Director of the Center for Media and Communication Literacy at Temple University) and will feature two of the funniest writers we know, Adam Peltzman and Leah Gotcsik, as well as renowned psychologist and researcher Dr. Natascha Crandall, who has tested material with the toughest crowds and most honest critics of all: kids!

[This event is free (using access code) for CMA Members, Students, and NAMLE Members. Non-Member tickets are $10]

LOCATION:

Fordham University at Lincoln Center 109 McMahon Hall, on 60th Street between Columbus & Amsterdam Avenues. Room 109 is right by the entrance to the building and is accessible. Photo ID required for entry.

FEATURING:

Sherri Hope Culver
Director of the Center for Media and Information Literacy, Temple University

Sherri is Director of the Center for Media and Information Literacy (MIL) at Temple University where she is a professor in Klein College of Media and Communication and directs the Certificate in Children’s Media. Sherri holds a UNESCO Chair in MIL. She produces and hosts the podcast Kids Talk Media.

Natascha Crandall, Ph.D.
President, Crandall Consulting, LLC

Dr. Natascha Crandall is a psychologist, educator, researcher, Guest Lecturer, and Daytime EmmyAward Judge who works towards enhancing children’s growth and development through the power of media. She is the founder and president of Crandall Consulting, LLC. Natascha received her doctorate from Teachers College, Columbia University and has been an industry expert for 20+ years. She has extensive experience in curriculum development, script review, diversity consulting and formative research for over 80 shows including: Gabby’s Dollhouse, The Octonauts, Clifford the Big Red Dog, Alma’s Way, Bing, Bubble Guppies, Peter Rabbit, Bob the Builder, and many Sesame Workshop international co-productions. Natascha is also the Board President for The Prompt Institute and is a past member of the Board of Education of Woodcliff Lake, NJ.

Adam Peltzman
Creator, Writer, and Producer (Go, Dog. Go!, Odd Squad)

Adam Peltzman is a five-time Emmy winning creator, writer and producer. He served as Executive Producer and showrunner of the popular animated Netflix series, Go, Dog. Go!, which he developed from the classic children’s book. Adam created and ran the animated Nickelodeon series Wallykazam! and co-created the PBS Kids live action series Odd Squad. He also co-created the WNYC fictional family podcast series, This Podcast Has Fleas. Adam began his career on the hit series, Blue’s Clues where he eventually became head writer. Additional head writer credits include Helpsters, The Electric Company, The Backyardgians and Bubble Guppies. When he’s not writing for television, Adam finds himself dabbling in short fiction, short humor and short plays, often while wearing shorts. He’s recently had pieces published with Writers Digest, New Jersey Monthly and McSweeney’s Internet Tendency. Adam lives with his family in Montclair, New Jersey, where he plays an excessive amount of pickleball.

Leah Gotcsik
Writer and Showrunner (The Tiny Chef Show, SuperKitties)

Leah Gotcsik is an Emmy, Annie and Canadian Screen Award winning writer/showrunner. She has worked across networks and streamers in CG, 2D, stop-motion and live-action, as Executive Producer of The Tiny Chef Show, Co-Producer/Head Writer of SuperKitties, Head Writer for Bubble Guppies and Chico Bon Bon: Monkey with a Toolbelt, and Story Editor for Alma’s Way. She’s also written on Odd Squad, Helpsters, Molly of Denali and Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, to name a few. Leah’s developed original and major IP properties for Nickelodeon, Netflix, Amazon, and Mattel/Max, including the recently released Barney’s World. She is a 2024 graduate of the WGAE Showrunner Academy, a veteran improv and sketch writer/performer with Second City, UCB, the Annoyance, Baby Wants Candy, and others, and a lifelong member of the “Tries Her Best” Club, as designated by her son. If you give her a piece of pie, she will eat it.